Not All Predators Come From Outside

 

It’s been a while since I’ve posted because life has been extremely busy lately. And let me just say… integrating chicks into an established flock is not for the faint of heart.

We raised the chicks separately and waited until they were about eight weeks old before trying to integrate them with the main flock. It did not go well.

We tried all the things people suggested — putting baby powder on them at night so they would “smell the same,” placing them on the roost after the older hens were already settled, supervising interactions… but the pecking order is real, and it can be vicious.

One day I came home to find one of our babies dead. A few days later, I watched our security camera footage and saw some of the older chickens grab one of the chicks and literally throw it around the run. It was heartbreaking.

We knew we had to do something quickly, so my husband built a new coop that is much sturdier. We temporarily converted the old coop into a safe space for the younger chicks so they can still see and interact with the flock while staying protected. When I’m home, I let them mingle under supervision.

As discouraging as this experience has been, the Lord showed me something through it all.

We have taken every precaution imaginable to keep our chickens safe from outside dangers. We use hardware cloth, electric fencing, automatic doors, cameras everywhere — all to protect them from predators outside the coop. But this attack came from within.

And I felt the Lord gently reminding me to pay attention to what I allow inside. Sometimes we become so focused on guarding ourselves from outside threats that we forget the greatest damage can come from within — from attitudes, bitterness, fear, strife, jealousy, or things we’ve allowed space for in our own hearts.

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” — Proverbs 4:23

For now, everyone is safe and happy in their separate spaces. We’ll try reintegrating again after we get back from vacation in a few weeks. Until then, we’re taking it one day at a time.