And she failed again!

1. Didn't exercise during my free time yesterday!  I took care of my chickens, and just as I was about to hop on the treadmill Grandpa Bill came over.  WELL...although I have been known to hide when people come to the door at bad times (!!!!!!!!!!!!), I don't hide from Grandpa Bill (he's really Bill's dad, but it feels weird to call him Bill, or Dad, and luckily I have 3 reasons why I can call him Grandpa Bill so that has solved my problem.).  He's always thought my kids were amazing-smart-wonderful-beyond-all-belief, so it makes it very easy to love him!  I'm not good at stopping to visit or doing much with him except being as thoughful as I can possibly be when he stops over, so alas...no exercise.
2. Lost Rosie after all.  I have been spending all this time watching over the chickens because I was sure she was the next to go...and I was right.  I think I could be the worst excuse for a chicken hobbyist ever...who loses 3 out of 8 birds?

>>>>>>>>>>>>Rambling about Chickens>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

1. When Superman seemed ill - cold feet, seemed like she lost tons of weight in a weekend, was uninterested in things, listless - I spent hours looking on the internet, reading, trying things to help her (if she was eggbound, to warm her up, etc)...and then hours on the phone with the farm trying to figure out what might have happened.  Didn't help - could be genetics, could have been eggbound, who knows.  I felt guilty and wondered if I should have taken her to the farm sooner, given he, left her alone...
2. When PuffPuff was ill - diarrhea, seemed like she lost weight too, not laying, was out of it and miserable - I called the farm and took her right there, got her antibiotics, got her electrolytes, helped her drink it all, put her in the coop with her sisters (but separated because I didn't know if they would attack her because she was failing).  She died anyway.
3. Rosie has always looked little, skinny, and runt-like since the girls got their big girl feathers.  I've been worried about her from the start...but for the past couple of days she has looked unhappy and less interested in being a chicken (only stopped laying maybe 2 days before death though).   Yesterday she was cold and had a droopy sad look (no diarrhea though). I decided to try tactic number 3 - be nice but don't try anything extraneous.  So we had a good day (except that I didn't exercise and so was a maniac this morning) - I took her around with me as I did garden work, spent time petting her, talked to her (and she clucked gently back - so cute).  This morning - dead chicken #3.

I'm really starting to hate this...and not only because the ground is so horrible that it takes a thousand years to did a grave.  YES, I should be more resilient...but honestly, it is hard to lose something even as insignificant as a chicken you've only had for 6 months.  It's also a big giant pain to not be able to plan on something and have it all go as you have planned -but I'm just not capable of getting on the treadmill when a) I have a sad-looking bird in the yard or b) I have a dead rotting bird to bury.

Better luck next time?  Or should I just let all these birds die and then get out of the chicken business?  (It's still a better business to be in than the rabbit business, though. First, they obviously don't all live as long.  Second, they give us eggs.  Third, they are always so spunky and happy - until they are dying... wahhh)