Our hen, Gloria, passed away this weekend. I have no idea what happened. On Friday she seemed just fine… she looked healthy and even laid a normal egg. But on Saturday morning I found her dead on the floor of the coop. No signs of animal attack or sickness… it was as if she had just died in her sleep and fell off the roost. She would have been 3 years old next month.
Needless to say, this put a bit of a damper on our Easter celebrations. We had a fun day on Sunday with a big family dinner and Easter Egg hunt at our house… but then we had to perform a small funeral as well.
I debated about getting her autopsied, in case it was something like the avian flu, but since she had no other symptoms, and the other 2 hens seem just fine, I decided to go ahead and bury her in our growing pet cemetery next to her sister, Cleo.
Rest in peace, sweet Gloria. I will miss swinging on the hammock with you this Summer.
vuchickens 
I am so sorry.
Thank you. This is the hardest part of animal keeping.
Gloria was clearly a very loved family pet,and I’m so sorry to hear about her passing. I hope you’re all doing OK. Big hugs to you all.
Thank you. We are doing OK… Easter baskets are a nice distraction.
My deepest sympathies. 😦
Thank you.
So sorry to hear about Gloria. 😦
Thank you so much.
sorry to hear about Gloria.
Thank you.
I’m sorry to hear this. She was a beautiful hen. Hugs ❤
Thank you! I always thought she was unique… almost completely black including beak and feet.
I’m sorry 😦 She had a good life with you guys.
Thank you. She did have a good life… it helps to remember that.
Oh, I’m so sorry. After losing Cleo I thought you’d have Gloria for a long time. But she had a good life and it seems a good death. We al hope to go in our sleep with no lingering illness. She was loved and cared for up until the end. And now you have the two naughty youngsters to keep you distracted and sometimes distraught. I hope some of Gloria’s good nature rubbed off on them.
Thank you…yes, it seemed too soon for Gloria to leave us, but at least it was in a much less traumatic way than Cleo did. And I hate to say it, but the younger girls don’t seem to be missing her bossing them around. It will be interesting to see if they establish any sort of pecking order between them… Up til now they’ve seemed pretty equal, and content to share everything.
Oh man… that stinks, sorry. This has happened in our flock too. Chickens can easily be frightened and suffer a heart attack, who knows what is responsible, but at least it doesn’t sound like she suffered, Sorry.
Thank you! It’s interesting/encouraging to hear that you’ve experienced the same thing. And I AM glad she didn’t suffer, and that my other two are still healthy.
Awe… sorry to hear about Gloria 😦 She had a great life there with all of you, though! 🙂 ♥ ❤
Thank you! She did have a good life. 🙂