Lost everything to a fox

We were down to one leghorn. All of the guineas had met their demise as well as most of the chickens. I had 10 chicks that had feathered out and I put them out in the chicken shed.

About a week ago I saw something white moving at the edge of our woods. As I ran into the backyard, I saw a fox carrying off our leghorn. There wasn't much I could do as we are in a no-discharge zone. I went back to the shed and found the corner where the fox had gotten in. All of the chicks were gone (probably as fox brunch).

So, the lessons learned

• The critters will find any weak spot in your protection. The chicken wire needs to be inspected regularly.
• Have a backup plan to battle ticks - We are still supposed to get guineas although they won't be ready to roam for a couple of months. In the meantime, I'm keeping the grass short, putting out mouse bait and will be ordering some pullets from our local poultry place.