As if all the anxiety about the pandemic wasn't bad enough, I've got another thing to worry about. Last year two my chicken-nieces, Annie and Chick, died. Now Zoey is starting to show some of the same symptoms they had. One sister says she didn't even come out for mealworms last night. Another sister confirms that she was just hanging around the nestboxes, like Chick did before she died. Zoey did come out later this morning, but every time she stands still, I get scared. I don't need this! This is a horrible time for a pet to die. We're all on edge already over Covid-19, and I still feel bad about Chick. We're low on money, too, so I don't know if we could pay for medical treatment for Zoey, even if there was something that could be done. And if she does die, then what? We might be able to afford to have her cremated and put in a nice little wood box like Annie and Chick, but with the pandemic, will that be possible? What if Arizona goes on lockdown before we get her ashes back? Or if the pet crematorium is shut down? What if 2 of the girls die? What happens to the Last Hen Standing? The answer, unfortunately, isn't to get more chickens. Mom put her foot down on that idea, and I understand where she's coming from. Chicken are expensive to care for, we're not getting any younger or healthier, and we can't count on my nephews (who really want us to get more) to take up the slack. (Plus, I don't think we can trust the dogs to behave around chicks.) I know it's not greatest thing in the world to worry about now, but I'm still worried.
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