Before I went to sleep last night,  I was feeling badly for the chickens.   In my mad rush yesterday, I forgot to give them thawed water in the afternoon.  When I returned from my afternoon errands, it was 5pm and they were already in for the night.  It was dark and both of their water sources were frozen over.  I was worried about them becoming dehydrated.  My husband gently reassured me, but I still worried about them.  I couldn’t help it, I’m their Mom.

Later that night, I was deep in a dream.  Then I heard it, the loud deep bark of a dog.  It happened twice.  I woke with the sandman’s sand still in my eyes.  I was foggy and dazed.  I looked at the clock.  It was 11:52pm.  I thought that a dog was in my room.  Then I thought  it was my neighbors’ dog or a stray dog running through the yard.  As I pondered these explanations, my husband gently snored next to me.  Then I heard the unmistakable howl of a coyote.  I immediately sprang into action.  Were my chickens in danger?

I jumped out of bed and as quick as my feet could carry me, I flew down the stairs and flicked on the front light.  I looked over at the coop and saw nothing.  Then I saw it trotting gracefully down the driveway into the shadows of the night.  It was a big, graceful and stealthlike coyote.  It was leaving after being startled from the light.  After it was out of sight, I turned off the light and made my way back to my warm and toasty bed.

I could hear my heart pounding in my ears.  I lay there wondering if it had dug a big hole under the run?  I wondered if it would return later in the evening?  Did it claw and scratch at the coop?  Would Chocolate protect the girls from the coyote?  Eventually, I drifted back to sleep and did not wake up until the morning.

Today when I went out to bring the flock fresh warm water, there were no signs of the nighttime visitor, no damage, no digging and tracks.  The coop proved to be a safe haven from coyotes.  This week our predator score is chickens-2, predators-0.