It is with heavy heart that I announce the passing of the first of our chickens. Goldie was the middle sized Buff Orpington. In the past seven months she has filled our lives with much joy and the lightest of brown eggs. She has only been gone a few hours and she is already missed terribly.
Goldie and Wendy Lou getting ready for bed
I don’t know what happened. I came home from work yesterday and she ran to the car to meet me. She, and all of the other girls, were in fine spirits. I rubbed them and let them pick at my buttons and my ring. Everything seemed fine. Just another day.
Imagine my surprise when I went to the coop this afternoon and found her dead, cold and stiff just inside the door of the coop. She had no signs of trauma. I felt her tummy closely and she did not appear to be egg bound. It appears that she just decided to die last night.
This is our sweet Goldie just hours after she hatched.
If any of you have experienced anything like this I would love to hear from you. My internet searches reveal that this is unfortunately not a rare occurrence. However, my common sense tells me that nothing “just dies”. There has to be a reason.
Tonight the remaining five girls got a more thorough rub down/examination. I do not want to lose another one. For those of you that have raised chickens from hatchlings to full grown hens you know how attached you become to them. While I realize I was not as attached to her as say a dog, I was attached nonetheless. Her passing has left me feeling a little blue on the last day of the year.
I’ll never forget your first night in the big coop. You were so scared and your rooster was there to calm your fears.
We wrapped her in a pillow case and entered her body in a lovely spot that has a view of the lake, the coop and her friends. I am sure hers will be the first grave in what will eventually become our pet cemetery.
Rest in Peace Goldie. You were a great little hen.
Jay and Sally…sorry to hear about Goldie, so sudden and unexpected. You gave her a good life there in the Chicken Palace. If you uncover the mystery of her death I hope you’ll share it with us.
I will! This morning we heard one sneeze. It kind of paniced us Right now we are researching to see if we have some kind of respiratory thing sweeping the flock!
It is a painful loss when a pet (no matter what species) passes. I’m sure Goldie knew she was loved.
It takes a big man to show the world such a tender heart. And the world needs more people like that.
RIP Goldie.
She was definately loved! Thanks for taking the time time to leave the words of encouragement
I’m sorry about this. When you live close to the land and the animals you care for, life is not taken for granted. We have had a few of our hens die at different times without explanation. I hope you don’t lose anymore!
Thanks Jennifer. We are hoping it is a one off event. Will feel much better when a few days pass and we have not lost anymore
Dear Mr. White, Just found your blog – thanks so much for sharing what you know with the world. I’m so sorry to hear about Goldie. Our HOA prevents us from taking care of and enjoying our lives with hens. I’m glad you have the chance to get to know them and have them work in your gardens. Rest In Peace Goldie.
So glad you like the blog and thanks for the kind regards about Goldie. We really do love our girls and it was very hard to lose her.
Hi, Jay,YOUR FRIEND FROM Bulverde TX.I just some how came across this old post about your sweet hen Goldie.So sorry to hear the sad news.Did you ever figure out why she died ? How did your other chickens do?Do u still have chickens.?I can not believe how I came across this post when I am seriously considering getting laying hens and possibly learning to raise meat chickens, what a coincidence.I guess i need to be prepared for the loss of these beautiful creatures.Thank you for opening up your heart to us ,may Goldie’s memory of good times live on forever in our hearts.
lol ,
your friend and admirer.
Donna Bentkowski
P.S.I love her baby picture ,so cute and fluffy.
Hey Donna. Don’t know if you are aware but I no longer maintain this website. My wife and I now own Texas Gardener magazine. Please contact us with future questions there.
BTW, we still keep hens and love them very much. Since they wreck havoc on the gardens we only keep six. However, they are a part of our everyday life.