R.I.P. Mrs Cluck

by henry
(kaministiquia,on.canada)

She was pronounced dead on the afternoon of Jan 4th 2018.

She was a nice chicken. She had nice feathers and she was in good health.

Sweet PuffPuff

by Christine Miley
(Florida)

My sweetest and silliest hen.

You taught me just how awesome chickens are. You were my friend and I know you thought of me as yours. You'd sit on my boot waiting and expecting to be picked up and cuddled, and run to me for treats when I'd call.

Such a silly girl, always laying your eggs in the feeder instead of the nest. I never knew how much a chicken could impact my life but you showed me. Thank you.

I miss you. I'm thankful that you passed away in my arms where you loved to be. Rest in peace in the botanical garden sweet girl, your favorite place to scratch for bugs.

I love you.

Henny Penny: Gone, but never forgotten

by Gina Rayeski
(NH)

Today my little Henny Penny passed.

She was only 91/2 months old. I’d raised her since she was only 2 days old, along with her 14 sisters and two brothers. She was the smallest of my 6 Buff Orpingtons.

She was sweet, but frisky. If Henny Penny didn’t want to go in the coop at night it was a trial to get her to, she was like a kid that hates to go to bed. I’d have to chase her all over the yard, sometimes threatening her with the stew pot! Eventually though she’d go in kicking and screaming.

She was small, but feisty. Other times she would sit quietly in my lap, as we just enjoyed each other’s company. She would listen to my stories and daily events, and never interrupt me. She just listened.

The past few weeks of her life I didn’t get to spend as much time with her as I would have liked, or with her brothers and sisters and 4 new nieces and or nephews, because of the holidays and the extremely fidget cold snap we had. But every day when I would go in the coop she would come running, and then copy Miss Durham by pecking at my boots.

I never noticed anything wrong with her. She didn’t seem sick, and was trying to visit her nieces and nephews that morning on the day she passed.

Hopefully the Necropsy will tell us what caused her death, but it won’t change the fact that she’s gone.

I’ll never forget her and the joy she gave me, and I pray she knew how much I loved her.

Rest In Peace little one. 💞

Our First Chickens

by David
(Tampa Bay, FL)

I was so excited to get a couple of chickens to feed and play with - and the first two were Waffles and Dumplings, both Spotted Sussex.

Yesterday (January 8, 2018) I went out like I always do to call the girls (we have several now) and Dumplings was nowhere to be found. I searched for over an hour. It was unlike her, when I came out with the bag of dried worms, to not come running across the yard.

My partner later found her. I made her a little box with some tissue paper and went out to her favorite place under some trees.

We called the girls over with her rooster and had a little memorial. I had no idea how hard it would be - to everyone else she was just a chicken, but to me she was one of my girls.

Luckily for us we have been raising chicks and she will carry on here at the ranch for a long time to come. She always laid me an egg on a regular basis.

I know she is clucking around in chicken heaven kicking up the dust and being her sassy self. I'm sure she is already at the top of the pecking order and being bossy as ever.

We will miss you Dumplings! Your rooster King and your sister Waffles will, too, along with all of your other sisters!

Ben...

by Jen
(Indiana, US)

Ben was a Black Copper Marans. My husband and I purchased him and his brother last spring.

They had been raised on a chicken farm and had never seen grass. When we brought then home they kept high-stepping like they didn't understand what they we're walking on. Both were very docile and friendly.

Each had their own flock of hens and own run and living space. They even got turns free-ranging in our yard. Just a few days ago I named him Ben. He had begun to really come up to me and let me pet him on his own. It takes time for me to think of names and he was no exception.

I went out this morning to feed and water and found him gone. He had passed overnight. No signs. No symptoms. No injuries. No predator tracks in the snow.

I live in Indiana and it's been cold - like the rest of the country - but it had actually warmed up the last several days. I don't know. I feel so sad and like I missed something.

His girls were still around him. They didn't seem upset. I hate not knowing what happened.

It's so hard to lose a pet and most don't understand the sadness we feel when we lose one of our chicken buddies.

Lily - The friendliest chook

by Chantelle
(Perth, WA, Australia)

Good bye my sweet Lily - R.I.P. 08/01/17 (Bantam Sussex - 5 years old)

Your sisters are lost without you and miss you very much, they are crying and looking for you which breaks my heart :(

I still can't believe you are gone, we will miss you every day but hopefully remembering all the cute and funny memories will bring me some comfort.

The way you followed me around, made yourself at home on the outside couch, dug up all the plant pots and somehow managed to get into the veggie patch for your favourites - lettuce and spinach. If I left the back door open you would always wander in the house to see what we were doing.

