It's been pretty hot here and on Thursday evening I noticed that the flock didn't have water. I've been watching my infant nephew and had been extra busy with him that day 
So I'm feeling extremely guilty by this. That evening they all seemed fine at the time, had their fill of fresh water and later went to bed. Friday morning I let them out and again they all seemed fine. Mid Friday I went out and noticed one chicken wasn't with the rest. I didn't think anything of it because she could have been laying at the time. In the afternoon I went to collect eggs and only found 2 eggs (I've been getting 3-5 a day) so I instantly new something was up.
I went searching and again she wasn't with the rest. I finally found her dead in our garage where the chickens have been hanging out all summer (hello chicken poop). It appeared by how she was laying that she was just standing or walking and fell over dead. They turned a year old in April and have barely been laying a year. But all my girls have always been healthy. I have had a few "scares" that turned out to be nothing. But basically I think I was getting too comfortable and thinking they were a tad invincible.
I had 6 girls and sadly this one was one of my favorites so that's been rough. Then yesterday, just 24 hours after finding my first loss I had another hen go missing. I walked all over our land for about 30 minutes in the heat, sweating my butt off thinking for sure she was dead too when finally she came running up from the front of the house. I have no idea where in the heck she could have been because I seriously looked everywhere but I was just relieved to see her. She did get grounded though and the whole flock has been locked in the run today.
Anyways it's been surprisingly hard on me losing our first chicken. I kept expecting it to happen, there is just so many darn things that can happen to them, but for it to actually happen, especially when it was my fault has been rough.
So I'm feeling extremely guilty by this. That evening they all seemed fine at the time, had their fill of fresh water and later went to bed. Friday morning I let them out and again they all seemed fine. Mid Friday I went out and noticed one chicken wasn't with the rest. I didn't think anything of it because she could have been laying at the time. In the afternoon I went to collect eggs and only found 2 eggs (I've been getting 3-5 a day) so I instantly new something was up.I went searching and again she wasn't with the rest. I finally found her dead in our garage where the chickens have been hanging out all summer (hello chicken poop). It appeared by how she was laying that she was just standing or walking and fell over dead. They turned a year old in April and have barely been laying a year. But all my girls have always been healthy. I have had a few "scares" that turned out to be nothing. But basically I think I was getting too comfortable and thinking they were a tad invincible.
I had 6 girls and sadly this one was one of my favorites so that's been rough. Then yesterday, just 24 hours after finding my first loss I had another hen go missing. I walked all over our land for about 30 minutes in the heat, sweating my butt off thinking for sure she was dead too when finally she came running up from the front of the house. I have no idea where in the heck she could have been because I seriously looked everywhere but I was just relieved to see her. She did get grounded though and the whole flock has been locked in the run today.
Anyways it's been surprisingly hard on me losing our first chicken. I kept expecting it to happen, there is just so many darn things that can happen to them, but for it to actually happen, especially when it was my fault has been rough.
