When Steve went out to feed the girls this morning, he noticed that Tweedledum was barely sitting up, and she was gasping for breath. We got her inside, put her in a cozy bed, and gave her dropperfuls of antibiotics mixed in water. We’ve had other hens with respiratory infections who we could nurse back to health. But, Silkies are not the most robust of breeds. Within a few hours of realizing that Tweedledum was sick, she died.

This is part of owning chickens — some become ill and die — but it’s never easy. Tweedledum was my son’s much loved hen. True to her Silkie nature, she was gentle and a bit dim-witted. She was always out of the fray, and for such a tiny and unassuming hen was surprisingly never picked on by the other girls. She was the chicken I’d give to a three-year old child to hold in a lap. She was the one that made us laugh just by looking at her. We’ll miss her.