Olive Egger
Olive Egger at Alektorophobia is a file of 2 stories. The newest of them: “Planned for 4 chickens but my flock egg-sploded to 12” and “Marek's disease took two hens: our Cream Legbar couldn't cluck another day”. Well, I *love* this. Our Cream Legbar couldn't cluck another day, and that hit hard. Chickens. Everything there is to know about chickens and the fear of them. The list below is every Olive Egger story on Alektorophobia, newest first.
Planned for 4 chickens but my flock egg-sploded to 12
Well, I *love* this. You planned for four feathered friends and ended up with a dozen, that's not a flock, that's a fowl takeover! I can totally relate to the egg-splosion. You've got a wonderfully quirky mix there, from the fancy Silver Laced Polish to the two Silkie fluffballs. I especially admire the commitment to the White Face Black Spanish; those are some rare, elegant birds. It's a bit of a madhouse, but a cluck-tastic one. For anyone else whose chicken math has gone haywire, you might find some solidarity in our guide on spotting fowl play in the coop. Your flock might not be super diverse, but it sounds perfectly chaotic.
Marek's disease took two hens: our Cream Legbar couldn't cluck another day
Our Cream Legbar couldn't cluck another day, and that hit hard. When she first went down with what we thought was a leg injury, we did the usual chicken-parent panic. Then our Cochin started dragging her right leg too, and my stomach dropped. Marek's disease. The PCR test confirmed it. We lost two hens fast, but this brave Cochin? She refused to give up. After a week and a half in quarantine, still bright-eyed and eating like a champ despite the paralysis, we took a gamble and returned her to the flock. Somehow, she started moving her foot again. Now she's roosting, running, and acting almost normal. Has anyone else seen a chicken bounce back from a positive Marek's test?