You always loved a cuddle and would sit on our laps for ages, a real comfort when we were at home sick.

I hope you enjoyed your time with us and that you are at peace now, we did everything we could to keep you around for longer but it wasn't meant to be :(

Miss you always beautiful girl.

Love Mum, Dad, Emily, Penny and Annie.
xxx

Rest in peace Farrah

by Trish
(Vancouver, WA)

Although you were the biggest bird in my flock, you were the sweetest. I should have noticed when you stopped pushing the other hens out of the way to get at your yogurt.

You were such a funny bird, I enjoyed watching your antics, you just made me laugh!

RIP Farrah.

Sweet Henrietta

by Denise
(Beverly Massachusetts )

Henrietta was nine years old she passed today, March 17 2018.

Lots of fun that she was and loved the home with her hens as they were her friends. Loved the sunny days in the yard doing what she enjoyed best.

She got very sick and fell into a deep sleep and did not wake up. I will love and miss you you will always be a special bird.

Please fly free and know that you will be missed.❤️

in memory of flip

Flip was a beautiful Rhode Island Red chicken, three years old, and my favorite in my little flock of six.

From early on, she had an inquisitive nature and a calm, quiet demeanor. She quickly became my favorite.

I found her this morning, dead in her coop. No visible signs of trauma or injury.

Rest in peace, my little redhead, I miss you and hold you in my heart.

Splash Wallis

by Kristie Wallis
(Connecticut )

We’ve had our sweet baby girl since she was a day old. She was a splash standard Cochin. She came with her sister in July who we didn’t know what to name so we decided with “Splish-splash.”

The two girls were inseparable and I always said if something were to happen to one the other one would be depressed.

On Thursday morning fate took its swing and a hawk murdered my baby girl. I wish there was a way someone could have prepared me for the pain I was going to feel.

My husband is in the military and Splash was his baby girl since we’re young and don’t have kids yet. He would see her every day after work no matter how late and cuddle her. Splash was his girl and Splish is mine.

My other chickens have taken her in just fine but my heart is still so heavy. Life will never be the same without our girl.

Rest In Peace Splash. “We loved you best”

DREAMY

He was the only chick we've ever had that hatched from parents we already had - that's what made him special.

I say "he," but I never was sure. Dreamy was almost a year old and had never laid and egg and I just couldn't decide because I'd never heard him crow either.

When he was very young a dog got into our chicken coop and killed his whole family. He was the only one that survived, I assumed because he was little and could hide.

There was a storm with thunder and lightening (not his first ever) but the first in quite a while and he was dead on the ground after with no signs of attack or struggle. :(

It was fun to watch you grow, Dreamy.

RIP.

Bluebell, my happy-go-lucky shadow

Bluebell was a blue Silkie hen with a crossed beak, which I trimmed from time to time with a nail clipper.

She was always scared for the procedure (and so was I), but she would sit still long enough for me to clip it back into form. I think she understood I was helping her.

She would always be the first in the flock to run up to me excitedly and greet me cheerily with a little honk, and she would tirelessly follow me around whenever I was outside. Truly she acted like a dog!

I loved her immeasurably. She got a bad case of chicken pox one year and I stayed home from work so I could pipette water into her mouth every few hours and force-feed her bits of scrambled egg. The vet said she surely wouldn't survive the pox, but she did, and I'm sure it's because of the bond we had.

She knew I was taking care of her. She knew I loved her.

For Red, best snuggle hen ever

by Rose
(New Zealand)

Red was rescued from a farm where she had been cooped up in a small cage with 3 other hens. When she came to us she got the run of the whole farm!

She loved being around humans and soon realised that I was more than happy to stop give her a pat or a scratch. We bonded and before long she would sit on my lap or snuggle in my arms at least once a day.

She stopped laying months ago but she was the house pet. The cats loved her, the kids loved her, everyone loved her. You came for a cuppa it was no surprise to end up with her on your lap for a snuggle.

Today she died of Sudden Death in my arms :'(

My Jazzy

by Meredith
(Newcastle, Australia)

Jasmine was the first of two chickens we got. She was the boss of the two and laid happily.

She was never a big clucker and rarely made noise. When she lost her sister she was only alone a day before we adopted another. We had a few changes in the hens but she was always adaptable and got along with our toy poodle and cat.

With 3 chooks and a cat and dog, our yard was always full of activity and Jazzy would come running up to me and nestle in for a cuddle regularly. She was always still the boss but had a gentle nature about her.

I will miss her cuddles greatly.

My beautiful Jazzy, Rest In Peace.

Little Pea Brain

by Dana
(Maryland )

This is our very first flock and we started with 6 of the cutest chicks I've ever seen.

