And then there were six...

We had five chickens and two Guinea hens this afternoon when we left to take a drive..... a total of seven birds who followed us around the yard and made us smile. When we came home, we were missing one-- Edie, the black Australorp with the green iridescence in her feathers. I looked all around the backyard for her, then went into the kitchen to get a can of corn-- all the chickens love that as an afternoon treat. I thought that would surely lure her out of hiding, since Edie-Bird was always first in line for special treats.

The chickens and the Guinea hens were munching away on the corn, and still no sign of Edie. I guessed she was hiding underneath the bushes in front of the house, which some of the birds have done from time to time. As soon as I walked down the front steps to look for her, though, I knew she wasn't hiding........ poor Edie was floating in the base of the fountain in front of the house.

I couldn't even look...... I came back into the house and called for my husband to come get her out of the water. She was long gone..... her eyes were glazed over... nothing to be done for her, poor thing.

The fountain has three tiers, plus a tin tub which is three feet underneath the stone courtyard. The chickens have been drinking out of the fountain before, but I guess this time, Edie must have tried to perch on the thin ridge of that underground tub and she must have fallen in head first. Once their feathers get soaked like that, there's no way for the chickens to fly. Plus there's nothing inside the base of that fountain for a foot-hold.... she must have just sank to the bottom, then floated on top of the water after her last breath.

Had we been home, we might have heard her squawking and cackling and splashing, and we could have saved her. I don't know what's worse-- to have found her floating in the water like that (and I hope the end was very quick) or to have found her missing and know that a hawk must have swooped down and taken her away.

My husband asked me if I wanted to go back to Watson's farm and pick out another black chicken (Edie Two?) but I said no. It would be hard to introduce just one chicken to the other six.... the birds in our coop are all used to one another now, and they wouldn't take so quickly to a stranger. (To which my husband said we could make them little name tags to make it easier....)

Seven it was. Six it is now. Another day on the ranch, and that's just the way it goes.

And where were we this afternoon? We went to the St. Clare Monastery/Convent.... to see the miniature horses that are raised there by the Sisters of St. Clare. Cute doesn't do these little horses justice. And the cuter they are, the more expensive they are to buy.

We have thought of buying one. And of course I asked my favorite question when it comes to animals: "If we get just one, will it be lonely?" The answer to that, with these horses who are less than 38 inches tall-- is yes. They recommend you get two-- either two males, two females, or one of each-- and have the male gelded (fixed) unless you want to be raising your own little miniature horses (which we don't).

The males sell for $500..... the females can go as high as $2500-- depending if they're from a line that has won ribbons at the horse shows. And the more desirable the color, the cuter the face-- the more the price goes up. We asked about upkeep-- not much at all. Since they don't grow as big as a "regular" horse, they don't need shoes. They don't eat as much either-- they graze in the pastures (we have no shortage of those) and then their diet is supplemented by a bag of feed-- and a fifty-pound bag will last a month for two miniatures.

You have to brush them every week..... every day if you'd like to, and they appreciate the attention. You don't have to provide them with cover, but we do have a barn with easy access for them, and they could come and go as they pleased. In the Spring-time, the babies are born, and you have more of a selection as to color and sex at that time... so we're thinking.

If we did get two, we'd go back in the Spring..... and have a look at the babies. They told us we could put a deposit on the ones we wanted, and they would hold them there for us till they were weaned from the mother. (They called the babies "weanlings.") So we're thinking. Do we want two more mouths to feed? Do I want two more pets to take care of... because, me being me, any creature on this property becomes part of our family and not just livestock.

And so.... we will think..... we have till Spring to decide. These miniature horses can live 30 to 35 years. My husband says they could out-live us. Not hardly. My Aunt Dolly is already 96 and going strong towards 100..... and if anyone can make it, she certainly can. And that's what I'm aiming for as well.

Speaking of my aunts...... I named my three chickens after three of my aunts..... Dolly, Jaye, Edie. And, just like my Aunt Edie, my Edie-Bird chicken was the first one to pass away. My Aunt Edie, however, did not fall into a fountain and drown on a pretty summery day in November.