Lost a little piece off my heart tonight.....

[tacmomma12]

I lost my 2 year old Rhode Island Red Hen tonight. Barbie Q. She was the alpha chicken, top of the pecking order. Found her lying down at a funny angle with her feet in the air not moving, not bloody, still warm. Don't have any idea if she got her head stuck in the wire fence of the run and pulled herself free by breaking her neck or if a hawk got to her, but didn't stick around for the meal. We buried her in the yard as deep as we could get. She looked so peaceful........and I am heartbroken. Her neck was limp but it didn;t feel right so I think it was broken. I heard nothing, and saw nothing to alert me to trouble, and it's a small yard. I feel TERRIBLE to think I could have saved her.

She was my partner, the one who would always follow me around the yard. Going to miss her like crazy. They are more like pets to me. Now we have three. Carly, one of my Orpingtons was closest to her and she kept trying to poke at her to wake her up.

Do you think it was a hawk, or natural, or an injury? She was right near the run's open door when I found her. Sigh........I had to help dig the hole and put her into it. It just seems surreal. My girls are like pets.


RIP little darling.....

 

[OllieOliverCharlie]

I'm so sorry

 

[thomasboyle]

Very sorry for your loss. I have lost chickens to natural causes (inside the coop with no way for a predator to get them). I don't think a hawk got her - chicken attacks usually have an explosion of feathers so you can see an attack happened. I just lost 2 hens last week to natural causes. They just don't live as long as we would like!

 

[tacmomma12]

Thanks so much for the condolences, both of you. I feel silly being so upset over her, but it really did take me by surprise. The last time I looked out at them, maybe an hour or so before finding her, nothing was amiss, and she was healthy and happy as far as I could tell. She wasn't young, but she could have lived a few more happy years at least. I suspect some kind of medical issue that cropped up suddenly, like an anuerysm or something.

The other three have been very quiet and mostly hiding today. All three seem fine, however. Likely as much due to heat as not entirely sure what to make of the situation. We carry on. Sorry for your losses as well.

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry for your loss. I have found a few chickens this way who just died suddenly. Heart attacks, liver disease, and kidney disease are common, as well as egg binding. Some really are special to us with their personalities, aren't they?

 

[bucky52]

So sorry for your loss.My chickens are my pets too.And its heartbreaking when we lose one.You mentioned the others were hiding and was quiet.Something may have spooked them and cause her to fly up and broke her neck.Some days my hens are very spooky and any sudden movement will send them into a flying panic.When that happens we do put a game camera near their run.to see if anything or anyone is in the area of their runs.

 

[tacmomma12]

Thanks for the tip- but I meant that today they are hiding. Last night they were pretty calm, actually. Except for Carly, who noticed her friend was on the ground not moving. The spook thing is possible though, as Barbie Q could have been on her own at the time. I'm being very watchful today.

They are pets, and have a lot of personality.

 

[Papas Chickens]

Sorry for your loss, I also had chickens die suddenly like that. It could have been from old age, I have seen chickens that were imbreed to much die sooner then others. I also have Gunea Fowl with my girls to warn them of predators that are lurking around.