When
Miss Merriwether hatched her 3 darling chicklets we were all
delighted, for we dearly love the soft and adorable cotton bottomed
cuties dashing here and there in the Hollow. Mother Hen quickly taught
her young uns all about seed pickin', cultivatin', and dashing neath
branches at the first sign of danger. For 2 weeks mama helped her
little fuzzy bottomed babies learn the ins and outs of life as a chick
chick. Then one day, the unthinkable happened. It was around 10 o'clock
in the morn, the mistress checked on the wee babes and mother, they
were rooting about neath the trees close to the woods, all was well.
Around noon, the Mistress checked once again on the family and found to
her dismay, distress and horror that the 3 lil chicklets were cowering
in the brushes and nearby was nothing but a pile of pretty feathers
where, only 2 hours past, Miss Merri wether was scratchin' in the dirt!
There was much weeping and gnashing of teeth, poor BABY CHICKS,
orphaned at only 2 wks old!!!! Who was the dastardly criminal who stole
Miss Merriwether???!!
Who? Me??? Heck, I would never do such a thing!
Okay, so I've been tasting the cat food in the mudroom...
and maybe I sampled a few duck eggs from the garden nest...
And perhaps I did borrow a few chicken eggs from the barn,
.well, only about dozen or so... .
Heck no!!
Well, we know it wasn't him, but a fox vixen who stole Miss Merriwether, so we took the coon way off to the deep woods and set him free, with the warning, "Never let me see those chocolate brown eyes and those adorable little fingers and toes and that gorgeous tail EVER, EVER again!"
I try not to interfere with nature too much, these are free range chickens and mommy taught them well.
They have been caring for themselves now for 2 weeks. They wake themselves in the early morn and go about foraging for food all the day long. At dusk, they hop up the barn steps to the loft and manage to " fly" up to a roost where they cuddle together and snooze. It is a good life lesson to watch these youngsters survive without any outside help. Humans could learn a lot from these baby chicks. I am so proud of them. and their mama would have been proud of them too!Wanna see?? Here they are!
The 3 little Merriwether orphans and a wascally waccoon.
Wow, what a story. Nature is about survival of the fittest, yet it often feels bad when we humans become attached to our critters and then they get eaten. I hope your chicks continue to thrive.
ReplyDeleteI don't know where to start--Other than to say I'm sorry about the loss of Miss Merriwether. On the flip side I LOVED the video!! It beats everything that's on TV and the ending reminds me a little of 'Born Free!' :-)
ReplyDeleteI hope you've had a good weekend!!
Hi Jeri
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry about Miss Merriwether, but you are right she taught them well. The baby chicks are simply adorable and very smart!
I must say that Wascally Waccoon is adorable, I hope your hubbys fingers are ok... Your video was enchanting and the sound of your voice is so calming.. You are such a kind and gentle soul, friend to all.
Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful post.
Love and blessings to you dear friend
Penny
Poor Miss Merriwether and the sweet little ones. The video was delightful as was the narration. I often wrestle with the circle of life. Bonnie
ReplyDeleteDear Jeri ~ I'm sorry to hear about the loss of Miss Merriwether too. Her little chicks are adorable and I'm glad to see that they are growing and enjoying their surroundings.
ReplyDeleteSweet little video. I laughed at the wacoon running into the woods at the end.
FlowerLady
Jeri!
ReplyDeleteI thoroughly enjoyed listening to your beautiful and soothing voice! Oh what a mess to have to find that Miss Merriweather was chickennapped but what a great mum for teaching so much to her little ones before her demise! I see those geese are VERY invested in making sure the little ones are safe. I think they are good GUARD GEESE because I could just make an urbanite guess that they will HONK and BITE and HISS if anyone comes near them! You do NOT mess with geese, at least in my experience!!!
You are magic.
Anita
I wish everyone was as kind to wildlife as you and your husband. Here's to a long life for all the creatures shown today. Hugs, Deb
ReplyDeleteoh my, the things that happen a life and to a life.
ReplyDeletesuch cute wee things, so glad they are surviving on their own.
lovely to hear your voice~
Oh those pesky varmints, but I know they need to eat, too. Your baby chicks are doing their mama proud. As for the masked marauder, I too hope he lives a happy life in the woods, where he belongs.
ReplyDeleteI loved your video. Now I was your books on tapes with your sweet voice!
ReplyDeleteOh, your dear sweet little chicklets. It is amazing how quickly chickens become self sufficient....but it is a cruel world out there in nature with dangers around every turn. Will keep my fingers and toes crossed that your little ones continue to do so well.
ReplyDeleteOh poor Miss Merriwether. :( Keeping bunny ears crossed that the wee chicks will be ok. Nature really is amazing. Wascally Waccoon sure was darling even if he was also a bit naughty.
ReplyDeletexx
I love it when you have little videos of your place and the animals. I feel for the 3 babies but they will do well. I have a hen sitting on 6 fertile eggs and hope to have babies in about 19 days. Have a great day.
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Kay
bless their little hearts.
ReplyDeletenature can be cruel,tough and sad....
Jeri, you were born as a story teller..... Loved the video and listening to you.grin
ReplyDeleteThank you dearly for coming to my Paris post and for leaving me a note. I loved that you praise my dear husband. He is not just a good man but a handsome one too!!!grin
Smiles,
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAww, poor mama hen, those darn foxes are so cunning !
ReplyDeleteThe video is precious, those little fluffy butts are doing well, their mama would have been proud...
How sweet of you to turn the Waccoon loose, despite his bandit ways :)
~Jo
I'm so sorry about the chicken dinner, but glad that little chicks can fend for themselves so nicely.
ReplyDeleteNow I'm humming the song about the fox going out on a chilly night...seems way too true to life right now.
Oh no ! Poor Miss Merriwether ! I am sad when I read the story. I know you will love and protect his babies, they are very lovely.
ReplyDeleteLovely waccoon, sweet eyes.
I loved th vidéo.
Nice day Jeri, a kiss for all your animals.
sniff, sniff...so sad....how could
ReplyDeleteyou recount the tale without sniffing away? I so admire your calm and compassion for that racoon
imp! Don't know if I could have
drummed up the courage, in the face
of having lost Miss Merriwether,
that consumate Mother...her chicks
do her proud! Love the suggestion
that you narrate your books...like
Gregorian chant, so soothing and
spell-inducing. Love you ~
Blessings of the day ~
Our Mary
Dear Jeri,
ReplyDeletePoor Miss Merriwether! It's a miracle that chickens survive a day out free ranging, isn't it? I hope that the little chicks live happily ever after, and that Mr. Raccoon stays far, far away (and Ms. Vixen, too, for that matter!).
Love,
Marqueta
We had lots of raccoons around here until we fixed it so they couldn't find any free food. They moved off to greener pastures. Sorry about the hen. Cute chicks... neat story! Great video! Hope our fox doesn't show up this year...
ReplyDeleteSad to hear about Miss Meriwether, so glad she was able to teach the little ones enough in a short time to sustain them on life's journey! Funny that the geese watch over, fowl are an odd bunch. Loved the video, it was filled with delicious Hopalong Hollow sights and sounds!
ReplyDeleteOhhhhh how sad, nature can be so cruel at times. I see things in our yard too and it just bothers me so much. My naturalist father kept reminding me as a child "Barby, balance of nature." But even as an adult I can not get past the sadness when I see such things. I wish the three wee ones well!
ReplyDelete