A Rather "Fowl" Tale

You left so many wonderful Spring-filled comments on yesterday's post...
it gave me a whole day filled with snippets of Spring.
I love seeing the world through others' eyes...
thanks so much for sharing a piece of yourself with me!

Today's tale is a bit of a sad one.

I try to share the best of farm life with you each day.
However, in order to keep it real,
I have to share the bad as well as the good.

We had a rather "fowl" ordeal earlier this week.
A neighbor's dog visited the farm and went on a killing spree.
We lost about 5 chickens and almost...
(and this is the terribly hard part)
almost lost our beautiful bourbon red turkey, Tom.


He suffered a rather bad injury...
losing all of the feathers down his back and many from his tail.
A couple of small flesh wounds which healed over quickly made him look even worse.


I thought it might truly traumatize him and emotionally scar him for life.
However, after two days' rest in his own enclosed yard,
he emerged as if nothing had happened.


He remains comfortable around our dogs.
(I had feared that he might become frightened of dogs... apparently not.)


He is back to strutting his stuff all over the farm.
Please don't tell him how awful he looks...
I think he doesn't have a clue.
(I put all of the mirrors away.)


Our turkeys have been with us for six years...
I would have been inconsolable if something worse had happened to Tom.

I had a discussion with the (distant) neighbor and she agreed to keep her dogs at home
since they are not farm-worthy.

Amazingly, we have barely any trouble with wild predators and our birds,
so this attack really caught us off guard!

Thank goodness feathers grow back.
By summer Tom should be as handsome as ever!
But for now, he almost looks like the turkeys in the grocery store.

Comments

colleen said…
Yikes!!!! So sad but it looks like Tom has everything under control. I wonder if he would be strutting his stuff if he know what he looked like?!? ? Five chickens too :(
This N That said…
OMG That's awful...I would have to shoot that dog..Poor Tom..How did the dog make out? I guess a turkey is no match for a dog...
He's such a part of the family.
Anonymous said…
I am so grateful Tom is ok! TerriC
Anke said…
Oh no, that must have been really scary! Sometime last year our neighbors dog jumped the fence into our yard and chased one of our chickens all over the place. There were feathers everywhere! We thought for sure he had really hurt her, but luckily Priscilla was fine. We're also very grateful that our neighbor immediately offered to have a new (higher) fence put up.
Unknown said…
So glad Tom is ok!
Anonymous said…
So glad Tom is ok, he looks great to me when you think of what could have happened to him! marsha@tubbslanefarm.com
Unknown said…
Oh my, so sorry! Glad Tom is on the mend and I like his new spike feather cut! It makes him seem more intriguing! Ha!
Oh no! I'm so glad Tom is okay. I always worry when a stray or neighbor's dog ends up wandering past our place. We lost one hen to an attack and it was awful. Good idea about removing the mirrors :-)
Lady Jane said…
Oh my!!! What an ordeal. Tom Turkey is not the worse for wear though. He is a strong old bird. I am glad he is strutting his stuff and glad you had the presence of mind to put away the mirrors...
Jennifer said…
Oh no! How awful. :-( Glad Tom is ok tho!
jaz@octoberfarm said…
omg...i would be livid. poor tom!!! has their dog ever 'visited' you before? did you catch him while it was happening? what kind of a dog is it? tom just has the turkey version of a mohawk. he's stylin' for a while! where your dogs around at the time? could i possibly have more questions?
Anonymous said…
poor Tom, you are right , mirrors would not do him a bit of good right now.

Annie v.
Oh gezzz! Poor Tom... Well, it looks like he will make it... I am so glad he came out of this ok.
Laura Sudderth said…
I cannot imagine all the feathers from the death destruction. I have lost many pet ducks and chickens in the past and it is a horrific sight. I feel for you. I am so happy Tom is okay! He is still handsome.
Jessica said…
Sorry you lost some of the chickens to a dog. So glad Tom is okay, considering. Poor guy!!
~Jessica
Gail Willie said…
The love you give daily to all your animals...Tom will heal with even more love!

Gail
Country Gal said…
I remember the days of dogs from neighbors getting into our animals and either killing them or injuring them , dogs that aren't used to farm animals see them as a game , I am so glad Tom is okay sorry if any others may not have made it but yes that is farm life and there is both good and bad that goes with it all ! Thanks for sharing , Have a good day !
Anonymous said…
I hope your neighbour is duly diligent on keeping her dog on her property and it doesn't ever return. How awful, poor Tom and the chickens and you. Hugs to you all. Patty/NS
NanaDiana said…
That is awful about the neighbor's dog. Glad Tom is okay after all. You really got some pictures there!! xo Diana
Anonymous said…
Poor Tom. And how very stressful for you. I wonder if he was trying to protect the hens?

Kathy from Tas
Anonymous said…
Lordy, Bev! So grateful that the neighbor accepts responsibility for their dog; and thankful that Mr. Tom seems to be none worse for wear! I am less than nice when dogs are running loose in our neighborhood, or when dogs are left outside to bark incessantly. Grrrr.
Karla from Coal City
daisy g said…
Oh, poor Tom. How horrible to wake up to all that carnage. So glad he is on the mend.
Unknown said…
Just remember Tom, chicks dig scars! Xoxo