Ignorance is a dangerous thing.
When my wife and a couple of visiting teenagers went out to feed our three hens the other day, I joined them for a few minutes, to admire the birds and watch them strut their stuff.
That’s when we noticed that Snow, our all-white hen, appeared to have a growth on the right side of her breast. Being a worst-case-scenario kind of guy, I immediately assumed she had a malignant tumor of some sort, and that the time had come to find out if the vet who cares for our dogs was willing to branch out into "chickenology."
Before I raced to the phone, though, I had the good sense to check out the reader forum at backyardchickens.com. There I found other newbie owners worrying themselves silly over the same phenomenon.
Fortunately, the forum also attracts veterans who know a thing or two about chickens, such as the fact that they have something called a crop, which the web site defines as “a pouch at the base of a chicken's neck that bulges after the bird has eaten.”
If the chickens in question are healthy, the experts wrote, the crop will empty out over time, and the bulge will disappear on its own. They urged patience, which I decided was a bit of sound advice. Sure enough, when I let our trio out of their coop the following morning, Snow was no longer sporting the Dolly Parton look.
That’s when we noticed that Snow, our all-white hen, appeared to have a growth on the right side of her breast. Being a worst-case-scenario kind of guy, I immediately assumed she had a malignant tumor of some sort, and that the time had come to find out if the vet who cares for our dogs was willing to branch out into "chickenology."
Before I raced to the phone, though, I had the good sense to check out the reader forum at backyardchickens.com. There I found other newbie owners worrying themselves silly over the same phenomenon.
Fortunately, the forum also attracts veterans who know a thing or two about chickens, such as the fact that they have something called a crop, which the web site defines as “a pouch at the base of a chicken's neck that bulges after the bird has eaten.”
If the chickens in question are healthy, the experts wrote, the crop will empty out over time, and the bulge will disappear on its own. They urged patience, which I decided was a bit of sound advice. Sure enough, when I let our trio out of their coop the following morning, Snow was no longer sporting the Dolly Parton look.
No offense, Dolly, but I have to admit I was greatly relieved.
