Down To One

[Avaoneillchickenmom]

Hi, I had two hens, Jan and Cindy. A raccoon got Jan this morning. Now Cindy is on her own. I'm not sure what to do. I don't want her to live in solitude and loneliness. But I can't bring on another chicken right now. Should I contact neighbors to see if anyone can add Cindy to their flock? Do I have to.... Murder my chicken?

Thanks

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

Sorry to hear about the loss of Jan.

Of course you don't have to euthanize Cindy. She might be ok by herself (assuming that additional measures are taken to prevent the raccoon from getting her, too), but she'd probably be happiest with a flock.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi, I had two hens, Jan and Cindy. A raccoon got Jan this morning. Now Cindy is on her own. I'm not sure what to do. I don't want her to live in solitude and loneliness. But I can't bring on another chicken right now. Should I contact neighbors to see if anyone can add Cindy to their flock? Do I have to.... Murder my chicken?

Thanks

Hi @Avaoneillchickenmom Welcome To BYC

I'm sorry to hear about Jan

No, you don't have to put Cindy down.

How do you keep your chickens? Coop/run?
First of all, figure out how a raccoon got Jan and secure/fix your chicken housing so it cannot get back in and harm Jan. It will be back.

It is ideal for a chicken to have company but Cindy will be o.k. for a little while by herself until you decided what you want to do with her. If you can't get more chickens right now and have a friend/neighbor that will take good care of her, then that's something you may want to think about.

Make your decision when you are not quite so emotional over the loss of Jan. Fix the coop and check Cindy very closely to make sure the Raccoon didn't get a swipe at her too.

*edit to fix name mix up

 

[MissChick@dee]

I was down to one lone survivor. Spring is coming you can always get more chicks.
I spent allot of time with my chicken until the new ones were introduced. Yes they get lonely but in the end my Judy is now queen of the flock. And all is good. Keep Cindy. She won’t die of loneliness but I guarantee you she’ll be happy to have flock mates. Until then spend as much time with her as possible.
In the meantime I would be looking into how the coon got in and I’d be fixing that.
ETA:
Hiya
Nice to meet you!

 

[Suzi18]

Sorry for your loss. You said you can't add another right now. Why not? If you had 2 before then you already have what you need to raise 2 chickens. Why not get her a couple friends.....they call them flock animals for a reason.

 

[adstowe]

Sorry for your loss. You said you can't add another right now. Why not? If you had 2 before then you already have what you need to raise 2 chickens. Why not get her a couple friends.....they call them flock animals for a reason.

Agreed. While a lot of people frown on adding outside birds due to bio security reasons, if I were in your situation I'd be looking for a similar age/size hen for sale to put with her. You can probably pick one up for like $15 and then she won't be alone. I'd recommend adding 2. I don't know why, but I feel like 3 is the preferred minimum number. I have no research to back that up. It's just an opinion I've always held onto. Either way, adding one would be of little expense and no more work to maintain than what you are already used to.