It turns out owls like chicken. They really like chicken. Like how much my kids like chicken nuggets. So much so they'll figure out how to get into a chicken coop and turn a flock of 11 juvenile birds into eight confirmed kills, two missing and presumed consumed, and one sole survivor. That's what happened to our neighbor's chickens while we were supposed to be watching them. (Oops.)

We got home from our radioactive Hanford road trip and promptly went to make sure the chickens had enough food and water. "DAD!!!! There's something IN THE CHICKEN COOP!" Yeah, right, buddy. I'm sure it's just--

OMG! That thing is HUGE! Someone get my camera!

In between attempts to escape the accidental owl trap, the predator posed for pics. Holy cow that's a fierce looking bird. Not cuddly or cute, but a killer looking for its next victim. If I hadn't been cowering behind the door I would have been that victim as it fled to a tree over the river.

The investigation of the crime scene revealed the bodies of seven chickens piled in the back. A few feathers here and there, but the owl was very efficient. We heard chirping from next door and found one chick barely alive. A second disappeared into the brush. The first died in our arms and the second was later captured and became known as, "Pellet." As in, "Owl Pellet." What? Too soon?

For the rest of the weekend we kept little Pellet safe in the garage or closely supervised in the yard. Every time we heard the wind rustle we looked around for an owl coming in to finish the job.

As traumatic as the Great Chicken Massacre of 2018 was, it was an amazing opportunity to see a top predator up close. And it gave the kids the chance to babysit a chick for the weekend. However, next time maybe we can sacrifice only half as many of the neighbor's chickens to get up close and personal with an owl.