Ninja graciously allowed me in the backyard with her!

No self-respecting chicken keeper would get so excited about having their chicken come into their backyard and happily allow the keeper to get some chores done while she (the chicken) went about her business. Since Ninja has been keeping out of sight in the infamous thicket for the past few days, we thought she had decided that human contact was simply not on and we would never see her up close and personal again.

Given that a couple of days ago there was a horrific car accident right in front of our house and debris even flew into the thicket, we were worried Ninja would depart altogether. Fortunately, we were wrong. Today we got back from our first Costco run since the pandemic hit for real, and lo and behold - there was Ninja, happily scratching up the yard in search of delicacies only a chicken would find edible. While she didn't run over to say hello and welcome home, she didn't squawk, cluck and run away either. She did keep an eye on what we were up to, but basically ignored us lugging in all the goodies we scored during our shopping excursion.

After lunch and  a nap (daily these days), I had to get out to the backyard to continue a dirty project that is not glamorous at all - scraping, sanding and washing down the porch pillars that haven't been painted for at least 15 years and are a flaking, peeling mess. Yes the rest of the porch needs painting too, but being covered it doesn't get the weathering the pillars do. Of course I worried that Ninja would freak out and disappear again (I don't think she's quite forgiven us for raiding her nest and stealing her eggs). But realizing we can't have a chicken dictate our lives, I boldly stepped out into the yard and strode purposely to the garage. She looked up, and proceeded to ignore me. PROGRESS. I fixed up a dog crate with wood shavings and placed it in a protected spot she likes to hang out in and then put out mealworms to entice her over. She took the bait and even considered the dog crate as a potential something or other. You can see the crate to the left.

While I have no illusions she will suddenly allow us to pet her, I hope that if she continues to stay in the backyard as opposed to the thicket, she will eventually come to accept that she is a welcome addition to our family an I can set up even cozier, safer digs for her.