I woke up this morning and found Princess dead on the floor of the chicken coop. I have no idea what happened. She wasn't injured. There was no indication that some critter got at her. She was acting normal yesterday. The other chickens look fine. I am totally confused. Maybe she wasn't able to tolerate the cold as well as the other two. Maybe she ate something she shouldn't of (there is so much crap in our backyard that it is possible). Maybe she was sick. We'll never know I guess.
Zoe took it well. She wanted to know what happened. I told her I didn't know- I just found her that way. She wanted to know if we could get another chicken. I told her sure.
I feel a little silly, being sad about a dead chicken. After all, I eat chicken. But Princess was a pet, not just an egg machine. I worry that she suffered and I somehow missed it. I raised her from a chick. I held her. Granted she was the least friendly of the three, but she was part of the family nonetheless.
By the way, I hate touching dead animals. The few times I have had to do it, I have been seriously creeped out. I couldn't leave her in the coop. I had to get her out of there. One of the things that sucks about being the grown-up - you have to dispose of the dead things. Gag. Too bad Sundown wasn't here. With a deep breath and a short prayer- Princess was put to rest.
Sigh.....
Jennifer
UPDATE:
So, come to find out chickens LOVE to eat styrofoam. Styrofoam is also poison for chickens.
Princess got into our trash area. A place we try to keep the chickens from visiting. We recently replaced our broken television, and the packaging shows signs of pecking. Princess must have eaten quite a bit.
What a tough lesson to learn. The loss is greater than you would think. Princess had a personality and had become a member of the household. She will be missed.
- Sundown
Zoe took it well. She wanted to know what happened. I told her I didn't know- I just found her that way. She wanted to know if we could get another chicken. I told her sure.
I feel a little silly, being sad about a dead chicken. After all, I eat chicken. But Princess was a pet, not just an egg machine. I worry that she suffered and I somehow missed it. I raised her from a chick. I held her. Granted she was the least friendly of the three, but she was part of the family nonetheless.
By the way, I hate touching dead animals. The few times I have had to do it, I have been seriously creeped out. I couldn't leave her in the coop. I had to get her out of there. One of the things that sucks about being the grown-up - you have to dispose of the dead things. Gag. Too bad Sundown wasn't here. With a deep breath and a short prayer- Princess was put to rest.
Sigh.....
Jennifer
UPDATE:
So, come to find out chickens LOVE to eat styrofoam. Styrofoam is also poison for chickens.
Princess got into our trash area. A place we try to keep the chickens from visiting. We recently replaced our broken television, and the packaging shows signs of pecking. Princess must have eaten quite a bit.
What a tough lesson to learn. The loss is greater than you would think. Princess had a personality and had become a member of the household. She will be missed.
- Sundown
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