Ode to Old Hens... Pictures of the Seniors in Our Flock

[speckledhen]

I'm sorry to hear of your losses, it never gets any easier. Speaking of house chickens they really can be great, make or buy a diaper and your good to go. Cru has a large indoor rabbit hutch with a perch and all the basics, and if the weather is OK she goes outside onto the front lawn with the ducks and a couple chooks recovering from injury/illness/ terrible moulting to early in the season. But cru much like my previous house chickens is such a sweetie, she loves to watch TV or YouTube with me . The screaming is different given my first house chicken Evie never made any noise similar, but Evie was a smuggler and was just happy being with you or wandering around with Betty her cage mates.

Very cute. My fear is I'd trip over them all the time in the house. The cat is bad enough when he's in here (I prefer him outside doing his job, which he does all night long). I broke my toe a couple of weeks ago and I can only imagine having to dodge both cat and chicken and breaking something else--worse yet, them playing with each other in the house!

 

[robhuncor]

Buffy, my 10 year old Ameraucana, laid an egg for my birthday yesterday!!!! She is Curious's sister. She's never been the greatest layer but she always manages a few every year. I think last year she laid 2.

But how nice of her to come forth with one on my birthday! I always knew her egg because its a lovely shaded blue. For most of her life she has been broody so not many eggs, She gave that up last year - she's in retirement.

 

[speckledhen]

Buffy, my 10 year old Ameraucana, laid an egg for my birthday yesterday!!!! She is Curious's sister. She's never been the greatest layer but she always manages a few every year. I think last year she laid 2.

But how nice of her to come forth with one on my birthday! I always knew her egg because its a lovely shaded blue. For most of her life she has been broody so not many eggs, She gave that up last year - she's in retirement.

Well, happy birthday to Buffy! She and Amanda make quite a pair. Amanda has laid eggs in Nov, Dec, Jan and Feb and she's acting like she has one to pop out today. She is also 10 years old this month.

What is even more amazing to me about Amanda is that, though she hasn't been able to actually walk for several years due to arthritis that cost her the use of one leg, she still holds the position of head hen. NOBODY picks on Amanda, even after the loss of the head hen of all head hens, Buff Brahma, Caroline, back at the end of October. Caroline was her protector and backup for everything, but I was worried that when Caroline, then Amanda's sister, Becca, died right afterward, that Amanda might have issues. Not at all. That stupid Tiny Terrorist did flare up at Amanda one day outside when Amanda was attempting to dustbathe, first time I ever saw her do that. Amanda raised herself up as tall as she could, flared her hackles, pecked Tiny in the face and backed her off. So, no one will be messing with tough old Amanda!

 

[robhuncor]

Sunday afternoon I came home from a happy family birthday party to find disaster had struck in the old ones barn. My little 10 year old white Silkie rooster, Pointy (my avatar) was mangled in the middle of the barn floor and Barney Green, my 14 year old Barnevelder hen was missing. I finally found her, also mangled and dragged to the farthest corner of the big pen. I've set the traps but it's so upsetting and discouraging. And now I'll never know how long old Barney could have lived on her own. She was in amazingly good shape for 14, not a feather missing and, even half eaten, she was quite heavy. Poor Buffy is catatonic. I think the shock of watching her old buddies die is going to kill her. The old ones have always avoided trouble because they go to roost so early, usually by 3 or 4. So I know this killer, probably a raccoon, must have gotten them early in the afternoon, right after we left. It's a constant battle to keep reinforcing the pens and then the predators just figure out another way to get in.

 

[speckledhen]

Sunday afternoon I came home from a happy family birthday party to find disaster had struck in the old ones barn. My little 10 year old white Silkie rooster, Pointy (my avatar) was mangled in the middle of the barn floor and Barney Green, my 14 year old Barnevelder hen was missing. I finally found her, also mangled and dragged to the farthest corner of the big pen. I've set the traps but it's so upsetting and discouraging. And now I'll never know how long old Barney could have lived on her own. She was in amazingly good shape for 14, not a feather missing and, even half eaten, she was quite heavy. Poor Buffy is catatonic. I think the shock of watching her old buddies die is going to kill her. The old ones have always avoided trouble because they go to roost so early, usually by 3 or 4. So I know this killer, probably a raccoon, must have gotten them early in the afternoon, right after we left. It's a constant battle to keep reinforcing the pens and then the predators just figure out another way to get in.

