Lost Ancona bantam

silver duckwing · **Posted:** Thu Jun 19, 2008 6:22 pm

Last weekend my little Ancona disappeared. There are pics of her in the gallery; she was a pretty, cheeky little thing and a great little layer.

The chooks were all out free, but close to the pen; they never go far. my husband was home, but I was out later than expected until just on dark, so as soon as I got back i just shut the doors of the henhouse and heard them all clucking their goodnights. I had a strange feeling that I should get the torch and make sure they were all there, but didn't worry about it. In the morning when I let them out, little Mini was missing. I couldn't believe it! Kept double-checking the laying box and the roost until I had to admit she was gone.
I can only think that a fox or a kestrel or maybe a feral cat must have grabbed her just on dusk before they headed to the roost. The others were all calm, none went off the lay, there were no feathers around. It's possible that she was snatched by a two-legged fox while sleeping, but I don't know if she was there when I shut them in. We have some suspect neighbours who have muttered darkly about the rooster crowing; they may have been dumb enough to mistake her for a rooster as she is the only one with a large comb (my rooster's comb is more like an escaped brain on his forehead). But I don't want to cast aspersions without any good reason.
It's left me feeling sick and sad. I was responsible for that little life, and I blew it. I usually shut them in the run if I'm going to be away for any length of time, but I was caught out by a job taking longer than it should have. Poor things will have a lot less free range time than they did.

bunyanuternie · **Joined:** Wed Jul 11, 2007 10:31 pm **Posts:** 2903

Lets hope shes gone off to hatch some eggs

moonshadow_dancer · **Posted:** Thu Jun 19, 2008 11:10 pm

I do hope you find the little one.

It is so hard when someone goes missing, whether it be a tiny mouse to a huge elephant, when you love them it is very hard,

My thoughts and prayers are with you.

Please keep us posted on your wee ones status.

Take Care
Deb :cry:

silver duckwing · **Posted:** Fri Jun 20, 2008 11:53 am

Thanks for the sympathy. Most people around here (not mentioning my husband....) say, "It's just a chicken!"

County Lodge · **Posted:** Fri Jun 20, 2008 1:50 pm

She may come home in a couple of days after making a nest somewhere then disappear again. They do things like that. :-?

silver duckwing · **Posted:** Tue Jun 24, 2008 1:50 pm

I'm not very hopeful.
My landlord was working on the block next door yesterday, and he told me "I saw one of your bantams in my shed the other day, but it looked like it knew what it was doing, so I left it alone and I haven't seen it since." That was over a week ago. He said she must have been in the huge workshed a while, because there were footprints everywhere.
He had figured she would find her own way home, despite the fact that he saw her at the far side of the adjoining industrial estate, where she was separated from us by numerous sheds, ashphalt, guys with noisy machinery, vehicles coming and going and a chain wire fence. Stupid me - I hadn't asked him if he had seen her because I assumed that if he had, he'd have told me. Everyone over there knows the chooks are mine because they all park on the other side of the fence from the chookhouse!

I couldn't find her there. He's watching for her, but I think lack of water and local wildlife will have done her in by now. There's a large vineyard out behind the shed but there hadn't been much rain and there would have been no clean water lying around. :cry:

Needless to say, the other chooks are now totally overprotected!

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