Dealing with loss

[SuperFluffyChickens]

Hello, I just want to talk to other chicken keepers about dealing with illness and death in our birds. I tried to hatch a clutch of 11 eggs, but only 5 hatched and one seems weak and lethargic. I’ve been crying all day long. I’m probably just exhausted and sleep-deprived from the hatch, but in general I handle death of my birds so poorly. I’m autistic and have trouble regulating my emotions. I just love my chickens so much, they’re my pets and my babies. Sometimes they (along with my dog) feel like my only friends. So when I lose one, it feels like my heart is being ripped apart. Idk, I just wanted to talk, maybe vent, with likeminded people. People seem really nice here.

Bonus pics of some of my birds:

 

[AinaWGSD]

I'm sorry. Hatching can be wonderful, but it can be hard emotionally too. Your birds are beautiful! And I hope all of your chicks do well and grow up strong

 

[GodLovesU]

Your birds are gorgeous! Have you posted about your sick chick in the illness thread yet?

 

[FattyChickens]

Hey, i also feel intense attachment to my chickens. You're so valid.

Last year a monsoon came through my city and flooded my entire backyard. At the time, i had 16 chickens and the flood wiped out my fences, washed away tons of belongings and absolutely obliterated my coop and run. The flood started and reached its peak in the matter of seconds. I rushed to rescue all of my chickens.The sadness that I felt, watching hours and hours of my hard work getting washed away destroyed me for a time. I rehomed all but 4 chickens because I was scared of the unstability of the weather, and the thought of being at work while a flood came and took all of my babies, was too much to bare. I miss my other chickens every day, and I think it is extremely understandable to feel so much sadness over our chickens. I'll never understand seeing them as egg machines and going "oh well" when they die.

 

[CalgaryFarmer]

@SuperFluffyChickens

I am sure you try your best and despite your best efforts some will not make it. There is nothing you or anyone else could have done.

On the positive side of things, your chickens must be super happy at the beautiful home, food, water, treats and loving care you give them.

 

[SuperFluffyChickens]

Your birds are gorgeous! Have you posted about your sick chick in the illness thread yet?

Thank you, and yes. No replies yet though, but I have spoken to a friend of mine online who’s a breeder who gave me some advice - telling me about “failure to thrive,” although this baby doesn’t seem that bad thankfully.

 

[SuperFluffyChickens]

I'm sorry. Hatching can be wonderful, but it can be hard emotionally too. Your birds are beautiful! And I hope all of your chicks do well and grow up strong

Thank you. Its tough, but the joy it brings is worth it in the end, I think. Of course it’s easier to just buy chicks, but I find that they’re less fearful and more trusting when all they’ve known is gentle handling and comfort rather than being jostled around during shipping. And watching them hatch is just magical!

Hey, i also feel intense attachment to my chickens. You're so valid.

Last year a monsoon came through my city and flooded my entire backyard. At the time, i had 16 chickens and the flood wiped out my fences, washed away tons of belongings and absolutely obliterated my coop and run. The flood started and reached its peak in the matter of seconds. I rushed to rescue all of my chickens.The sadness that I felt, watching hours and hours of my hard work getting washed away destroyed me for a time. I rehomed all but 4 chickens because I was scared of the unstability of the weather, and the thought of being at work while a flood came and took all of my babies, was too much to bare. I miss my other chickens every day, and I think it is extremely understandable to feel so much sadness over our chickens. I'll never understand seeing them as egg machines and going "oh well" when they die.

Omg, I feel this so hard. In 2023 I had a mink raid my coop, it killed 8 birds in one night, a third of my flock. And it would have taken more, if some of my birds hadn’t gotten shut into the nesting area when the door got closed in the chaos. It was probably the worst day of my life, finding them all of the birds I’d lovingly raised just lying dead like that. It’s like you said…all your hard work wiped away in an instant.
And then, this year my flock was diagnosed with Marek’s disease and Avian Leukosis. I’ve had 5 losses in the past 9 months, it doesn’t seem to be a super-deadly strain and they just die suddenly overnight from internal tumors rather than wasting away from neurological issues. Both these things have made me super paranoid, now I don’t let my birds freerange anymore and I have a baby monitor in the coop.

@SuperFluffyChickens

I am sure you try your best and despite your best efforts some will not make it. There is nothing you or anyone else could have done.

On the positive side of things, your chickens must be super happy at the beautiful home, food, water, treats and loving care you give them.

Thank you, it’s hard to accept that sometimes but you’re right. The irrational part of my brain says it must be my fault somehow, but the rational part knows enough about nature and biology to know that these things happen all the time and there’s nothing I can do.

And thank you, my dad says I take better care of my chickens than of myself haha, I always try to put my animals first. They depend on humans for nutrition and safety, after all. And taking care of them has given me a purpose in life, I’ve been through some stuff but having them keeps me grounded

 

[Bsmac]

Hello, I just want to talk to other chicken keepers about dealing with illness and death in our birds. I tried to hatch a clutch of 11 eggs, but only 5 hatched and one seems weak and lethargic. I’ve been crying all day long. I’m probably just exhausted and sleep-deprived from the hatch, but in general I handle death of my birds so poorly. I’m autistic and have trouble regulating my emotions. I just love my chickens so much, they’re my pets and my babies. Sometimes they (along with my dog) feel like my only friends. So when I lose one, it feels like my heart is being ripped apart. Idk, I just wanted to talk, maybe vent, with likeminded people. People seem really nice here.

Bonus pics of some of my birds:

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Hello! Losing any of these wonderful creatures is never very easy... I am sorry for your loss.... I wish I could tell you it gets easier but it does not for me. I just try to remember that I give my birds the best care I can and know that all our birds are loved! Very pretty birds btw!

 

[Chickadee7790]

Hello, I just want to talk to other chicken keepers about dealing with illness and death in our birds. I tried to hatch a clutch of 11 eggs, but only 5 hatched and one seems weak and lethargic. I’ve been crying all day long. I’m probably just exhausted and sleep-deprived from the hatch, but in general I handle death of my birds so poorly. I’m autistic and have trouble regulating my emotions. I just love my chickens so much, they’re my pets and my babies. Sometimes they (along with my dog) feel like my only friends. So when I lose one, it feels like my heart is being ripped apart. Idk, I just wanted to talk, maybe vent, with likeminded people. People seem really nice here.

Bonus pics of some of my birds:

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I am so sorry for your loss. I'm a new chicken mom and we just lost one of our girls on Monday. The pain of loss is very real. It's amazing how quickly we can get attached to these little balls of feathers.

 

[SuperFluffyChickens]

I am so sorry for your loss. I'm a new chicken mom and we just lost one of our girls on Monday. The pain of loss is very real. It's amazing how quickly we can get attached to these little balls of feathers.

I’m so sorry for your loss
I always knew I’m a big softie who gets emotional very easily, but I definitely underestimated how much I’d love my birds before I got them. Especially the ones you raise from chicks, but even if you get them older it still hurts. The first (and so far only ) time I’ve had to cull an aggressive rooster I couldn’t stop crying even though he was such a pain. I’ve only been keeping for 4 years myself. Like the other person said, I wish I could say it gets easier, but not really. I do think the joy they bring does make it worth it, though