Amelia Flies Again

Thank you to everyone for your comments on my post yesterday. Most of you advised that I clip Amelia's wings and my thought response was "yeah, if I can catch her." Mary Ann answered that question with her excellent suggestion of buying a big fishing net on a long pole. I think we will invest in one of those for the times that we do need to catch a chicken. Some are docile and easy, even willing, to be caught. Others, like Amelia and Earhart, not so much.

I don't think we will clip her feathers, though. I don't mind that she flies out, as long as she finds her way back into the hen house at night. If Sedona were still alive, it would be a different story. Sedona killed more than one chicken in her day. Kersey, on the other hand, can't be bothered with chickens. She doesn't chase the cat, the chickens or the goats. The only thing she chases is squirrels; it must be hard-wired into the genes of dogs. I think they all chase squirrels.

This morning was gorgeous. There is another storm coming into our area and the clouds started arriving this morning. I actually stopped the car on the road and took a picture of the sunrise.

I've been seeing a lot of wild turkeys and deer on the road as well. We drive slowly on our lane but not everyone does. Every couple of weeks there is a dead deer on the side of the road; a victim of someone driving far too fast and not paying attention (probably after having too much wine at the wineries up on top of the hill).

Amelia did fly out of the hen pen this morning, as soon as Brett opened the door to the hen house. She spent the day happily scratching under the fruit trees in my garden. At dusk, she flew back in and went into the hen house with the rest of the flock. Brett wasn't positive she was in there and was afraid to open the door in case they all made a mad dash to get out. When I got home, there was just a bit of light left so when I opened the door they just turned their heads and blinked their bright eyes at me. Amelia and Earhart were sitting next to each other, roosting on the edge of a nesting box, and cocked their combs in my direction with an inquisitive look. I nodded to them and shut the door.