Farewell to Flick

I know my chooks and chicks have acquired something of a following, so I'm sorry to report our first loss among the chicks, who are now five weeks old. On Wednesday, our one female chick was in the coop with the rest of her family. A few hours later when I checked after a fox came bothering my girls, she was missing. We have no idea what happened to her but the fox has to be the number one suspect. There's no sign the fox got in, or any sign how or if Flick got out. A frantic search of both coops, nest boxes and the surrounding undergrowth by myself and eldest found no trace or sign. No frantic cheeping. Even if she simply got out and escaped predators, the torrential nonstop rain all that day and night means there was little chance of her surviving alone outside. Not that I would have liked to lose any of the chicks, but being our sole female and the only one we could keep makes it especially bitter. My poor Flick.

Eldest insists it's not my fault, but of course it is. I took responsibility for my chooks and I obviously didn't do quite enough for their security. Lesson learned. At least the next batch of chicks (should the new eggs currently under our smooth mottle pekin Pitch hatch) will be that extra bit safer. It's not been my best week of the holiday.