Who Forgot You?

Rescued by a kind-hearted individual who came upon the struggling hen on suburban streets, an investigative search to find her owner yielded no results.

Antoine de Saint-Exupery wrote in “The Little Prince” that “you are responsible forever for what you have tamed.” This is a fitting description of humankind’s relationship with the animals our ancestors domesticated.

A relationship that our kind clearly fails in due to our penchant for playing favorites.

Not only did no one come looking for Mrs. Magoo, but her illness suggests she may have been abandoned.

Council laws that provide little to no protection or holding facilities for lost or abandoned “poultry” speak to another neglect of these feathered wonders.

Legislation that specifically exempts chickens from acts of cruelty, which would land the perpetrator in hot water if the animal were a domestic pet, highlights the lack of worth attributed to them.

Even those who passed Mrs. Magoo by as she lay unprotected on the streets are complicit in her suffering.

However, thankfully for Mrs. Magoo, someone saw her for who she was and chose to do something about it.

Sadly, though as our hearts have found, all of this came too late. Despite all the kindness and expert veterinary care, dear, sweet, gentle, and kind, Mrs. Magoo was unable to rally against the dire straits in which she was found.

Chickens, by their sheer numbers and unseen legal suffering, represent the most maligned animals on this planet. But they also represent opportunities. Opportunities for us humans to do better, be kinder, and choose wiser. Please think of Mrs. Magoo next time you shop. The power for change rests with what you put in your supermarket trolley and what you choose to leave on the shelf.

Mrs. Magoo, sweet lady, we shall never forget you.