chick predator

Chicks are prey to so many.  Crows will take them, rats will have them. We are trying our best.. they are with their mother hen, and the run is covered with cloth netting.. keeping the jackdaws and crows out.  They are in a broody coup inside the run, so double protection.

Our cat is hunting them. He sits on the other side of the chicken wire, staring in.  That was bad enough. But then he decided to get closer. He jumped up on a post, and the proceeded out across the netting. Obviously it could not take his weight, and he found, to his advantage he sagged down on top of the broody coup.  Mother hen took her chicks under her wings and went inside. 

My son spotted the cat and himself ran into the hen run. But he was under the netting and Ebby was on top. Himself eased Ebby back to the post.. but the moron cat jumped the last bit, got his toe caught in the nettting and found himself dangling upside down from his foot. Much wailing and struggling. Himself bolts around to rescue the cat, who frees himself, but has a cut on his foot. And clearly the pain and surprise knocked him for six.

Ebby spent a lot of time moping about for the rest of the day. At least, we said to each other, he wont try that again.

And later.. there he is, watching through the chicken wire…. I hope the chicks grow fast…