We lost a chicken today due to unidentified illness. RIP, poor Yolkie. She had a bit of diarrhea a couple of weeks back, but had bounced back and was doing better, eating and drinking and still active and interested in life and treats. Then things took a marked turn for the worse yesterday, so I isolated her in a cage in our heated garage, and we were giving her lots of TLC. We had just lined up a chicken vet this afternoon, but when I went out to check on Yolkie just now, she had left us for greener chicken pastures. A good little chicken, and I'm sorry we've lost her. I wish I had done something sooner, but I thought she was going to be okay.
All the other hens and roosters seem perfectly healthy so it doesn't seem that what she had was contagious, but I'll call the new vet if anyone starts to look ill. I have a chicken health handbook, but it's so detailed it's overwhelming. :(
I would totally suck at being a farmer... I get way too attached to all of our animals! Spare a thought for this good little hen. Whenever we lose a chicken, I feel like I failed her in some way. If you don't have chickens, it's probably hard for you to understand how one can get attached to them, but they are great little creatures, full of personality and character. They make us smile every day, and it pains me to think I could have done more for her.
Yolkie was named by my friend's daughter Rachel, the extraordinary teenage baker who visited this summer. Yolkie, hope you are in a field of heavenly corn somewhere, having lots of chickenly adventures and feeling the love we have for you, as we have for all our creatures great and small.
Thanks for all the great eggs, Yolkie!
All the other hens and roosters seem perfectly healthy so it doesn't seem that what she had was contagious, but I'll call the new vet if anyone starts to look ill. I have a chicken health handbook, but it's so detailed it's overwhelming. :(
I would totally suck at being a farmer... I get way too attached to all of our animals! Spare a thought for this good little hen. Whenever we lose a chicken, I feel like I failed her in some way. If you don't have chickens, it's probably hard for you to understand how one can get attached to them, but they are great little creatures, full of personality and character. They make us smile every day, and it pains me to think I could have done more for her.
Yolkie was named by my friend's daughter Rachel, the extraordinary teenage baker who visited this summer. Yolkie, hope you are in a field of heavenly corn somewhere, having lots of chickenly adventures and feeling the love we have for you, as we have for all our creatures great and small.
Thanks for all the great eggs, Yolkie!
Oh, I'm so sorry, Natalie! We had chickens a long time ago and we couldn't help but get attached to them too. They're so funny and quirky, each with its own personality. It's hard to lose a pet of any kind. :(
ReplyDeletePoor yolkie. I know how easy it is to get attached to chickens and unfortunately, they don't have a long life span.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry to hear about your chicken. I hope she didn't suffer.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure you did all you could do, Knatolee. You treat your chickens so well. Yolkie had a happy little life with all of you. Just remember the good time.Not very often a chicken is immortalised in a citation. She'll never be forgotten. RIP Yolkie!
ReplyDeleteOh, how sad. I am so attached to my chickens, too. I read about how sometimes one can die from one thing or another, but so far, none of mine have died since we bought the first day old chicks and they all got horribly sick and one or two chicks died. Once we recovered from that, we've had no deaths at all, even when we hatched our own chicks. I'm sorry little Yolkie passed away. I hope animals do go to Heaven, and now she's in a better place. Maybe she lays golden eggs now!
ReplyDeleteWe are sorry, Natalie.
ReplyDeleteDon't be so hard on yourself, you
did everything you could do.
Poor Yolkster. RIP.
ReplyDeleteAwww! So sorry about dear Yolkie! My lady has had a few chickens die. She took Agatha to the vet in a box once. I'm glad to know that someone else would take their chicken to a vet. I thought my lady was more nuts than she is! Hee hee. My lady says she agrees that chickens are marvelous birds and she loves each of hers (not as much as she loves ME, I'd bet). Sleep well Yolkie.
ReplyDeleteSo sorry about your sweet Yolkie. Over the years I have had a few chickens die just out of the blue. They can't tell you what is going on. At least she was nice and cozy in that heated garage. You are a good chicken mama.
ReplyDeleteThank you for all the kind words. Made me feel a little better! Gordon buried Miss Yolkie in our chicken graveyard yesterday.
ReplyDeleteIsobelle, I am glad I am not the only one who would take a chicken to the vet. And don't worry, I'm sure your Mama loves you best. You are, after all, the most beautiful goat in existence!