Oh, no! NONONONONONONONO! I'm so sorry, Robin! Poor Barney Green! To live 14 years and then this. I don't know what to say.

I hope Buffy doesn't grieve herself to death. I was worried about that with Dusty, my 9 year old Orp, after Xander died. Yesterday, she acted like she'd had a mini-stroke, but seems okay today, just slow.

 

[robhuncor]

Thanks, Cyn. I just don't know how much more we can do to protect them. Long ago I stopped letting them out to free range. Even with me standing right there, I have had a fox run out of the woods and grab one, right in front of me, on 2 different occasions! Between the foxes, raccoons, weasels and fishers I've lost a lot of poultry. I think I'm too close to the woods and swamp. It's perfect cover for the assorted predators. 2 different varieties of hawks actually nest on my property! On one hand, I love the wildlife but on the other, I want to kill everything that threatens my poultry! At least that's how I feel right now. Very upsetting.

 

[speckledhen]

Thanks, Cyn. I just don't know how much more we can do to protect them. Long ago I stopped letting them out to free range. Even with me standing right there, I have had a fox run out of the woods and grab one, right in front of me, on 2 different occasions! Between the foxes, raccoons, weasels and fishers I've lost a lot of poultry. I think I'm too close to the woods and swamp. It's perfect cover for the assorted predators. 2 different varieties of hawks actually nest on my property! On one hand, I love the wildlife but on the other, I want to kill everything that threatens my poultry! At least that's how I feel right now. Very upsetting.

Those foxes are awful. Ladyhawk had birds in cages in her garage when she first moved to where she is now. She was cleaning cages, had some banty hens and little rooster milling around on the garage floor when a fox ran into the garage and snatched a hen right near her. The little rooster ran after it and she had to run after him so he wouldn't be course #2 for the fox. We have so many predators here, it's unreal that we've had no losses, but eventually, our time will come. I'm not looking forward to that. Again, I'm so, so sorry. And that it was her is even, well, to me, worse. RIP, old lady.

 

[speckledhen]

I was worried about my 9 year old, now-half-blind Blue Orp hen, Dusty, losing weight, then I saw her do that snaking thing they do with their neck when their crop is bothering them, so I asked Tom to pick her up and double check her belly and crop. She has lost weight, probably from a molt, but her crop seems fine. We put her on the ground and let them out. She promptly ran to the scratch, grabbed Maretta by the tail feathers and threw her out of the way and stomped at Wendy. Yeah, she's still Dusty!
Crippled Barred Rock Amanda is now 10 yrs 4 mos old and still shows no signs of leaving. She did quit laying at the beginning of April after a months' long run of regular eggs, and I see now she was starting a molt. Gypsy will be 10 in November with several turning 10 yrs old in the spring. I haven't lost any more hens in that age range, believe it or not, though I may be losing my 3 yr old BR hen, Rowena, to some reproductive thing. The old gals just keep on ticking!

 

[speckledhen]

We lost a very important lady today. Our last Blue Orpington hen, Dusty, passed suddenly. After coming out with her group, chasing off competitors for biscuits, I later found her laying, feet behind her, in the concrete gutter that surrounds the barn, just off the ramp that goes across it. It was like she was headed back inside or outside, not sure, and just had a heart attack and died. No fluid coming out of her beak, nothing.
RIP, big old blue girl. You were a force to be reckoned with your entire 9 1/2 years of life, loved by both Suede and little munchkin dictator, Xander.

 

[jwyles]

Buffy, my 10 year old Ameraucana, laid an egg for my birthday yesterday!!!! She is Curious's sister. She's never been the greatest layer but she always manages a few every year. I think last year she laid 2.

But how nice of her to come forth with one on my birthday! I always knew her egg because its a lovely shaded blue. For most of her life she has been broody so not many eggs, She gave that up last year - she's in retirement.

10 years old? That's amazing!