foxes

Last night after dinner Hubby sent Mesha out to gather eggs.  We have a red light on inside the coop at night now and they are back to laying 4-6 a day.  She skipped out in her knee high converse shoes with all kinds of plans to hold her 2 large fluffy cochins before coming in again.

A few minutes later there was a high pitched scream.

Hubby and Juju headed to the back door in a rush.

The scream continued.

Mesha came running in sobbing, her shirt front full of the eggs.  An animal had meowed at her, she told them after a few minutes, but it didn't sound like a house cat.  It was kind of a bark too.  And the chicken door was still unlocked.  "I wanted to drop the eggs and run, but I didn't, I didn't break one" she said sniffling proudly checking her impromptu egg basket.

Hubby went outside and locked the hens up.  There was no sign of an animal, but he heard the dogs nearby start barking.

He snuggled with her on the couch and told her she had startled a fox, and it had done its strange & eerie bark in return before taking off through the neighborhood.

We see foxes a lot in the area.  There was a den across the street under Miss Vicky's deck until this year.  We see them running down the street and jumping easily over the six foot fences in the alley.  But we don't have a rabbit problem, and see very few mice.  I would rather have them in the neighborhood than either rodents or the deer I hear people complain about.  They are an important part of the food chain.

Mostly we are happy to see them.  But watching local wildlife from 50 feet away is quite different then having them spook you in your back yard.  They have been quite interested in our livestock since we moved the ducks to the back corner of the property.  But other than losing one quail, we had not known they "hung out".

This is why farms have watch dogs for their flocks I guess.