I've misled everyone, I think. My mother said to me yesterday, "Will you quit saying that his throat was slit? It makes it sound like a person killed him!" It's pretty unlikely that a person killed him, we think. I live on a dead-end camp road where all the traffic is from lifelong neighbor-friends. Right now there are less than 10 winter residents on the road. The only person who threatened Roland's life was my cousin, Mark, who hates roosters, but loves me. Plus, being a summer resident, he was having Thanksgiving at his home 35 miles away. He did threaten Roland the very day the bird showed up dead, and I intend to make him feel bad about it the next time we talk. But he wouldn't really kill him. Here's how the bird's wounds are better described (I was really horrified to see him and his eyes were open, so I didn't examine him the way a mature person would have.): (You might not want to read this.) He was on his back and his throat was ripped open. The reason it looked slit to me was that in the middle of the throat was a white divider--a bone or cartilage that ran from his beak down the middle of the wound. It looked like two separate lengthwise injuries down each side of oh! could it be his windpipe? They weren't really slits, though, his entire throat was damaged. I live on a lake, and a few years ago, I saw what looked like a horrible, furry, snake weaving its creepy body in and throughout the rocks on the shore. When the loud screeching stopped, I realized that what I might have seen was a mink. I've never seen another weasel or mink my whole life, but I did see a dead mink on the road once about 4 miles from here. My birds generally spend their days in a pen connected to their house. It is a dog kennel with the sides reinforced with chicken wire. I am fairly confident that it is hawk, dog, raccoon and fox-proof. There are a few breaches in the system that a skinny thing like a mink or weasel could---maybe---get through. My birds get locked in their house every night after they roost, but I'm often lax about what hour I close their little hen door. Nothing has ever bothered them, so the idea of it being a weasel is surprising to me. But not impossible to imagine. It's the total lack of blood on the bird and under him that has me so puzzled. (I did find part of his comb---a tiny tip torn off---the only damage to it. I found that in the house.) I haven't seen any sign of a struggle outside of the house, and the idea that he might have walked home that damaged upsets me, so I stopped looking around yesterday. In the last 24 hours, I've eliminated the hens. They have no blood on them. I feel good about that. The human theory is not impossible, but it would take an especially angry person to toss the bird back into my henhouse. It would have had to be a stranger to my road and it would have had to have happened between 2:00 pm and 6:00 pm on Thanksgiving. Thank you for thinking it through with me. And thank you for your sympathy. I was going to write again about Roland because I'd given him such a bad rap before. Once he figured out having sex with animate objects, he seemed to settle down. I had become very fond of my little charge (pun intended) in the 28 days I knew him.

Well, since I live very close the lake and the metropark system, I am afraid that I will have to try some of these products and hope for the best. I have never had to worry about critters on such as consistent basis as I do in this yard. I grew accustomed to deer pruning my roses for me in the winter, but that was the worst I really dealt with in my previous home. My new yard is fenced completely, but smaller animals can get in on the side that is a picket fence and thanks to my SIL's dogs, there are a couple holes underneat the privacy fence for animals to creep under. (grrr!) I am leaving the motion light on to see if that helps, and I sprinked cayenne around the gardens today, so I will keep my fingers crossed for tonight.

Yes, most likely mange, either demodectic or sarcoptic, but there are other possibilities, particularly since mange can be very difficult to identify just by looking at the skin. A skin scraping is needed for a positive ID on mange. Severe flea infestation can also bring on skin problems such as dermatitis which is another possibility. A third, and less likely possibility, is skin problems from poor diet or food allergies. Thyroid problems can also cause skin disorders that resemble your photo. Without running blood tests, such as a T-4 or general health profile, or taking a skin scraping to look for mange mites, it is very difficult to tell from just looking at a photo exactly what it is. However, the bottom line is that it needs help to survive, especially since it already seems to be affecting the eyes, which is essential for survival in the wild. Kt

Thanks for asking Denise Yes, I tried the local wild animal rehab center and they said it looks like the fox has mange/scabies which is very contageous. They will not allow the animal in the facility in the advanced state. They did suggest I contact my local police dept to shoot it, the only problem is I haven't seen it in a few days and I can't assure them the fox will be here long enough for them to respond. The Fish & Game dept suggested I find a friend with a small calibre (.22) gun to dispatch it for me - they will offer a one time permit to eliminate this particualr animal. Of course, with the heavy rains the last few days it seems to have gone back into the woods behind my house and I haven't seen it. Both people I spoke to suggested it might go into the woods to die and it would be gone no matter what. So I guess I wait and watch Thanks again for the response Alexa