Tootie the Travelling Chicken

Tootie in her traveling Pod

Tootie the Chicken is a little Silkie we bought as an egg. Truly - she arrived in an egg carton in the mail from across country as a wee fertilized egg.

From the start we knew wee Tootie was a little special...slightly batty and not quite able to see beyond her fluffy top hairdo."Cooked too long in the egg " as Greg used to refer to her. Tootie was always the one pecking at your boots when you went into the run......or the one who would suddenly get startled to find someone actually there....She would often be so delighted at finding her wee bit of food that she would run about the place "quacking". Yes - Tootie sounds like a duck -not quite a chicken. A tiny bundle of white fluff about the size of a small melon. It was very sad for us when we noticed that Tootie was not walking quite well...she began to hobble and fall over- unable to hold herself up. We cleaned her feet and rubbed vaseline on it daily. As the other chickens we starting to pick on her...we took her out of the run and into a little plastic tub that sat on the kitchen counter.

That was where Tootie would spend the rest of her time....we would take her out onto the lawn to sit. - picking her up as she fell over and was unable to move...Then one day Tootie was handled too roughly by our dog Pepper and we thought we would lose her....But tough little Tootie survived.I cannot tell you how many people told us we should "do away with her" or how cruel we were allowing this little fluffy ball to live in such a poor state. But both Greg and I noticed that besides being unable to walk- she was happy - clucking away and eating well.We thought she deserved a chance. Tootie would often spend the afternoons with me...sitting in her basket on my desk as I worked sewing little creatures for our online store Mystic Hills Ngaroma. - she would cluck/ quack away she we listened to the news.Evenings, Tootie would sit in her basket by the fire.

Over many months Tootie began to improve- able to stand up and then take a few shaky steps...then one day she laid an egg!! She was doing great..and continues to improve...Now she is able to walk a little - break into a run...lays eggs regularly and even came on a road trip/ camping trip with us.We did not want to leave her in the care of anyone who may not know her needs. Not many people may understand how proud we are of the spirit of this little chicken who defied the odds  - lived and is wonderfully happy.....Here are some pictures of Tootie on her road trip- the first of many we hope.

Tootie at  Stonehenge...a spot on the way to Harwood's Hole

Tootie having a supernatural experience at Stonehenge

Oh.....my oh my.....the energy this spot has!!

Greg and Tootie having a great time!

I Can FLY!!!

 

Tootie and Greg at Canaan Downs Scenic Reserve

Oh its cold on my toes!! Tootie by the snowy road on the way from Takaka to Nelson

We hope you have enjoyed the pictures and the story of our little brave chicken Tootie....more to come..Leave us a message and let us know what you think- we would love to hear from you.