A loss at "the farm"

It had to happen. But just because it's inevitable doesn't make it easy. I've actually be living in the soothing lull of sameness of days and evenings with all our animals around. That all ended this morning at 4:30 when Michael and I heard a wierd shriek in the direction of the chicken coop. We hopped up and looked outside the window, but couldn't see anything right off. We hunted for flashlights and I went outside and Michael shone his light from inside. Then we saw it... a beady-eyed racoon with a chicken in its mouth! Our lights scared it enough to get out of the coop. It moved with alarming ease up and over the fence of the pen around the coop-with a chicken in its mouth. Michael went out to see who it was, it was Cheetah, our beauty queen who laid pale blue eggs! Her neck was broken, no way to save her. GRRRRRRRRR!! I was so mad at that racoon. I know it's ridiculous, but I was mad! How dare that stinking racoon for stealing one of our precious girls! Where are those big brother goats when you need them??!! Where's Old Yeller when you need him!

Michael and I went back to bed (after closing the inside door of the coop so Mr. Bandit couldn't come back for round two) but it wasn't easy to go back to sleep. Michael got up a few minutes later to go and get the carcass so nothing else around would get the taste for fresh chicken. He's taking it off the property to dispose of it.

This morning after all the boys got up, we had to relay the sad news. It's funny b/c early into the conversation, Jeffrey kept saying "Tell me it isn't Cheetah. Is Cheetah ok?" So Michael just cut to the chase-"No Cheetah is not ok" The boys took it surprisingly well. No requests for taxidermy (that I was sure would come from Jeffrey). They've just spent the last 20 mintues brainstorming ways to trap and kill a racoon, including machine guns, a ring of fire, and my personal favorite, a robotic dog with torpedo eyes and chainsaw paws to patrol the area around the coop. I guess that's the way they deal with it...problem solve death solutions! :-) I think we should just lead the goats into the pen every night. What racoon in its right mind (of course maybe these racoons have "the hydrophobie"-remember that from Old Yeller?!) would try and get into the coop with eight horns shining in the moonlight?

Goodbye Cheetah, we loved you!

Cheetah 2008-2008