Hello everyone! This chicken amazes me and I wanted to share her story. Feel free to share your stories too!
(Sorry that it is so long...)
I purchased my first flock of chicks back in 2013. We got 5 week old babies (all different breeds) and 3 month old rhode island reds from a local feed store. One was killed by a baby gate falling on it when we put them in the old coop that came with our property. Half of the remaining were roosters that we had to give back to the store, so that left us with 4. I purchased more chickens over time, but fate and moldy feed left me with only the road island reds from the origanal flock. One of the three RIR was lost to a coyote when he was about 8 months old. I had 10 chickens at the time, but one the two RIR were originals from my first flock. Their names were Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne (AKA Superman and Batman, but I never called them that). After the first one died Bruce got depressed and dropped almost all of her feathers during winter. I tried special diets and supplements to help, but she sported the bald back and head for almost two years, when she got sick. Bruce came down with a nasty respiratory virus. It seemed that she was drifting, so I gave her double the recommend doss of antibiotics. I figured that she was going to die anyways, so if it killed her to have that much at least I had tried. Amazingly she rebounded! Her feathers came back it butifuly! The two girls had high egg production and they were in their prime. Everything was going great, I built a new coop, got more chickens, and started planing for spring chicks. But about 3 weeks ago a raccoon dug into the coop. At about 3:00 the following afternoon I went to go check on the chickens. Only one of the RIRs was in the yard with the other chickens. I found a head less cream legbar in the yard and bloody brown/red feathers outside of the yard. I checked the inside of the coop and saw a brown/red body slouched in the cornor. I was devastated. I wet and got 2 garbarge bags to pick them up in. I dealt with the cream leg bar and went to get the RIR. I heard a very faint coo from what I had picked up. Amazed, I realized that it was still alive! I rushed her inside and inspected her ingeries. Her skin on her left thigh to mid stomach had been ripped off. We cleaned her wound with tweasers, wound cleaner, and lots of help and support from BYC. She spent the night inside. To my amazement she was already eating and drinking by morning. Her wound was wrapped so I put her in a crate inside the coop so she would remain in pecking order. her sister spent day and night next to the crate door. I guess that I forgot to close the crate one night because in the morning about 3 days later I opened the door to the coop and all of the chickens ran outside... Including her! Her right leg was paralyzed so she hopped out with them, I guess. Over the weeks science then she has rebounded even more. Yesterday I took her out of the coop to change her leg wrap. I set her back down in the coop and her sister ran over to say hello. Something seemed to click because she stood up and ran! It was a fast hop technically, but she kept up with her sister! She ran the boarder a few times then came and sat down at my feet and looked up at me as if to say "I did it! Did you see me?!" She and her sister went inside and went to sleep in the nesting box that they share because Bruce can't perch.
The raccoon fight:
After investigating the scene I realized what happened. The raccoon dragged the cream leg bar out into the yard after killing it inside the coop. It went back for more and came out with Bruce. The coon wanted more than the head on her though, so her took her to go. Bruce was pulled under the fence and though the hole by her leg. Outside of the yard she put up a good fight and managed to get away. Somehow she hopped under the hole, through the yard, and back into the coop. At this point the coon was tiered and left. So if you think about it, Bruce (AKA Batman) did save almost the whole flock.
Thanks to BYC Bruce and Clark have survived all of their struggles over the years and are the elders of the flock.
Bruce sick:
After the attack:
RIP:
Clark protecting Bruce:
Rhode (pun) to recovery:
(Sorry that it is so long...)
I purchased my first flock of chicks back in 2013. We got 5 week old babies (all different breeds) and 3 month old rhode island reds from a local feed store. One was killed by a baby gate falling on it when we put them in the old coop that came with our property. Half of the remaining were roosters that we had to give back to the store, so that left us with 4. I purchased more chickens over time, but fate and moldy feed left me with only the road island reds from the origanal flock. One of the three RIR was lost to a coyote when he was about 8 months old. I had 10 chickens at the time, but one the two RIR were originals from my first flock. Their names were Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne (AKA Superman and Batman, but I never called them that). After the first one died Bruce got depressed and dropped almost all of her feathers during winter. I tried special diets and supplements to help, but she sported the bald back and head for almost two years, when she got sick. Bruce came down with a nasty respiratory virus. It seemed that she was drifting, so I gave her double the recommend doss of antibiotics. I figured that she was going to die anyways, so if it killed her to have that much at least I had tried. Amazingly she rebounded! Her feathers came back it butifuly! The two girls had high egg production and they were in their prime. Everything was going great, I built a new coop, got more chickens, and started planing for spring chicks. But about 3 weeks ago a raccoon dug into the coop. At about 3:00 the following afternoon I went to go check on the chickens. Only one of the RIRs was in the yard with the other chickens. I found a head less cream legbar in the yard and bloody brown/red feathers outside of the yard. I checked the inside of the coop and saw a brown/red body slouched in the cornor. I was devastated. I wet and got 2 garbarge bags to pick them up in. I dealt with the cream leg bar and went to get the RIR. I heard a very faint coo from what I had picked up. Amazed, I realized that it was still alive! I rushed her inside and inspected her ingeries. Her skin on her left thigh to mid stomach had been ripped off. We cleaned her wound with tweasers, wound cleaner, and lots of help and support from BYC. She spent the night inside. To my amazement she was already eating and drinking by morning. Her wound was wrapped so I put her in a crate inside the coop so she would remain in pecking order. her sister spent day and night next to the crate door. I guess that I forgot to close the crate one night because in the morning about 3 days later I opened the door to the coop and all of the chickens ran outside... Including her! Her right leg was paralyzed so she hopped out with them, I guess. Over the weeks science then she has rebounded even more. Yesterday I took her out of the coop to change her leg wrap. I set her back down in the coop and her sister ran over to say hello. Something seemed to click because she stood up and ran! It was a fast hop technically, but she kept up with her sister! She ran the boarder a few times then came and sat down at my feet and looked up at me as if to say "I did it! Did you see me?!" She and her sister went inside and went to sleep in the nesting box that they share because Bruce can't perch.
The raccoon fight:
After investigating the scene I realized what happened. The raccoon dragged the cream leg bar out into the yard after killing it inside the coop. It went back for more and came out with Bruce. The coon wanted more than the head on her though, so her took her to go. Bruce was pulled under the fence and though the hole by her leg. Outside of the yard she put up a good fight and managed to get away. Somehow she hopped under the hole, through the yard, and back into the coop. At this point the coon was tiered and left. So if you think about it, Bruce (AKA Batman) did save almost the whole flock.
Thanks to BYC Bruce and Clark have survived all of their struggles over the years and are the elders of the flock.
Bruce sick:
After the attack:
RIP:
Clark protecting Bruce:
Rhode (pun) to recovery:
that's funny. How are they today?
