Everything is fine, until something happens...

Are you up do date with your tetanus booster shots? I am, now. I stepped on a nail in the backyard while trying to get Esther out of a tree and I didn't really think that much of it until I started reading about tetanus on WebMD. (Also, you should never go to WebMD to diagnose a possible illness unless you want to get the crap scared out of you. They put the most dire spin on every medical situation.)

Esther normally does not roost in trees, but some weird stuff happened at the old homestead recently. My family spent the weekend before New Year's at my Aunt & Uncle's little cabin in the mountains.  I moved the big birds' feeder to a safe & dry place and filled up the water trough and they were good to go, as they are free range birds and have dutifully put themselves to bed every night for nearly three years.  And I wasn't that concerned for the baby chicks because I knew as long as they had plenty of food & water, their Mama Elsa would take care of the rest.

When we arrived back home late Monday afternoon it was already getting dark, so the first thing I did was to go outside & check on my babies. They were, safe & sound, & just as cute as ever. I headed back to the house to help unload from our trip when I noticed Esther roosting on the fence by the quail cage. "Hmmm, why is she not inside?" Well, a piece of lumber I'd leaned against the coop had fallen over and even though it was not blocking the birds access, chickens are strange creatures who are easily spooked by inanimate objects. I picked Esther up & put her inside the coop. Coco saw me,  jumped down from her perch on top of the quail cage & put herself to bed. I looked all over for Nickie and Stella, but couldn't find them. My yard is big and has a million hiding places, so I figured they were sleeping somewhere together & went to finish unpacking.

Esther, the Easter-Egger, taking a dust bath.

The next morning when I went out to do my "bird chores", only Esther & Coco were there to greet me. That was not a good sign, since Nickie was always the first one to come running as soon as she heard the back door. I looked everywhere for the missing birds, but the most I could find was a small patch of black & white striped feathers near the side fence. Never found any trace of Stella. It is still a mystery to me. These birds slept in a coop that was left open day and night for almost 3 years, and then the very weekend we go away, something bad happens. Was some crafty raccoon casing the joint?  Esther still will not go into the coop by herself, so I have to go hoist her giant ass out of a tree every night and risk stepping on nails.

Bottom line, your birds are perfectly safe in your backyard, until they are not. And get your tetanus booster.