RIP Miss Priss

It was heartbreaking when we lost 8 chickens over the course of a few days to raccoons last summer. Many of them were named and one in particular was especially wrenching. Honey Pie was one of two turkens we inherited from the first farm caretakers. They are quite ugly creatures (I called them the Gruesome Twosome) and none of the other chickens accepted them into the flock. So they were outcasts, loved only by their human flock. Those two were our special birds, hanging around the front yard and begging for treats. It was a shock to lose Honey Pie. I wasn't sure the other half of the duo - Miss Priss was going to survive her companions departure.

But Miss Priss prevailed. She continued to be persecuted by the other feathered farm members. But she was let out of the coop early in the morning, hours before the others were freed. She spent her breakfast eating granola and drinking goat milk saved especially from the morning milking for her! At times, she had to chase the cats away from the bowl though! So Priss became the yard mascot, and found better company amongst the cats than she ever did amongst her own kind.

It was with a heavy heart that Mom found her in the coop one cold morning last week. No signs of distress, she simply passed away. Priss was probably about 4 years old. A ripe old age for a chicken (I've continually wondered about the life expectancy of chickens - I've found reports from 5 to 25 years but most people say "until they stop being useful!")

RIP Miss Priss. You will be missed.