An Uncommon Chicken

Henny Penny passed away unexpectedly March 6. In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to Smith Fork Ranch, to be used in the construction of a luxury coop in Henny’s memory. She is survived by her nemeses the cats, the half-tame fawn, and the five misfit ponies she called her friends.

Henny Penny was never one to follow convention. When Henny and her three sisters arrived on the ranch, they immediately deemed their coop “uninhabitable.” Henny, shucking familial obligation, perched precariously on a top-floor saddle rack, far above her sisters on the floor. After a raccoon intruder brutally murdered one sister, the remaining two sisters refused to roost near the scene of the tragedy. Both disappeared shortly afterward. Although deeply affected by the deaths, Henny’s greater IQ prevailed, and she continued her customary habitation high above the reaches of potential predators.

When lonely, she would find a ranch hand to follow around, fall asleep on a lap, or peck away at the phone in the office. But Henny wasn’t often lonely. She spent the majority of her days expanding her horizons, trying new and gourmet foods, and assimilating flawlessly with the animals on the ranch.

Henny laid her last egg in February, in her heated nesting box, just before deciding to move house. In typical Henny fashion, she bypassed the standard roosts for the relative luxury of a restored 1964 Land Rover, parked in the barn for the winter. This final home has been draped in black since her disappearance.

Although we are sad to have lost a friend, here was a chicken who lived life courageously, who knew no enemies, and who enjoyed every seed she pecked up to the fullest. Yes, Henny Penny knew the comfort of a heat lamp above her nest, but she also knew the excitement of challenging the ranch cats (and the half-tame fawn, the horses, and any innocent bystanders) for control of the food supply. While most chickens find themselves content behind wire fences, Henny pushed the boundaries of her existence daily. True to her explorer roots, her disappearance in a blizzard, though tragic, is a fitting end to the life of this unconventional chicken. We’ll miss you, Henny Penny.