Little Pea Brain was a Buff Orpington and quite a different chicken. Her comb was never fully grown out and she seemed to dance to a different beat than the others. I think that's why she was my favorite.

She was always wandering away from the flock doing her own thing and was always the last one to go in at night. She preferred to hang around and make sure she ate enough and drank enough water before going to bed.

When I would give them treats I made sure she got enough, because she always seemed a little like she couldn't get to it fast enough before someone else got it.

This morning she was fine and sometime in the last couple of hours she died suddenly. We don't know why. They were in their protected run and no signs of any struggle.

I'm very sad and will miss her. Like I said she was my favorite.

Rest In Peace little girl. We love you.

Penny

by Paige
(Des Moines, WA)

She was hilarious and had a big personality. She died unexpectedly this morning and we don't know why. Her sister, Martha, misses her and we all feel sad.

My Lady

by Alicia
(Newcastle, UK)

Lady was rescued, by the side of the road. When we adopted her into the family she seemed to already be an adult hen.

She was a feisty one. She was afraid of no one. She would boss the cats and the rabbits around. And she would love to talk to you. If we accidentally left the backdoor open she knew exactly where the catfood was and she’d run straight inside to eat some.

She was the most sassiest of hens. And I named her Lady because every time I’d look at her the song ‘She’s a Lady’ by Tom Jones would pop in my head.

She loved her back garden. She got to explore everyday, she’d dig through the mud to get the juicy insects and she’d go to bed on her own, back to her coop.

Today she sadly passed away. She hadn’t laid in a month or so, and the past week she wasn’t eating or drinking that much, we could tell she was poorly.

She stopped speaking to us, she was incredibly quiet and I believe in the end she had a heart attack, but she got to fall asleep in my mams arms listening to Marilyn Monroe.

She was safe, warm and with her mummy.

RIP my lovely hen, we will never forget you x

For Ginger

by Steve
(UK)

She was only a bird. One of eight rescued from a farm.

Only a bird who would come to greet me each day.

Only a bird who had the ability to brighten my day when nothing else could.

Only a bird who would let herself into the house to find food for herself while I fed the others, often eating out of my hand.

Only a bird who has reduced me to tears as I sit next to the spot where I've buried her.

Sweet, shy Lacey

by Melissa
(Wilton, CA)

I got Lacey when she was 3 days old, along with her sister Lola and brother Harry.

Lacey was always the shy one, didn't like being held much, but was so beautiful and healthy and I think knew she was loved.

Two days before she died, there were blood flecks on her head, but I only have two other hens in a large coop and run and never saw her being pecked.

She laid eggs regularly up until today when I came home late from work to find her dead. There were no evident wounds and her weight and feathers were perfect.

Their food container was almost empty, but not completely and I had checked to see there was food and water this morning as I do each day.

Still, I feel horrible for fear the stress of low food may have caused the other two hens to pick on her, even though I never witnessed that.

Or perhaps the coop area is too small.

Or perhaps because the poop under their roost hasn't been cleaned out often enough.

Oh, I just feel awful....my precious little Lacey. I will miss you baby girl.

Our dear Specs

by Angie
(Emsworth, Hampshire )

Out of the four hens we have, Specs was our favourite hen.

She’d been attacked once after a week of getting them already, but my partner and I managed to bring her back to being a healthy hen again.

Such a character she was. But unfortunately this morning my partner found her half dead in the run, so he had to put her out of her misery.

I’m not sure why this has happened but I can tell you I have cried loads. She will be missed.

RIP Specs

Penelope and Fiona

by Jennifer
(West Virginia )

I purchased my sweet little chick, Penelope, at a chicken swap spring of 2016.

She was a beautiful little Tolbunt girl with a sweet, inquisitive personality. We had her for about 3 weeks when she suddenly fell ill- she died ( think it was cocci) within 4 days of becoming ill.

In the very short time that we had her - we really grew to love this special little pullet. Our chihuahua Fiona loved her just as much and was rarely seen without her. She wanted to hang out with Penelope all day and at night Fiona would lay at the end of the bed to look for her ( we had Penelope in a little crate at the foot of our bed during the last few days of her life).

After Penelope died, we were all sad and heartbroken, even Fiona, who would look for her each day until she realized that Penelope was just not coming back.

Sadly, a year later we lost our beloved Fiona from CHF and pulmonary hypertension. She was only 9.... moments after Fiona’s passing, I tearily asked Penelope to greet her four legged BF at the rainbow bridge.

I felt a little bit of peace knowing that these little angels were back together again.

I have lost several chicks and chickens over the years and each one has had a different effect on my heart- however, Penelope was and always will be my favorite little bird.....