These brave chickens have proved that they are as brave as any other animals

A headless chicken has survived for a week after being decapitated and has now been adopted by a vet who calls the bird 'a true warrior. Photo: Courtesy. 

 By LB THAPA 

It is impossible to think of a life without the head. The Head is the most important part of the body as it controls the whole system of the body. In brief, when the head is severed off the life is gone once and for all. 

Well, this is what many of us think of the head, but this is not always true. Because this blogger is going to write about two bizarre cases, where two chickens in different times had lost their heads but refused to die. The first case was reported in 1945 while another one took place quite recently in March 2018 in Thailand. 

So, let’s start with the first case which was first reported in 1945. It was 10^th September 1945 Lloyd Olsen and his wife Clara were busy killing chickens. Olsen decapitates the heads of the chickens and his wife would clean them to sell them on a local market. It was their business as usual and they were doing it for the last several years. 

A strong desire to live can make one live even without a head. Photo: Courtesy.  

But on 10^th September 1945, it was not the same day. Olsen counted the bodies of the chicken but he found one chicken missing. He recounted and every time found one chicken was short to his total. It was not possible for anyone to enter the room because the room was properly locked from inside. 

When Olsen and his wife Clara searched the room, they saw the chicken firmly standing in a corner of the room…this was something the couple had never expected. They simply could not believe in their eyes. Over the years, they had severed off uncountable chickens’ heads but it never happened when a headless chicken stood on its feet firmly. 

The chicken of course had no head but it stood peacefully in a corner. When they tried to catch the chicken, it kicked them hard and also tried to avoid the catch. Anyhow, the couple managed to catch hold of the chicken safely and kept it in a box for the night. 

The following day, Olsen woke up early in the morning to see how the headless chicken was. His surprise knew no bounds as the headless chicken was still alive and kicking. Even more so, it looked quite healthy. The news of headless chicken spread more like jungle fire and very soon throngs of people began rushing to Olsen’s farm to see the headless chicken. Press reporters took the photos and the story was published in several local and national newspapers. 

Later, Olsen and his wife Clara were convinced to take the headless chicken to the University of Utah for scientists to understand how it was possible for the chicken to live even without a head. Even after several days of research, the scientists could not solve the mystery. 

About that time, Life Magazine carried the story, which gave the chicken the name Miracle Mike. Taking the advantage of the situation, the couple wasted no more time. Olsen, Clara, and Mike made a tour of the US and made a good deal of money by showing the headless chicken and telling the story to people. 

While traveling across the cities in the US, Clara wrote all her experiences in her diary. The diary is still kept safe today. After months of touring several cities, they arrived in Phoenix, Arizona, where the amazing chicken finally died in the spring of 1947. Mike had survived for 18 months without a head. This is the only recorded incident in history to date. 

Mike would survive even more if Olsen had not forgotten the syringe outside. Olsen and his wife Clara would always feed the chicken carefully. Liquid food and water were directly put into his esophagus with the help of a dropper. After then, to clear mucus from his throat, they would use a syringe. This was a daily routine work to take care of Mike. 

On a fateful night, Olsen and his wife Clara woke by the choking sound of Mike. An excessive amount of mucus had deposited in the throat of Mike that had made it difficult to breathe. It was quite normal, as Olsen would clear it easily with the help of a syringe. When he looked around for the syringe, then he realized that he did not have a syringe at home. He had left it outside at a public show. Before he could try another possible way, it was too late. Mike was already dead. His death was due to suffocation.     

The second story of a chicken that survived over a week after being decapitated

A vet named Supakadee Arun Thong has adopted the headless animal, feeding it by dropping food down its neck and giving it antibiotics. Photo: Asiawire

A headless chicken has survived for a week after being decapitated and has now been adopted by a vet who calls the bird 'a true warrior'. Photo: Asiawire.

A headless chicken became an immediate breaking story for several local and national news media in Thailand. In the month of March 2018, a veterinary doctor took care of a headless chicken in Mueang Ratchaburi, Thailand. The chicken survived well over a week and during the time, it was quite healthy. It ate well and walked briskly if someone tried to catch hold of it. However, it was not known that how the chicken had lost its head. But the local people believed that the chicken must have escaped from a wildcat. 

When a local group of monks found the chicken for the first time, it did not have a head but the chicken was firmly walking on its feet. “The chicken was in full command and control. It never swayed or staggered the entire time,” said the monks. Later a veterinary doctor Supakadee Arun Thong took the chicken from the monks and kept the chicken under her care. 

Thong dropped liquid food and water with the help of a dropper and regularly gave antibiotics. She cleaned the wound regularly and put antiseptic cream in the severed neck. In the photo, it can be seen that the chicken stood firm and looked healthy. 

The veterinarian Thong was very impressed with the spirit of the chicken. “Such a brave chicken that refused to die even after losing its head. Who says chickens are not brave?” she asked. However, the brave chicken could not live for over a week and died.

LB Thapa is a Pokhara-based freelance writer and author.

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