In the Simpsons, Itchy always kills Scratchy. Our hope in giving these names to our chickens was to inspire them to itch and scratch their way to health in the good earth.

It seems that in the chicken world, Itchy kills Scratchy too.

I noticed Itchy exhibit some aggressive behavior toward Scratchy over food - this is common with cage hens.  I thought this would sort itself out as there is a natural pecking order that is established with chickens.  But unfortunately the next morning Scratchy was no longer with us.  There were no signs of damage on Scratchy and while I may be falsely accusing Itchy of carrying out this act, I am certain it was her.

Poor Scratchy.  Yet, as the saying goes, where there is livestock, there is also deadstock. It is a natural part of life and raising animals. It is a real shame too as both of them have really been improving. But for now, the following chicken updates will be on Itchy only.