Hearing serious poultry hub bub from the yard- loud clucking & screeching- I painfully made my way to the dining room window to see a large, boxer-like dog running around the coop area. I yelled out the window, which sent him running, but right towards three birds trying to vacate the area.
I’d thrown my worn-outside-in-the-store pants to the basement for washing, so I yelled to “Hubs” to come down and help. Only after waking him did I remember the “yard pants” I keep by the back door, so I hobbled as quickly as possible to dress as “Hubs” came downstairs, yelling like a latter day Mighty Mouse that he was coming to save the day.
In great pain, I stumbled out the door, grabbing a stick to give chase. The birds were all huddled together near the front yard fence, ready to leap to safety, if necessary, except Gray’s Girl, the little brown Easter Egger, who remained near the dog, chest out, head erect, ready to fight. The dog tried to go back towards the coop, but I blocked it, and he scrambled over the side fence to the adjoining yard. I hollered and threatened, not allowing it to return, so it eventually climbed over the neighbor’s back fence , then into the yard behind us, setting off the dog behind the next fence.
Calming the birds, I went inside to get some worms as a treat, but they were too frightened to come out of their huddle until I whistled and put some worms on the ground.

Now here’s what’s interesting to me. I scattered enough worms so that every bird could reach a little pile. They immediately did their usual shoving and ranking, and soon chased Gray’s Girl away, as is often the case. The fact that she alone stood up to the dog to protect them all meant nothing and she walked away towards the coop, ignoring my calls for her to return, a sad, proud little figure with a teenager’s defiant attitude.
Turning away from my flock of ingrates, I brought her a handful of worms to eat in her solitude, our silent hero of the Great Dog Attack of 2020.