Second Verse, Same as the First

The place where the coon put its arms through the fencing, but didn't get in.
Obviously, it got some feathers off of her.

Here she is. Her back leg has that brown around it. That isn't normal, that is dirt and broken feathers. She also has her leg tucked up to her chest, favoring it. I can't get close enough to get a pic of her face to show you those abrasions. Yep, time to go to the infirmary.

Remember my freak out last year when one of our chickens was beaten up by a raccoon? Check my label "coop news" for that horrifying history.

Here we go again!

Five thirty this morning. I could hear squawking. Now chickens generally squawk at weird times, but this was insistent squawking. I was listening......then the squawking started to fade. Like the chicken was losing it's ability to squawk or it was dying.....not good. Hubbie jumped up and took the dog outside.

Sure enough, I heard two barks and something hitting our chain link fencing. I got up and met the hubbie at the back door with the question, "Did we just lose another chicken?" He said no, that he didn't see the critter but he was pretty sure it was a coon. It didn't get in the coop but got a hold of Henrietta by putting it's arms through the fencing and grabbing her. He said she seemed okay.

Later this morning I went to take a full sunshine, daylight close exam of her. My first observation, she has some very slight blood around her cockles and waddles (the red globs of flesh around chickens faces). Second observation, she has a slight limp. Third observation, the leg she is favoring has some messed up feathers. Conclusion, she got roughed up and I need to look at the leg.

Well, for a chicken with a gimpy leg, she sure made me chase her around the yard to get ahold of her. I turned her over, and moved some feathers around, which she did not like at all. That is unusual. Normally when examining a chicken, they kind of just go limp and let you do whatever to them. I think she is in enough pain that she didn't want me messing with her. Her right "elbow" has some cuts and abrasions on it. I think the coon got ahold of her by the leg and was trying to take her down (let's put it out there....it was trying to disembowel her to eat her.....there I said it).

I am ever grateful that the coon was not able to infiltrate the coop. I am glad none of us were in a dead sleep and heard her cries. I am glad her injuries were nothing like last year's.

The plan? Henrietta is in the household pet infirmary (pet carrier in the basement) resting. When I get home later and she has calmed down, I will put some peroxide on her leg and clean her up. We are also rethinking how to lock the girls up at night. It seems this happens when it's extremely cold and food sources for coons boil down to my ladies!

So, we feel lucky to have dodged a tragedy. We'll keep you posted....