Chicken Dog?!

So, I'll just get right into the story... I came home from town Monday afternoon. I let Blue out and then decided I would take a little rest before the kids came home. I had just gotten to that in between sleep and awake state when I was jolted by a shriek. I jumped up and looked out my bedroom window, which faces the front yard. There I saw Blue with a chicken hanging out of her mouth! I was in panic mode!! I jammed my bare feet into my boots, grabbed my glasses and was heading out the back door. As I opened the door there she was with the chicken screeching in her mouth. I yelled, "Blue! Put her down!" and she did! The poor Buttercup girl ran to a corner and hid. I scooped her up and held her close to my chest afraid to look at the damage. Blue ran in and laid down under the kitchen table as if nothing out of the ordinary was going on. Still clutching the hen to my chest, I went out to the coop to see if anyone else was out or hurt. I quickly noticed a hole going underneath the coop. Sherman built the coop up off the ground, so there is a gap between the coop bottom and the ground. Too small for my big fat blue heeler to fit in. But perfect for a mischievous cat to prowl in. The "Little Kitty" (as we call her, because she was the runt and smaller than the other two) had pushed her way in under the coop and into the run. I had barricaded the gap with wood and rocks but she worked until she made a hole she and a chicken could fit through. I'm assuming she went into the run and all the others made it safely inside the coop but one found the hole and escaped into the backyard. That is when Blue scooped her up! Everyone back at the coop seemed O.K. so I closed the chicken door and trapped them inside until I could fix the hole and doctor my hen. I took her into the garage where there is better light, armed with a bottle of Rooster Booster-pick no more lotion- it's to doctor wounds. I was so worried I was going to find puncture wounds from Blue's teeth. I thoroughly checked her all over. She was wet with foul smelling dog drool but I couldn't find a scratch on her!

She was very out of it and almost fainting. She was weak and wouldn't stand up. Her breathing was very fast and her eyes were wild. I wondered if after finding she wasn't injured if I would loose her to shock. I tried to comfort her and found a small box to put her in so that I could keep an eye on her. I was a little afraid to just dump her back in the coop with the others because they"ll pick on the weak. So I carried her in the box out to the coop with me while I checked everyone closely for injury. When I sat the box down she quickly perked up and hopped out to join the others.

She went straight over to get a drink and then laid down over in the corner. I watched to see how the others treated her. They didn't seem to notice anything different. She rested for the rest of the day and was leary of going out the chicken door. But by the next morning you couldn't tell anything had happened to her...She was back to herself! By the time the whole ordeal was over the kids were hopping off the bus. No nap for me!! Just crazy chicken drama!! Now... I'm going to assume the very best of my girl Blue. I figure the cat rounded the chicken out into the yard and Blue was saving her. The fact that she carried her so gently in her mouth is quite amazing to me. If she had wanted a chicken snack she certainly could have been well on her way to gobbling it up... that she brought her to the back door to me is amazing as well. The chicks did grow up in the house...maybe they bonded and she is now a chicken dog! I have seen her herd off the cats as they stalk the outside of the fence of the run. Maybe, just maybe she is loyal to the flock and will protect and serve!! I hope that is the case! I know she impressed me by not munching down on my poor hen! She is fat and lazy and not good for much BUT if she protects my chickens she will be greatly rewarded and live a long happy life!!!! I found some leftover wire and patched all the possible entries under the coop. The girls and Rock a Doodle are safe and happy scratching around in the run! You should see them fight over a June bug!! Funny!! Let's hope the entertainment stays in the coop and the girls live well and happy and grow to produce LOTS of eggs!!! That was enough excitement to last me awhile!!!!