Whether you are just starting out in your backyard chicken keeping adventures or you’re already an old hand at it one thing is for certain. At some point along the way we all find ourselves facing the sadness of losing ” one of the flock”. As if that isn’t hard enough then comes the pressing issue of what to do with the body once a feathered friend has flown the coop, as it were.
If you fall amongst the many backyard chicken keepers who love your chickens with the same depth and adoration you do your family dog or other farm animals and want to pursue a private backyard burialĀ then the first thing you might do it call your local city or town to see if there are any laws against burring a dead chicken in your backyard. In our town of Plymouth, MA. we don’t have any strict regulations one way or another regarding even keeping backyard chickens so what we do is ( and this might sound heartless to many ) place our beloved feathered friend in a plastic grocery bag and hall it off to the local land fill with our weekly load of trash and recyclables. But, not after we all have a few moments of quiet to say our good byes and thank yous of course. Yes! We thank our girls regularly for the bounty they provide and the endless entertainment! Don’t you? The idea of burring our fallen girls in the backyard has crossed my mind, but our 1/2 acre isn’t fenced which may or may not invite loose dogs in the neighborhood, coyotes or even flying predators.
Chestnut ( Easter-egger chicken ) |
Losing a chicken is an unpleasant topic to read ( or write ) about but we all go through it as chicken keepers. The photo below is the second to last of our first flock of eight we had left until yesterday. Our daughter named her Chestnut when she was a wee little chick fresh from the feed store because she was a solid fuzzy brown color which reminded her of the color of a chestnut. As she got older the white laced edges appeared on the tips of her feathers but she was always a deep brown underneath. I always thought it was a funny name for a chicken but she eventually grew into her name and after a while it seemed perfect for her. Especially because she was the only one in our flock with that coloring. She was eight years old.
She was a gentle hen; always pleasant and one of our most affectionate. She knew her name and always came when we called to her. We’ll miss her and I know the rest of her ” flock” will too.
I don’t know what the cause of death was. Perhaps she was just old and her little chicken heart failed her or she had a respiratory issue which is common among older hens.We’ve not yet taken any or our hens ( on the verge of perishing) to the vet. I’m afraid it’s not in the budget on our little backyard homestead so we let nature take it’s course. That being said, if we ever did have a hen who was just sickly but not so far gone I would not hesitate to gather her up and out to see what was ailing her. So far though, by the time we notice a hen is ill, its usually in the final stages of life which is a blessing for the chicken and us!
R.I.P. Chestnut |
So, what do you do when you lose a member of your flock? What methods of disposing the body can you share with our community of chicken lovers? I’m sure we can all benefit from your wise counsel!
In the meantime happy and healthy chicken keeping to you all!
Deb
20 Comments
I lost a favorite chicken this past winter to unknown causes. Deep snow and frozen ground left no choice but the landfill. Other pets have been cremated and buried in our own yard. Have to create a new area on the new acreage for chickens, too. So sad.
We started our first flock this past winter. We had two who didn’t make it from the hatchery, and ended up losing another one within a week or so. We lost one pullet to a coyote before we finished our fence. A couple of weeks ago we lost our first “mature” bird: Red The Rooster. We don’t know what happened to him, but he went quickly in spite of our efforts. We buried him in our old garden (at about 36″ deep) and placed some landscape blocks over the site to prevent digging.
Maybe this sounds bad, but I hate to waste anything. If the bird died from an accident, I dress it out and feed it to my dogs after freezing for a week. I feel it is the best way to honor that life. Illness is quite another thing. I would probably bury any animal that died from disease. Fortunately, that hasn’t happened yet…
We bury ours and have never had a problem with them being dug back up. Perhaps we just bury them deep enough. We do say goodbye, thank them for all the joy and gifts that they have given us and try to honor them as best as we can.
So sorry for your loss. We’ve lost pullets, not full grown birds yet. They were buried.
