Marginalia, Trivialities & Suchlike
Quick update: We had snow last night, which gave proof of the return of the scurrilous skunk. The run and coop were surrounded by incriminating skunk prints in the snow, especially in the area where I suspected entry had been gained before. But we awoke to three healthy hens, so all’s well that (so far ) end’s well. The trusty Ruger 10/22 remains ready for future bad acts, of course.
I think a while back I mentioned that one evening I went to put the hens away and found several skunks in the coop. They disappeared after that encounter, or at least they weren’t around when I was tending to the girls. Last week, they were back again at chicken bedtime, and I ended up leaving the coop open. The next morning I found that they’d eaten all the chicken feed. So when I put them girls to bed on Sunday night, I took the feeder out of the coop and wished the five hens goodnight, assuring them I’d feed them bright and early the next morning.
On Monday morning, I went to let the chickens out into their run and found three live hens and two dead ones, and a distinct skunk aroma lingering in the air. Murdered by smelly skunks. What an indignity. Needless to say, Monday was a pretty shitty day. I’ve since fortified the old, decrepit coop as well as I could, and there don’t appear to have been any further incursions. But each morning, I experience a terrible knot in my stomach until I see all three remaining hens out and about, scratching and clucking.
Anyway, sorry to share the sad news, but there it is. RIP Eleven, and nameless black hen. You were good girls and we appreciated your brief lives.