Just like the title says, I lost my sweet little disabled Easter Egger, Carmen, this morning. I've been blaming myself over and over for this because I should have known what could happen to my girls since my huge Cochin Sprite went broody. Sprite has been hogging the nesting area and has been very aggressive with me and with the other gals. I let the gals out yesterday morning but didn't see my little bantam Cochin Lady come out of the coop, so I went around the side to open the coop up and I saw a tiny little tuft of blue bun-feathers underneath Sprite. I tossed Sprite out of the coop to find poor little Lady panting underneath. I hosed her down a little to cool her off, and figured it was harmless, just Sprite doing what she had always done with our gals since the were little- treating them like chicks and tucking them under her fluff.
Well this morning we were lazy and taking care of the animals slowly and enjoying the morning, so I didn't get to the coop as early as usual. When I let the gals out all but Sprite and Carmen came out. I figured they were up to laying so I gave everyone their treats and then tossed some bread in the pop hole for the other two. But Carmen didn't run out like she always does when she sees I have treats... So I opened the coop door... and there she was just shoved under Sprite's body, stiff & lifeless with her head painfully tucked under her neck.
We've been in the process of selling Sprite to make room for kinder more productive hens we are raising from chicks, but I didn't think I would lose one of my girls, almost TWO of them to her broodiness. Has anyone ever heard of this happening before? I'm kind of dazed right now. Knowing my little sweet Carmen won't be grazing with her best friend Lady in the yard anymore, running up to me for treats with that little hobble she had. And my precious blue eggs in the fridge were her last. Now Lady is running around the yard calling for Carmen like she does when they get separated.
Carmen was a beautiful gal with striking hawk coloring and layer of beautiful large blue eggs... and she laid our very first egg too. I've been wondering all the 'what ifs', what if I got up earlier, what if we sold Sprite or processed her earlier, what if I lost Lady yesterday and hadn't come out to the coop as early! Thank you for reading this, I just needed to write this somewhere that people would understand what it's like to lose a precious pet chicken. We processed Sprite. We couldn't bear the thought of losing another hen or selling her and having the same thing happen to someone else.
RIP Carmen! RIP Sprite...
Well this morning we were lazy and taking care of the animals slowly and enjoying the morning, so I didn't get to the coop as early as usual. When I let the gals out all but Sprite and Carmen came out. I figured they were up to laying so I gave everyone their treats and then tossed some bread in the pop hole for the other two. But Carmen didn't run out like she always does when she sees I have treats... So I opened the coop door... and there she was just shoved under Sprite's body, stiff & lifeless with her head painfully tucked under her neck.
We've been in the process of selling Sprite to make room for kinder more productive hens we are raising from chicks, but I didn't think I would lose one of my girls, almost TWO of them to her broodiness. Has anyone ever heard of this happening before? I'm kind of dazed right now. Knowing my little sweet Carmen won't be grazing with her best friend Lady in the yard anymore, running up to me for treats with that little hobble she had. And my precious blue eggs in the fridge were her last. Now Lady is running around the yard calling for Carmen like she does when they get separated.
Carmen was a beautiful gal with striking hawk coloring and layer of beautiful large blue eggs... and she laid our very first egg too. I've been wondering all the 'what ifs', what if I got up earlier, what if we sold Sprite or processed her earlier, what if I lost Lady yesterday and hadn't come out to the coop as early! Thank you for reading this, I just needed to write this somewhere that people would understand what it's like to lose a precious pet chicken. We processed Sprite. We couldn't bear the thought of losing another hen or selling her and having the same thing happen to someone else.
RIP Carmen! RIP Sprite...
