Peep! RIP Sweetie the chick

First things first -yes - I did mean my last post (about Tabby and I versus the snake) to be funny.  :)

I just have to share this - I think it was made for my Lilly:

 

Sigh.  If only I found it about 22 months earlier!  Oh well.  My "Little Firecracker" is always in my heart.

Hunter drew this picture today during the sermon of Adam and Eve.  The serpent has a forked tongue and the tree is the tree of knowledge of good and evil.  And - of course Adam and Eve both have a pet dog.  (Hunter LOVES dogs.)  (I'm sorry - I can't figure out why the picture is showing up sideways!)

Yesterday we had about 15 people descend upon our woods to put up fencing and to build a shelter for 35 chickens, 2 dogs, and 8 goats.  WHAT??? (I think I got the numbers right.) We are going to be temporarily keeping all the animals of our friends, the L family, who's house burned down last week.  The shelter is not quite finished:

We will keep them here until the L family house is rebuilt.  We feel blessed we have the space to do this to help out.  Now we just need a catchy name for our farm.  "Little Firecracker's Animal Refuge"?  We'll have to think of something.  Any suggestions?

Today our two dogs, Dixie and Lucia, quietly watched the chickens going in and out of their coop.  Little did we know that Lucia had murder in her heart.  (Lucia is the bigger, lighter colored dog.)

The chickens innocently scratched and pecked in the fenced area of the backyard, minding their own business.

We all watched the chickens and hung out in the yard for a bit.  Then Tabby and I went inside.  Shortly after that I heard Frank yell at Lucia.  It wasn't just a regular yell. It was the very very stern yell.  Tabby and I ran back outside.  Frank leapt over the fence and took off after Lucia yelling that she had got a chick.  I grabbed Solomon who was standing there, holding onto a toy shopping cart all by himself.  Tabby picked up a limp chick.

Apparently, the chick that Tabby named Sweetie, had hoped over the fence.  And Lucia moved in for the kill.  :(

Neither Tabby nor Frank could feel a heartbeat, but decided to hold the chick awhile to make sure it was dead.  Tabby sat on the swing hugging Sweetie and watching her, it just struck me as so sad.  I know it sounds absolutely ridiculous, but seeing her there cradling that chick made me think of when I was holding Lilly, dead, against me. 

I was glad Frank was here to discipline Lucia with the chick and then bury it.  It was one of those things I could do if I had to, but really would prefer not to right now.

The remaining 24 chicks seem to be doing well, except a silkie runt named Taffeta, whom Hunter says has Trisomy 18.  She is still so small and the other chicks bully her.  They pull out her feathers and sit on her!  What meanies!  Taffeta needs to get a gang started to help protect her when Tabby isn't around.  Maybe the Feathers vs. the Crips.