Our Neighborhood Mystery: Fowl Play Suspected

We live in a small, but growing, Texas town in a close-knit neighborhood. There is an active Facebook page for all of us neighbors to discuss what’s going on around the neighborhood, share about good/bad experiences from local businesses, offer advice, and even sell items.

We all look out for one another and very rarely does anyone get into an argument. It’s community most of us feel safe in (besides cars driving too fast down our through street), and in the four years we’ve been here, very rarely have there been any issues with crime. Until now.

Just in the past two weeks, our neighbors have had their cars broken in to with some being vandalized. One of them even had their car stolen and it was found several hours later in another town and on fire!

Neighborhood Crime_Truck on Fire

Not cool, not cool at all. I guess that’s obvious though, because fire is HOT! Wrong time for jokes?

After the line of break-ins so many neighbors have experienced, we’re all on high alert trying to identify the mysterious criminal or criminals. We are thinking its the same offender as several neighbors have cameras that have caught the perpetrator’s SUV on video.

Neighborhood Crime_SUV on Camera

But it’s definitely not enough for anyone to make a break in the case. At least not that I’m aware of. One camera caught the guy in action, but again, it doesn’t leave much for us to go off of.

Neighborhood Crime_Break-in Attempt

We’re not giving up, and the fact that we’re all in close communications with each other and want to help, I am confident we’ll get the guy soon. At least I hope that’s the case.

We always complain because we live on the through street in our neighborhood and are always yelling at speeders as they drive by. It sucks because we want Avery to be able to safely play in the front yard, but there are too many cars speeding around to do so. One benefit, though, is this seems to keep the idiots from attempting to break in anyone’s car on the busy street. Silver lining?

As if the sudden crime wave wasn’t enough, our kind neighbors that have had six chickens at one time are now down to one. Avery and I would go on walks and she was always excited to see and pet the chickens.

Petting Chicken

Our neighbors are so generous and always gave us eggs they collected asking nothing in return. But one by one, the chickens have been found mangled inside the coop with no evidence of who or what is to blame. I was thinking “fowl” play, but the way the chickens are being attacked from within the tight quarters of their coop, I wouldn’t think a person could be to blame.

Maybe a raccoon or opossum? Anyone know if those are capable of causing such a murderous act? We had come to like the chickens, especially the grey one, Rose, and white one, Elsa. I could never remember the black chicken’s names, but they were sweet too.

Our neighbors were out of town for Memorial Day and said I could come over to help myself to any eggs they laid. Instead, I came over to find one chicken mangled one day, and then another the next. I felt so bad for the poor chickens and our neighbors. I cleaned out the carcasses since it was trash day and didn’t want such nice people to get back and have to deal with it.

So, we have two mysteries to solve in our neighborhood. I don’t know your stance on gun ownership, but I believe guns don’t kill people, people kill people, and I proudly (but safely) have several to keep our family safe. When things like this are happening so close, I prefer to take no chances.

Have you ever dealt with crime in your neighborhood?

Do you know what kind of animals that can fit and climb into a chicken coop would kill chickens without really eating them?

5 thoughts on “Our Neighborhood Mystery: Fowl Play Suspected”

  1. That just sucks, thankfully you haven’t had to suffer through any mischief yet. People are actually crazy enough to perform this lunacy in suburbia Texas?

  2. “have several to keep our family safe. ” For you and your family¨s safety, I suggest you take a look at the other side of the argument and see if you are REALLY safer with gun(s) in your house.
    1. Your girl can find one and start playing with it, or a friend over can find it. Want to look up how many kids in the US are killed that way each year?
    2. You hear something in the house in the night, grab a gun and shoot at the noise. Its your wife. Want to know how many people are killed in the US each year like this? Ever hear of Oscar Pastorius the South African one legged runner, trigger happy, who killed his model girlfriend like this. Not too long ago. Sure you watched the news of it.
    3. The burglar actually finds one of your guns in the house and uses it against you or family.
    Want me to name ten more examples. I can. In fact, I think more people in the US are killed with their own guns than burglars are from those same guns. Just asking, for your own safety, start researching how safe you really are having guns at home. You really want to worry every day about your girl finding your gun or guns, as opposed to the much smaller percentage that a burglar is going to come to your house? Just saying the other side man, for research purposes to keep your family safe. You are too good a Stay at home Dad to become another statistic. A good human being for that matter.

    1. Hi there, thank you for concern and advice, it’s much appreciated.

      I’m well aware of the risks of not being mindful of guns in the home. We have them locked in a safe and the one I do have beside me is not loaded. I was around guns as a kid and taught proper handling. I plan to do the same thing with my little girl a gun is not some forbidden thing she’s drawn to and has no idea what it is or does. I’m not one to ever just shoot blindly in the dark or even shoot at all. It’s more of a self-defense, last solution option that I believe all competent person should be entitled to.

      Again, really appreciate the thoughts and concern you shared. Thank you.

  3. OK, Good answer. Glad to hear of your vigilance and knowledge and understanding of danger and safety. If everyone could be so smart….

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