How to get over grief of a hen

[Riverbend Farms]

My sweet little oegb hen Nightingale died a few months ago. Whenever I look at her picture I start crying. I miss her so much. Is there any way to ease the grief or does it heal with time?

 

[cavemanrich]

Time heals most things.
for having soo much luv for your pets.
I have lost pets recently. A dog that was about 20 years old. I don't know exactly,, but he was a rescue,, and we had him for over 11 years or so. I estimated his age when we got him to be about 9.
Even though his time came naturally,, it still saddens me when I think about him. On the positive note,,, he went peacefully from old age,, and no suffering.
All my pet chickens live long lives. My oldest currently is 10+ years old. I had one that lived 13 years.
I had 2 OEGH,, but they are waiting for me at the Rainbow Bridge now.

WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and

 

[ChickenCanoe]

It is truly an individual thing. We all get attached to our animals or fellow humans to different degrees. My wife had to put her dog down about 3 years ago. She still cries when she sees his picture. I still miss my first two dogs. That was 60 years ago.
Some people accept it more easily. I'm an omnivore and hatch a lot so I butcher all the extra cockerels. It isn't pleasant but I don't really think about them more than a day.

 

[Callender Girl]

I don't know if time heals all things, but the way we grieve changes.

Time numbs the pain a bit, but the sense of loss and sorrow won't necessarily ever disappear. Some of the sharp edges will soften, and you will be able to remember Nightingale without the stabbing pain of her death.

I have learned that you can't push down the feelings and expect them to go away. Buried pain will resurface, so let yourself feel what you need to feel, however long it takes. Embrace the hurt, don't run away from it. Let it run its course, and it will lose some of its power over you.

You don't grieve hard if you didn't love hard, and you clearly loved Nightingale.

Take care.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

There is another aspect to this I want to bring up only to interject a touch of reality for this situation and for all to keep in mind.
On average, chickens, ducks, dogs and cats may live up into their teens. Alternatively, humans usually live into their 70s. It doesn't make the loss easier but those are facts we can't change. If one keeps those species and gets closely attached, it is inevitable they will experience loss eventually and they need to come to grips with that when they first acquire the responsibility of those animals' care.
Replacing a dog with another over and over, one will experience heartache many times in their life.
My best friend's first duck found its way into her heart, and it pained her deeply when it died. Years later, she still had photos of the duck all over her house and the memory still brought tears to her eyes. The same friend, (13 years my junior) died last November. Any thought of her brings tears to my eyes.
The reverse also happens when people own animals that live longer than us. Primarily, I'm thinking of parrots (which we should not own). For example, large Macaws can live to be well over 100. Since Macaws mate for life, when the human that the bird bonded with dies, that bird usually goes crazy. It is something I've witnessed many times. A middle-aged person should never acquire a scarlet or great green macaw. It will outlive them, outlive their children and likely even their grandchildren. Hence all the parrots making the rounds in rescue centers. Most of those birds will be problem animals even if they are rehomed - over and over.
It can be argued that humans are meant to keep truly domesticated species like dogs or chickens but wild animals like parrots should be a no-no.