Chicken loss and grieving

[mullys]

There was a thread for bereaved chicken keepers but I haven’t been able to find it.
Your posts have touched on so many of the issues that I have thought a great deal about over my years of chicken keeping.
There is unfortunately a perception that chicken keeping is fun and a whole industry has sprung up that attempts to reinforce this view.
A loose definition of ‘Fun’ is something that provides mirth or amusement; it’s inconsequential, of no real importance.
It doesn’t sound like you’re having a lot of fun and a brief scan of these forums will persuade you that an awful lot of other people aren’t having much fun either.
I would like to see this chicken keeping is fun message changed. Chicken keeping I have found is a great many things, but if you value the chickens you keep and consider them as something more than a passing amusement, fun hasn’t featured in my experience of chicken keeping and nor should it in my opinion.
Chicken keeping is a responsibility, a joy at times, a heartache at others and for those who keep chickens purely as livestock, it’s a job.
Chicken keeping is easy is another misleading view. It seems everything wants to eat chicken so just trying to keep them safe is extremely difficult if you are concerned about their quality of life. Many of the breeds that have been encouraged over the years, have because of the human desire to have productive livestock, become short lived and prone to reproductive disorders and disease.

Part of the problem with the spread of diseases and problems attributed to poor genetics is the point you’ve mentioned above, but underlying that point is chickens are in general viewed as a commodity rather than a fellow species of any intrinsic value.

For me, the chickens I look after have become my friends. They are neither livestock nor pets. Like friends from any species, you can offer them support, help them when they run into problems, nurse them when they are sick, but you cannot own their lives and you cannot control them if they are to have the degree of freedom that we would strive for for ourselves.

I lose chickens every year. I buried one of my most aggravating and obstinate chicken friends a few days ago. Each day they survive is one more day in which I can enjoy their company but like my human friends, death is inevitable and I can only hope they don’t die today.

Thankyou for your very insightful words. We couldn't agree more. When we came to our dream farm it was essentially for our two horses. We thought having chickens as pets would mean they would live long happy lives.
We didn't take into account the very poor breeding and disease control. Going to our first "Fur and Feathers" swap meet was heart breaking! Since then we vowed to buy only from breeders. Nevertheless we somehow brought in IB along the way. The first two hens were rescued from my work at a large city shelter. The first four lived 5-7 years.
I ended up taking Phryne to U of G Animal Health Lab yesterday for a necropsy. The reason we don't do viral or antigen testing is because it is too expensive and according to the head pathologist, not conclusive. It can show only exposure to a pathogen not the pathogen itself, in many cases. Dr Miller just gives a recommendation based on autopsy and histopathology. We should hear soon.
I also read this article for what it is worth. https://www.thehappychickencoop.com/how-long-will-backyard-hens-live-for/
We are beginning to think most our girls are not dying prematurely but , of course, some have had individual health issues. Apart from Phryne and Dot, from a breeder last year, they died before 2 years.
Every point you make is very true, stewardship of any life is a responsibility, not a hobby. Not for fun necessarily but moments of joy can be a part of it.
Chickens have been domesticated for a long time, along with other domestics, dogs and cats, the species are beginning to fail (is there a genetically healthy dog or cat?) Anyway, I am ranting now. Thanks to everyone for their support and good thoughts. I'll let you know what we find.

 

[SilversRule]

Thank you.

As a registered veterinary technician and a person who has rescued animals my whole life (my mom taught me the rescue side of animal husbandry), I have learned a great deal about loss. What I am going to post here is very realistic, some may disagree, I hope all can take away at least a little grain of growth. One of the sad things about modern life is that we humans have become so distant from the rest of the natural world many are afraid of the cycle, born-life (the part where one is partaking in what we call living) and death. No matter what your religous beliefs are this is the way of the world. Humans don't get to usually choose when the death part of the cycle occurs. Humans typically don't like a loss of control (magnified by advertisements and our medical ideas) and death is so final. I learned that after losing my husband to cancer when I was 47.
I find that the grieving process is much less cluttered up with un-needed pain when I accept it as a fact of life. This gives me more emotional room to apprecitate my babies (chickens, parrots, dogs, piggys, cats and people) while they are here. I was working at a vet clinic as a RVT and had a women ask me why dog's live such short lives, my reply was off the cuff and yet very appropriate (I think). "Maybe God made them that way so we could learn to love and let go". I had a friend explain to me (in regards to why humans die young). "We are put here to do a job and when that job is finished we die". We don't know what anothers "job" is and as such don't always understand why they died when they did.
One last part, we have altered so many genetics of animals through forced mating (anytime we choose who mates with who for whatever reason we are altering the natural genetics of that animal. As such we have no real idea of the long tern concsequences of the choices we have made for the animal). By doing this we have weakened the genetic base of all domesticated animals. This in itself makes them more susceptible to disease and early death. We also have put them into artificial environments (any caging of an animal creates an artificial scenerio) which usually causes an imbalance of the ebb and flow of the good, the bad, and the ugly of disease/parasites and because of the genetic altering we have done their immune system is weakend. Add to this the keeping alive of genetically weak ones by not letting them die naturally this is compounded.
The bottom line here is I have learned to accept that death follows life, that my job is to make sure that they have the best natural life I can (within the confines of a cage) and to appreciate them every day. Lastly my job is to let them go as painlessly (for them) when the time is here. I hope that you are able to gain some solice from this post even if it takes some time to arrive.