Just this morning Granny passed my 4 year old hen. I did the land fill thing,I ‘m old to dig a hole that foxes and the like couldn’t dig back up
We live near wooded land where in the past foxes have braised our hens that used to free range. I have my girls protected now , but I made a deal that if the foxes would leave us be and not kill my girls I would provide him and his family with hens when they pass. I take a deceased girl and walk down hill and up another and thank her for giving us joy and then lay her on the path. She is gone by the next day totally. I also have kept a handful of her feathers which I plan to make tiny bouquets to put on the Christmas tree in remembrance.
Our chickens are as beloved as our pets dogs, which when they pass we have buried on our property in a favorite place. (My dear husband does this for me since I am usually so “attached.”) We do have sandy soil so it might be a bit easier to dig than in some states. My husband maintains that if the pet is buried deep enough there should be no issue. I do like the idea of giving them back to nature too, but so many deer hunters do this in the field and when I am running my dog there it is always a very stinky/putrid smell and a fight with the dog to “leave it.” Here in SW Michigan a dead chicken above ground would just draw the coyotes and I’m not sure that is a good thing.
Just thinking about this makes me sad. We have kept chickens now (rural WNY) since 2003. We learned early that one rooster is plenty and our first “losses” were due to fights. A dog got one rooster that did not make it to the coop one night. Throughout the flocks (never larger than 12-13 all together, usually 4-8), we only lost 2 to hawks. We make sure every beak is counted for before nightfall. Their housing is super secure, so no issues with night predators. However, we watched helplessly as 2 foxes got one hen each a couple years ago. We remain vigilant, and the ones left seem pretty savvy about staying alert and together. The 2 roosters we have had are excellent husbands and stay on red alert. 2-3 hens we found dead in the morning – mysterious, sudden deaths. No idea what happened. They showed no signs of sickness. A couple others seem to have gotten “bound up” – I treated them as best I could, a couple pulled through and survived. A couple did not. And then a couple just died from old age and loving care – which was still very sad.Despite that, we still have a now 11 year old banty who lays 2 eggs every year. (!) All chickens I could physically recover (even taking one from a sharp-shinned hawk) we wrapped in double plastic bags, husband dug 3 ft deep hole, we buried each one, and placed heavy creek rock/stone over them to dissuade the wildlife from investigating interesting decomp aromas. I have been a vegetarian (lacto ovo) over 37 years, and an animal lover all my life. These pets don’t get eaten if I can help it. I know hawks and foxes have to eat, too, but they can have the non-pet wildlife all around here.
Thanks LB, this is what I do also!
I like the idea of giving them back to nature.
I live on a rocky hill… not conductive to burial… I have taken them out with the trash but it just didn’t seem right. I usually take it out away from the coop and leave it for the wildlife… they have to eat as well. I have noticed the buzzards will dispose of the bird in a matter of maybe 15 minutes
yes recycle back to nature .It is so sad you get attached to them chicks an since you gave them a good life think of as making room for a new henny penny !
I’ve only lost one chicken, but I took her to the pet cremation place. They put her ashes in a nice box and I made a little memorial out of her feathers. I don’t know if I’ll do that with all of them, but that chicken was special.
Amazing coincidence that you posted this, because my blogpost this morning was about this very topic! Check out what I wrote about “What To Do With a Dead Chicken” at my website, HenCam.com
http://hencam.com/henblog/2014/06/what-to-do-with-a-dead-chicken/
Will do Terry! Thank you. Deb
I know this sounds pretty silly but if we lose a chicken we kind of figure in some way that it is good to give back so to speak. My husband takes our loss a couple of miles from home to a field for the wild creatures to have if they so desire.
We do the same… place the body in our field for the buzzards to eat. This was especially important during drought years, because there was so little for them to eat.
We do the same thing, in the woods on our property, though I find it so difficult. I think of them as pets, and it’s painful to know that one is out in the woods, alone.
This was a touching piece.
If we don’t know the cause of death we have a necropsy done and then have them cremated.