Yes, I am mourning the disappearance of my chicken – my very special, death-defying chicken that completely re-wrote my previous opinion of poultry as generally cowardly and stupid.
She’s gone.
She disappeared several weeks ago, and the scanty evidence points to death by dog – either directly (dog killed her) or indirectly (dog chased her, she couldn’t find her way home, and froze to death). The latter is the most likely scenario, given the lack of feathers, blood, or other evidence.
I am sad. She was also my best laying hen and the matriarch of the flock – more of a pet whose death-defying exploits amazed me. We were sure she was dead 4 times and she returned.
Not this time.
I keep thinking I am fine with it, but then I have disproportionately emotional dreams where she comes back. Then I wake up and nothing’s changed.
I have to make a plug here – please, please, PLEASE don’t let your dogs run loose. Ever. It doesn’t matter how well trained they are, it doesn’t matter that they respect *your* cat or *your* chicken in your yard; dogs will be dogs, and if they see someone else’s chicken they will chase it. And if they get with other loose dogs they get especially frenzied. This is the second chicken I have lost to a dog attack, and it is so, so unnecessary and avoidable.
Goodbye, Bonbon.
