I believe this picture below was taken in October. It has been a strange fall. We had a few good snowstorms in October, then it seemed to turn to Spring in November - quite warm and rainy. It even rained into December! Luckily, James and William took advantage of the snow the short while it was here and built a snow temple. As of today, Dec. 9, we are still waiting for winter to come back.
The following picture of the kid's in front of Peter's cage was taken right before a very traumatic event when William went to check on the chickens before coming into the house. I will go ahead and record the event for posterity's sake. If you feel the urge to read on, do so at your own risk.
As William was holding up the heavy lid to the coop, Thomas' chicken, Rocky, jumped up on the edge of the coop under the lid. William's hand then slipped out from under the lid which caused it to slam down on Rocky.
(Here is a picture I took back in June for those who need a visual reference. Thomas and Marianne are holding up the lid as William was, and Rocky had jumped up on that ledge where the lid goes down.)
Rocky jumped off the side of the coop and collapsed onto the ground. William screamed as he watched the poor thing lie there and struggle to get up as she flapped her wings around helplessly. He picked up Rocky, set her on a bale of straw and ran into the house crying, "Rocky is dead! Rocky is dead!" I will never forget the hopelessness and sadness in his voice as tears welled up in his eyes. (William is especially fond of the chickens, so for him to have to witness all of this was pretty heart-wrenching.) We all immediately stopped what we were doing and ran outside. Rocky was still alive, but clearly had no control over her neck and head. She flapped her wings, flew/fell off the straw and landed in the snow. So, I picked her up and held her not knowing what to do. We said a prayer. The kids were all crying. Thomas disappeared into the garage and came back out holding the ax. You can imagine the uproar that this caused! Screams of, "NOOOOO! We are not chopping off Rocky's head!!!" echoed through the neighborhood. I was at a loss. So, I did what I always do in cases like this. I called Richard. At that point, even I was crying. Unfortunately, he could only offer the same solution as Thomas, and I knew I couldn't do that. I hung up the phone and within seconds, the kids and I were watching Rocky die in my lap.
(Here is a picture I took back in June for those who need a visual reference. Thomas and Marianne are holding up the lid as William was, and Rocky had jumped up on that ledge where the lid goes down.)
Rocky jumped off the side of the coop and collapsed onto the ground. William screamed as he watched the poor thing lie there and struggle to get up as she flapped her wings around helplessly. He picked up Rocky, set her on a bale of straw and ran into the house crying, "Rocky is dead! Rocky is dead!" I will never forget the hopelessness and sadness in his voice as tears welled up in his eyes. (William is especially fond of the chickens, so for him to have to witness all of this was pretty heart-wrenching.) We all immediately stopped what we were doing and ran outside. Rocky was still alive, but clearly had no control over her neck and head. She flapped her wings, flew/fell off the straw and landed in the snow. So, I picked her up and held her not knowing what to do. We said a prayer. The kids were all crying. Thomas disappeared into the garage and came back out holding the ax. You can imagine the uproar that this caused! Screams of, "NOOOOO! We are not chopping off Rocky's head!!!" echoed through the neighborhood. I was at a loss. So, I did what I always do in cases like this. I called Richard. At that point, even I was crying. Unfortunately, he could only offer the same solution as Thomas, and I knew I couldn't do that. I hung up the phone and within seconds, the kids and I were watching Rocky die in my lap.
I was relieved. Sad, but relieved.
Richard ended his violin lesson early to come home and rescue us. He said he felt he had to when he heard all the weeping and wailing on the other end of the line. What a mess we were that night! Thomas dug a hole in the ground and we buried Rocky the next day.
Since then, I have come to the depressing realization that we will be going through this at least six more times. Unless, that is, our animals outlive us.
Ugh.
Like, when this little fella dies, the world might just come to an end at the Ferguson household.
Anyone know how to get a hold of Miracle Max?
At least, for the time being, this little guy and our five chickens are adding much love and enjoyment to our lives. And fresh eggs.
Sarah and her friend, Sarah, playing in the leaves with Peter.
I just thought these pictures turned out so cute.
The Rabbit eggs are especially delicious.
ReplyDeleteUh...those aren't eggs... :O
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