 

[Relleoms]

As a registered veterinary technician and a person who has rescued animals my whole life (my mom taught me the rescue side of animal husbandry), I have learned a great deal about loss. What I am going to post here is very realistic, some may disagree, I hope all can take away at least a little grain of growth. One of the sad things about modern life is that we humans have become so distant from the rest of the natural world many are afraid of the cycle, born-life (the part where one is partaking in what we call living) and death. No matter what your religous beliefs are this is the way of the world. Humans don't get to usually choose when the death part of the cycle occurs. Humans typically don't like a loss of control (magnified by advertisements and our medical ideas) and death is so final. I learned that after losing my husband to cancer when I was 47.
I find that the grieving process is much less cluttered up with un-needed pain when I accept it as a fact of life. This gives me more emotional room to apprecitate my babies (chickens, parrots, dogs, piggys, cats and people) while they are here. I was working at a vet clinic as a RVT and had a women ask me why dog's live such short lives, my reply was off the cuff and yet very appropriate (I think). "Maybe God made them that way so we could learn to love and let go". I had a friend explain to me (in regards to why humans die young). "We are put here to do a job and when that job is finished we die". We don't know what anothers "job" is and as such don't always understand why they died when they did.
One last part, we have altered so many genetics of animals through forced mating (anytime we choose who mates with who for whatever reason we are altering the natural genetics of that animal. As such we have no real idea of the long tern concsequences of the choices we have made for the animal). By doing this we have weakened the genetic base of all domesticated animals. This in itself makes them more susceptible to disease and early death. We also have put them into artificial environments (any caging of an animal creates an artificial scenerio) which usually causes an imbalance of the ebb and flow of the good, the bad, and the ugly of disease/parasites and because of the genetic altering we have done their immune system is weakend. Add to this the keeping alive of genetically weak ones by not letting them die naturally this is compounded.
The bottom line here is I have learned to accept that death follows life, that my job is to make sure that they have the best natural life I can (within the confines of a cage) and to appreciate them every day. Lastly my job is to let them go as painlessly (for them) when the time is here. I hope that you are able to gain some solice from this post even if it takes some time to arrive.

Very well said. Thank you for such a thoughtful response.

 

[crazychick26201]

I am so sorry for your losses
To answer your question, no, you are not "too soft". A lot of people raise chickens (and really any other animal) as pets, and it is completely ok. Others raise them as livestock for eggs and/or for meat and/or for breeding and thats ok too. I raise mine as pets who lay breakfast every day But i understand the hurt of loss of any pet. Chickens can elicit just as strong of emotions as any other pet, dont let anyone make you feel bad that youre mourning a chicken. My first flock were buff orpingtons and they were all unusually friendly and docile. They were some of the best companions that ive ever seen in my life, and i was shocked and awed that chickens could have such personalities. At the time i was raising them on my parents property and my dad was watching them for me whilst he was sick. Needless to say he accidentally left the gate open that night and the next morning they found nothing but blood and feathers left of my beloved babies. It was absolutely devastating for me and both of them, but my mom took it really really hard. She (to this day) doesnt want any more chickens on her property because she just "cant handle the loss". I reflect back on that experience and am still saddened, but there is a very real feeling of the circle of life that i can appreciate and understand, even tho losses are still very hard. Unfortunately all living things do eventually die, weather its abruptly, or over time, and ive learned to try to accept it as a part of life. Ive found that loss is a little easier now, but it never gets "easy". They are living creatures, and we love them. No matter the spices.
Hope you make the decision thats right for you and your family.

M

 

[crazychick26201]

I just found this thread while looking for help with grief over the loss of a chicken, and I wonder if anyone can help me cope with the death on my beloved hen, Henrietta. It has been a week since I found her standing a little off to one side in the yard. She looked a bit stunned and I thought maybe she had gotten too hot so I put her in a basement crate with water and electrolytes. She also had watery, like clear water diarrhea. My husband thought she had gotten stung by a bee so I gave her a dose of meloxicam too. I checked her before dark and she drank a little water but was the same. Her comb was a bit droopy but still red. Previously she had been very healthy for a six year old, eating, drinking, laying eggs. At 6:30 the next morning, I found her dead in the crate. She was cold, stiff. She had laid a soft shelled egg and vomited up some brown fluid. I think maybe. He aspirated. And I was not there to help her. I had planned to take her to the vet but too late. Anyhow here is my anguish. I think I might have killed her with the meloxicam. And that is driving me crazy with anguish. I have sobbed all week and each day it gets worse. I have had other chickens die but none like this. This was the worst. I too wonder if I am too sensitive to keep chickens. Everyone who responded in this thread seems so wise and kind. Perhaps you will understand how I feel. Any reply will be appreciated.

