When I was growing up, my mom often talked about my great great grandma Bessie (yes, that's two greats!) She raised three or four kids (I can't remember) on a farm, which was difficult because they were poor. One story in particular has always stuck with me:
They had a small flock of chickens on their farm, and somehow their only rooster swallowed a cocklebur, also known as a gumball (the round, spikey things with stems), and it got stuck in the poor dummy's throat. As the only rooster, if that fellow died, they wouldn't have a way to get any more chicks! Babies are vital to maintaining a growing flock, especially when you rely on them for food! So what did my grandma Bessie do? She cut his throat open, pulled out the cocklebur, sewed him up with a needle and thread, and sent him on his merry way. And you know what amazes me most about this story?
That sucker LIVED!
For years, that story blew my mind. I couldn't even begin to imagine how it lived after having its throat cut open and sewed back together, not to mention the endless possibilities of infection!
Let me tell you, chickens are resilient. They are super heros compared to humans with their ability to fight off disease and heal from injury. They can even fly! Sort of. And I've witnessed the amazingness of chickens first hand, and I can tell you without a doubt that indeed, chickens ARE super!
They're super loud and super stinky and sometimes super grouchy, but they are without a doubt super heros. And I have proof beyond a story passed down from one generation to the next.
Weeks ago one of my Barred Rocks was attacked and scalped in the middle of the night. All of the skin on her head and the back of her neck had been removed. I thought for sure she would die, but you know what? She lived. It's been three months, and she's still doing great. She's even close to being able to lay!
After living in my bathroom for a week with neosporin on her head, she wasn't close to being better, but my husband had had enough of chicken poo in the bathtub. So we moved her outside again, and she recovered without a hitch. I didn't have to sew her up (thank god), but I've affectionately nicknamed her Stitch because I was sure she wouldn't survive otherwise. But she did.
Because she's a super chicken. And I am SO glad chickens are resilient. It makes the backyard farmer's life just a tiny bit easier.
