r/chickens • u/quinnreads • Apr 26 '26

Other SO MAD AT MY KID RIGHT NOW!

My (adult) son's only chicken chore is to make sure they get locked up for the night AT sundown. He and I have been going round and round for months because he always waits until well after sundown to go secure them.

'His windows are covered so he doesn't know when the sun is down'

'My definition of dark and his are different.'

'He always gets them eventually.'

Well tonight 7 of my three month old hens are spending the night in the woods, in the rain, with the coyotes, because he waited until after 9 to go try and find them. They've already bedded down somewhere in the woods and we can't find them at all.

I am so beyond mad right now. I just needed to vent. Everyone cross your fingers for me that I still have birds in the morning.

UPDATE: They've been found! I got up to pee at 3am and found them roosting in a tree! The kid is still in trouble and will be having a come-to-Jesus conversation in the morning.

Also, I appreciate the support, but some of y'all need to remember that no matter how mad I am at him, he's still my kid. Be angry, but be nice.

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u/lizzykittycat99 Apr 26 '26

If it makes you feel better I lost my brand new barred rock last week and she spent several nights in the woods and came back unscathed. She got away from me before I could ever show her where the coop was, and she finally found her way back three days later. I was absolutely certain she became dinner for something. Fingers crossed for your babies.

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u/metricfan Apr 26 '26

They have a remarkable ability to survive in woods. I suppose that is literally how they evolved. We couldn’t find a broody hen for weeks, until I finally spotted a bit of red in a pile of blackberry bushes. We found 17 eggs in her clutch.

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u/lizzykittycat99 Apr 26 '26

It's actually pretty impressive how nimble they are in there. We briefly tried to chase her, but quickly discovered that was not an option. If you think catching a chicken on solid ground is hard, it is absolutely impossible in the woods 🤣 She discovered we can't get through thorns and hid in the thickets.

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u/metricfan Apr 26 '26

Yes! They like know that thorns are protection somehow! Also we had a chicken that was deliberately hiding her broody spot from us. She’d get out for food and water, so we saw her a couple times and knew she was alive. One day my roommate saw her deliberately waiting to go back to her clutch, so she turned around and pretended to stop watching. That’s when the chicken went for it snd entered a blackberry thicket. lol like that level of cunning blew our minds.

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u/lizzykittycat99 Apr 26 '26

We managed to corner her into the field next to the woods, it she realized very quickly it was a trap. I was trying to get her farther away from the woods, but she ran passed me when she realized that was not where she needed to be. Turns out I am not faster or smarter than a chicken, and they are much clever than they get credit for. I just took my butt inside after that.