 

[Kathy Golla]

Hello @crazychick26201. I’m so sorry for your loss.
If a chicken has something in their crop when they die the crop empties. At least that happened to me with one of my hens.
She most likely didn’t aspirate and had something else going on.
You didn’t poison her with meloxicam. Meloxicam is like ibuprofen, it would take a lot to have any ill effects. A vet once told me the correct dosage of meloxicam for a hen is upwards of 6ccs per liquid dose.
If this happens ever again to you, you may be able to send your hen into the state vet for a necropsy to determine what happened. In this case I think you probably would have taken some measure of comfort in knowing what she died of.

 

[m1chelle1]

I just found this thread while looking for help with grief over the loss of a chicken, and I wonder if anyone can help me cope with the death on my beloved hen, Henrietta. It has been a week since I found her standing a little off to one side in the yard. She looked a bit stunned and I thought maybe she had gotten too hot so I put her in a basement crate with water and electrolytes. She also had watery, like clear water diarrhea. My husband thought she had gotten stung by a bee so I gave her a dose of meloxicam too. I checked her before dark and she drank a little water but was the same. Her comb was a bit droopy but still red. Previously she had been very healthy for a six year old, eating, drinking, laying eggs. At 6:30 the next morning, I found her dead in the crate. She was cold, stiff. She had laid a soft shelled egg and vomited up some brown fluid. I think maybe. He aspirated. And I was not there to help her. I had planned to take her to the vet but too late. Anyhow here is my anguish. I think I might have killed her with the meloxicam. And that is driving me crazy with anguish. I have sobbed all week and each day it gets worse. I have had other chickens die but none like this. This was the worst. I too wonder if I am too sensitive to keep chickens. Everyone who responded in this thread seems so wise and kind. Perhaps you will understand how I feel. Any reply will be appreciated.

So sorry for your loss!!!
We do understand how you feel. I see you said that you have had other chickens die before, but none like this. Is that because the other chickens died outside, and not under your direct care? It seems like with this loss you are definitely blaming yourself. That might be why the anguish is larger with this loss. I completely understand blaming yourself for the loss especially when you think you gave her the wrong medicine. As another poster said, its not your fault, you didnt poison her. It was just her time. You did a good thing by keeping her comfortable and cared for until her final minutes. She is in chicken heaven with her other flockmates and all good chickens.
Take time to mourn, it is healthy.

 

[HollyWoozle]

@crazychick26201 - I'm so sorry for your loss of Henrietta. It sounds like you did your best for her and since she was ill and died very quickly, plus had had some pain relief, it seems to me there wasn't much suffering for her.

I sobbed about my lost chicken on Friday and I become increasingly emotionally tied to the others, I keep thinking my family/friends must think me mad! They are endearing little souls and each with their own character, so I think it's only normal that those of us who spend time getting to know them feel their loss keenly.

I'm sorry again for your loss and your sadness. You did your best and you didn't make anything worse for her, you cared for her with kindness.

 

[crazychick26201]

Thank you, Kathy, M1chelle, and Hollywoozle for your kind words. They help so much! I am what I guess they call an empath, and my animals mean so much to me. I began with a small flock of four Buff Orpingtons six years ago. And I have been lucky to have three still surviving. Of that original flock I lost one at three years old. She had to be euthanized. I still miss her! She was my “chickie hug” girl. I have raised two more little broods, hoping to enlarge my flock. Of those, one had to be rehomed, a rooster, and one just wasted away Over the course of a couple months last summer. Of my most recent brood, my little Roo collapsed and died right in front of me at 11weeks of age from something called sudden death syndrome. That was four weeks ago and now Henrietta. I think the reason Henny’s death hit me so hard is not only do I think I may have caused it, but also when I found her she was so long gone, and stiff. I didn’t have a chance to say goodbye. I still can’t enter the room where she died. Too painful. These little chicken spirits just find a home in our hearts, don’t they? I am working through it slowly. I am writing a lot and spending quiet time in nature. Also tending to my other old girls who are grieving too, (they keep calling for her), and my 15 week old pullets.

Sorry for your loss too, HollyWoozle. Don’t worry about appearing strange because you mourn for a chicken. Grief cuts across all boundaries, and as you said, it’s ok to mourn. Glad there is a community out there that understands, though

 

[HollyWoozle]

Thank you, @crazychick26201. It's certainly a comfort to know that we're not in this alone. It sounds like you have had a really tough time of it lately. Amazing that 3 of your original 4 are still going though, I think you can rest-assured that you are taking great care of them since they have reached a great age.