Eggs-actly!

Which is something, dare we say, as rare as hen’s teeth indeed! As egg-laying birds, the lot of ISA Browns rarely ends well. Few live beyond their 18 months of pitiful existence, compared to the long lives – up to ten years – of their wild cousins. And those who somehow miraculously beat the odds often succumb to a kaleidoscope of health issues imposed upon them because of their unnatural, human-induced, almost-daily egg-laying.

Calcium-depleted bodies, compromised reproductive systems and respiratory issues are just some of the maladies these birds and their loving carers face. Yet face them those carers do, giving these gentle, intelligent and gloriously inquisitive animals the best of lives possible.

One of the first measures carers of ISA Brown hens often take to ease over-burdened bodies is a Suprelorin injection to suppress the genetically imposed 25-hourly urge to produce an egg. This gives the birds a chance for their tiny bodies to take a bit of a breather and recover.

And it would seem that modern day egg-production has not only changed chickens, but so too their place in the world. No longer looming large in the forests of Asia where their will was their own, chickens have become caged in more ways than one. Subservient to the wants and needs of humans, and compartmentalised by unjust animal “protection” laws, not only have these gentle animals lost much, but so too have we humans.

For we have lost the connection with a wondrous little being who can inspire us in so many thoughtful ways. One only has to watch them diligently scratch about in the soil, or dart across the yard in wild pursuit of happiness or a flying bug, to understand that the exact place in the world for these feathered wonders is one’s heart.