Some of you might remember the tales of my renegade chicken, Miss Hattie. She has the neatest personality . . she takes after me! 🙂 She loves Vince and she would follow him around so much so that when she wasn’t following him around, we both went looking for her. Every single day, she would let herself out of the chicken yard and wander around the house, often getting into things that we didn’t really want a chicken getting into. We patched places where we thought she might be escaping. I would stand back and watch and find yet another spot where she was getting out and I would fix that. It was so weird because for probably six months, Miss Hattie . . and only Miss Hattie, escaped. There were 11 or 12 other chickens in there that never once got out.
Then the fox started hanging around and we got real serious about keeping Miss Hattie in so Vince fixed every possible escape spot and she stayed safe inside the chicken yard. The fox was . . a politically correct way to say this is . . the fox is no more. We let the chickens out mostly during the week and as a group. We don’t let them out when Vince is home because he works in the shop, leaves the shop door open and they love checking out all the things in the shop and they have terrible bathroom manners . . inside the shop, outside the shop . . wherever the urge strikes!
When we do let them out, all were out or all were in. A couple of weeks ago, we planted new grass seeds and have that area all covered in straw so we haven’t been letting the chickens out.
Yesterday I looked out and I said “There’s a chicken out!” Yep, it was Miss Hattie. I went and put her back in the fenced area and she stayed in.
Miss Hattie
All the rest of the chickens are wondering why she is out and they are in. That’s ok . . I’m wondering the same thing. I said to Vince “Come help me catch Miss Hattie.” He said “No! Let something get her . . she’s a pain in the butt!” No way! I caught her and put her up.
I sat down to write this blog post and guess who’s in the front yard!
Miss Hattie
She’s out again! She doesn’t mind one bit that she’s out there all alone with nowhere safe to run if something gets after her. She’s chasing, catching and eating the last few remaining grasshoppers so for now . . she’s out of the pen and I hope she stays safe.
sharon says
Thanks for the laugh – would you like me to ship you a few coyotes now that your predator is gone
JudyL says
No, thanks! You should hear my woods at night. There are plenty of coyotes out there.
Brandy M. says
haha – Hattie’s a little REBEL!!
She’s a pretty chicken. Love the stories about her!
🙂
Dar in MO says
Judy, I think you should aim that video camera at the chicken yard and see just how Miss Hattie is managing her escape each time. I’m surprised the other chickens haven’t caught on.
Pat Dunnell says
I’ve missed the Miss Hattie stories; it’s good to see that she’s as ornery as ever!
Paula says
Love, love hearing about Miss Hattie
Paula in KY
Peg H says
What I really want to know is … how the heck do you *catch* her?!? Seriously! If she were mine, she’d have to take her chances. I really don’t think I could catch her.
JudyL says
She’ll just walk up to me for me to pet her and I pick her up. She’s fine with that but not all my chickens are so friendly. Some . . it takes Vince and me both using a net when we have to catch them.
Gail says
Miss Hattie sounds like a smart and charming little hen! My favorite chicken has recently started to bully the other girls. She was raised with the other 5 hens and I can’t figure out why she has started this new behavior. She is a fearless chicken and so maybe she is just trying to be the head hen. I have been told that this is just to establish the “pecking order”. Any ideas or suggestions?
Deb k says
I love hearing about Miss Hattie. Keep an eye out for her.
Sharon in Michigan says
I was wondering about Miss Hattie as you hadn’t blogged about her in some time. I’m glad she’s still giving you a run for your money! A lot of people don’t think chickens have a personality, but they do!
Susan says
You have personalized her so well. I think those of us who like to escape the confines of safety can identify with her. Of course, we all believe we can take care of ourselves!