A Resurrected Rooster

Something happened yesterday that had me all shook up.  I'm still shaken by the event.  It was totally bizarre.  Almost traumatic.  My big white rooster had a near-death experience.

After a busy Saturday of dragging the kids around to gymnastics, a play date with friends, and grocery shopping, we were all ready to come home and chill out.  My six year old daughter, Annabelle, did what she normally does when she gets out of the car, and went to find Miss Red Hen, her favorite chicken.  After bringing in the groceries and my other two kids, I went to check on Annabelle.  As I walked by the chicken coop, I saw something terrifying.

In case you don't remember, this is our coop.  There is a small space between the coop, and the garage.

See that small space, there to the right?  That's where I saw it.  Chicken feet.  Attached to a big, white, chicken body lying on it's back.  It was Chicken Food, my big white rooster, wedged tightly in there.  I couldn't see his head.  Just a lifeless body.  How the heck did he get there?  Was he hiding from a predator when he succumbed to his fate?

That's what I assumed.  In shock, I herded my chicken-loving daughter inside as I didn't want her to see our beloved rooster like that.  I told her the sad news.  She was Devastated.  With a capitol D.  I said, "Sweetie, these things happen when you have chickens.  Sometimes there are predators.  He was protecting the hens.  He was noble and brave." Poor Annabelle.

I called up the hubby at work and told him the sad news.  He asked me, "are you sure he isn't just stuck?"   Of course I was sure!  I know a dead chicken when I see it, I thought.

I decided to suck it up and remove the body.  Making sure the kids were settled with a movie to get their minds off the tragedy, I went outside, plastic bag in hand (because I am too squeamish to touch dead chicken feet with my bare hands).

My heart sank as I saw him there, my noble white rooster.  Lifeless.  My heart raced, as I went in to grab his feet and pull his dead body out of there.  I touched his feet and OMG they moved!  Was he still alive?  He was actually breathing!   I wondered, is he half-dead?  Is he suffering?  Either way, I had to pull the poor fellow out.  Taking a deep breath, I grabbed hold of his feet and pulled.

He sprung to life!!!

Aside from being frazzled, with frizzled feathers, He was perfectly fine!  I ran in to tell the kids, and we rejoiced, and watched him as he walked off to find his hens.

What I have learned from this experience, is that I need to get a thicker skin if I plan on being a real farmer chick.  And chickens are good at playing dead.  And I don't think I'll be raising meat chickens in the future because chicken death was waaay too sad for my little chicken whisperer, Annabelle.  And I really like having a big white rooster around.

What was YOUR first chicken death experience?  What kinds of predators have you had run-ins with? And how the heck did my rooster get stuck there???