My Chickens: Sorry My blog is So Gloomy, But....

Sal-er, Sammy Sussex passed away.   Morality was at work, I hope.
It could be the END coming back to haunt me.
That illness.  

Poor Sammy just vanished in my hands.  Even as he was dying, he was still peeping that whoo doo doo hoo sound of pleasure....just enjoying being in my lap.   I stroked his head until he was gone.
At least he died peacefully, and my friend.


So sorry I had to write this! So many sad things are happening around here!

My Chickens: Oh, Deadbirdie!

I miss that angel!

Deadbirdie the chick has....died. Oh, I can hardly keep from crying when I think about how she peeped at night because she wanted to sleep with me!   She passed away this morning.   I thought she might not make it. Yesterday, she was being really droopy. I miss her already! You will find a poem about her here.  I just hope the END has not come back!   Why do all my chickens die?  I'm not that bad, right?  I love them and [try to] tame them and feed them and do everything for their good.  Why do my chickens die?   I miss, miss, miss my little Deadbirdie number two!  She was [and now is] an angel! 

She probably would of been a lovely layer!  Why Deadbirdie?    It's like the name 'Deadbirdie' has a curse, or something, and when you name your chicken that they become dead birdies.  Suggestion: DO NOT USE THAT NAME EVER AGAIN!!!  Oh, Deadbirdie. How I miss that doll. That angel. That puff ball. That little thing...... That chick. 

My Chickens: The Flock Dwindles.

My flock was in danger, now that I knew it was END. Pecky-pully died. Sweetiepie died. Wessy died. Gorgeous died. The list goes on and on. Almost every day I was burying some one. Then I notice, Deanie, my favorite little rooster, was drooping. Not Deanie! I thought. I loved him more than any of them; he was the sweetest. He was so good, he would even sleep on my lap.                      
I played with him every spare second I could.
And let him sleep on my lap for hours without disturbing him.
And he died.
And I buried him.
And life went on for me...
while death went on in the coop.
The next day, Arugana died. The day after that, Deadbirdie became a dead birdie. Even Chester died. I will admit that I cried a little when my girlie Peanut passed.
It was a horrible thing, but it did solve the problem of the over stuffed hen house. God takes care of things in His own ways.No matter how terrible it,
seemed, the END unstuffed the hen house that wasn't supposed to hold that amount of chickens.
Or guineas, either, for the Mother and the Father both caught it, too, and died.
What did that leave me with?
Eleven chicken survived and recuperated: Zesty, Cranky, Spider, Half'n'half, Little Lady, Bluey, Chestnut, Puffy Lady, Baby Juicey, Dusty-dirty, and Nubbs.  All Hens. (Wow, He ridded me of unwanted roosters, too.)

Soon I will write about I Start Over. To start over with your own flock, click here.



Deadbirdie was loved by all.

My Chickens: Edna gets ENDed.

As I said, I was right: Edna wouldn't last long...................One morning.... I was back out there, feeding Chester the menacing rooster, then I headed to the hen house. I opened the door and the chicks, guineas, and new(old)hens all tumbled out...all but Edna. I didn't notice at first, because I was too busy feeding the others, but when I put them back in, I certainly noticed the smell! It wasn't pleasant at all. It was dead chicken.   I had to get her out, of course, so I locked the others out and looked around.  Finally, I spotted her gruesome body behind the nesting boxes. I must say, I was a little disgusted. Well, maybe I was a lot disgusted as well as grossed out.(Because, although I look at roadkill and don't care a bit about the sight, this smelled. )   I pinched my nose and looked closer. All signs said she had died in her sleep: her closed eyes, curled toes, and puffed feathers.  It was possible she had fallen off the perch and rolled back there. I put plastic bags over my hands and buried her in the woods. I had a feeling this was only the beginning. If she had died of old age, then it was fine. But if she had END,(exotic Newkastleton[?] disease) I was in trouble. Big trouble. END is caused when too many birds(any bird)are together and not properly cleaned up after.(Hey, I did my best.) It wipes out the whole flock, one at a time, even vaccinated birds can get it. The signs are drooping wings and other things like swollen combs and eyes. I let the guineas and chickens back in, watching them closely. Oh, no!  The chick named Wessy had drooping wings!!! Come to think of it, so did Hawkins! And Gorgeous! (One of the new(old)hens.)   I should of cleaned more! But who can keep up with almost forty chickens(not to mention two guineas)all in one small hen house? I'd have to clean it out every day! That's impossible!  I scooped up Wessy. Whoa!  He was thin, and light as a feather! (One of the signs is also loosing weigh. Sorry; forgot to tell you.)  I fed them a little more before going in. And, yes, it was only the very beginning of something big. And dreadful.              
Soon I will write about The Flock Dwindles. And if your chickens are ill, this website may help. Click here for help.