And then there were four...

Four chickens now instead of five. Daisy died this morning, sometime before noon. That poor hen managed to get herself up into a nesting box yesterday afternoon, and she stayed there all night and all morning today. I guess she thought she'd be safe in a nest, and she seemed comfy enough, but still, the wounds from Willie's paws (or teeth) were just very deep.

The chickens have all been very quiet today, and have been since their episode of screaming when Willie attacked them yesterday morning. I haven't heard a squawk or a cluck, not so much as a peep, since I got Willie away from the coop yesterday after his bad decision to catch one of the chickens. Makes me wonder if the chickens realize that one of them was hurt and now is missing altogether.

Yesterday morning, we brought Willie to the shelter, and yesterday afternoon, a wild turkey found its way to our yard. Huge turkey, looks like a female, and it may be the same one that's been hanging around our across-the-road neighbor's property since last week. My husband got a picture of the turkey as it was standing under the rose arbor by the cottage, and the turkey seemed to just pose there as if it knew her picture was being taken.

Seems like with every week, there's something new either flying or walking on the property. Last week I saw a gray fox and a possum within minutes of one another as they walked across the courtyard in front of the house. Maybe they're coming up from the woods looking for water..... with all the creeks and ponds drying up (no rain here since mid-January) the wildlife have figured out that there may be fountains and water dishes close up to the houses.

We're still talking about Willie... he was such a good dog in so many ways, but his last action here was such a bad and unforgivable one. When we were driving Willie to the shelter yesterday, he sat on the back seat of the car, right on top of the towel we laid out for him, as if he knew what was expected of him. All the way into town, he just looked out the window, sitting there like a perfect gentleman, looking at the farms and the livestock along the way. We're hoping that Willie finds himself a good home... one with a huge backyard, a pantry filled with dog food, and a yard without chickens.