The Tale of the Miracle Chicken

This is Helen. 2 and a half weeks ago, our neighbor hired a man to trim the vine on the fence in our backyard. Later that evening, we couldn't find her come bedtime for our hens. We went out looking for her in the neighborhood and came up with nothing. Next morning, sane thing. She had been missing for 17 days and by that time we assumed she got spooked by the loud sound of the saw cutting our vine and got lost -- either hit by a car or scooped up and taken to a farm or the animal shelter. Yesterday, while checking on our younger birds under the vine, we found this:

Helen was alive, caught between the fence and the vine. We were shocked. How could we not have seen her? Or HEARD her? She didn't make a fuss until we cut the chain link fence open and pulled her out. We're amazed that she managed to survive all that time. Here she is now.


We're giving her yogurt, medicated food, treats, and lots of water and she seems to be doing well. She has some difficulty standing and walking but she's perkier than she was after we found her yesterday.
We're baffled. How could she have survived 17 days on leaves, without water?
Well, we're happy she's alive. Tough chicken.

Wow, that's an amazing story. I'm glad that Helen Hen is improving. Does it feel like she lost a lot of weight?

Way to go Helen!! Keep us posted on her progress - everyone loves a good chicken story,

scratch'n'peck said:

Wow, that's an amazing story.  I'm glad that Helen Hen is improving.  Does it feel like she lost a lot of weight?

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Yeah, she's much lighter. It's not apparent because of her feathers but I can absolutely tell when I pick her up. Hope to get some meat back on her bones.

I'm so happy you found Helen. She is a strong chicken to go that long without food or water. I love a story with a happy ending.

Patty

I'm so happy you found her alive and pretty much well. She looks like shes on the mend. What a sweet girl Helen is.

Helen is recovering wonderfully. She was a little wobbly on her feet at first, but she can cruise around the deck now. We have to keep her fenced in, away from rest of the flock so they won't try to kill her. We chased them off and let her out earlier today so she could have a dirt bath.
She has an aversion to solid food, probably because her crop is empty, so we're giving her dirt and soft food like fruit and peas. She's flapping her wings and napping now and then. Her napping makes me nervous that something might be wrong, but it's probably best that she get some rest after the ordeal. I'm impressed with how much more active she is today than yesterday. It looks like she'll be better soon.

Wow FluffyBetty what an amazing tale of survival and also one awesome little girl!

Is it possible she was not trapped there the whole time? This would explain why you did not see or hear her and how she survived for so long. She may have been able to source some water from condensation?

Either way, the important thing is that you did find her and I am so happy for you and her that she is recovering

Teila said:

Wow FluffyBetty what an amazing tale of survival and also one awesome little girl!

Is it possible she was not trapped there the whole time?  This would explain why you did not see or hear her and how she survived for so long.  She may have been able to source some water from condensation?

Either way, the important thing is that you did find her and I am so happy for you and her that she is recovering 

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Nope, that's where she had to be. She was freaked out by the power tools used to trim the vine and flew over our fence, climbed under the vine to get back to our yard, and got stuck. It was foggy so there may have been some condensation.
Even so, I think it's insane that she made it that long. Truly unbelievable.

FluffyBetty said:

Nope, that's where she had to be. She was freaked out by the power tools used to trim the vine and flew over our fence, climbed under the vine to get back to our yard, and got stuck. It was foggy so there may have been some condensation.
Even so, I think it's insane that she made it that long. Truly unbelievable.

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Yep, for sure, the important thing is that she did survive; she is one tough little girl and as I mentioned, I am so very pleased for you and her ... an incredible story with the happiest of endings