It's not necessarily pregnancy-related, but I'll admit that I am in search of comfort. The hormones are raging, and I'm heartbroken. My husband and I are expecting our first child at the end of January. A girl. We suffered a miscarriage earlier this year on Easter Sunday, so we are thrilled and looking forward to meeting our little girl in two more months. Sadly, tragedy struck again, once more over a holiday, when we had to say goodbye to one of our dear pets, Bonney. We first noticed Bonney acting "off" about a week ago when she was not displaying normal behaviors, and she was isolating herself from her sisters. So we kept a close eye on her. Wednesday morning, my husband found Bonney standing still, by

herself, with her eyes closed. We immediately isolated her from the others, kept her comfortable, and monitored her. She was unable to eat or drink on her own, so we would patiently spend time to help her eat and get some fluids in her. We were thrilled when she would make it through the night, but saddened to see no real improvement in her as days passed. And then on Saturday morning, she could no longer stand on her legs, and would just topple over every time she tried to take a step. She would no longer eat or drink, even with our help. We knew that this was not something minor that we could fix at home with some TLC, so we took her to a special vet that afternoon to try to save her. After testing and X-rays, the vet ruled out respiratory issues, lead poisoning, and any other ailments to that could be treated, and confirmed our worst fear. Our sweet Bonney had a viral disease that, while sadly common amongst her species, has no cure. Paralysis would shut her system down, if she didn't starve to death first. Knowing we had to do what was right by Bonney, and not by US, we made the decision to have her peacefully put to sleep rather than suffer. Her ashes will be scattered across the countryside. We tearfully said goodbye to her at 3:04pm on Saturday. Bonney was a chicken. A beautiful Rhode Island White. One of four backyard chickens we've raised since they were two days old. She was just a few days shy of being 6 months old. While some may raise an eyebrow and think "A chicken? Really?", these hens are our beloved pets, and we love them no less than someone might love their dog, cat, or parrot. They bring us so much joy and entertainment every day. My husband and I are heartbroken that we had to say goodbye. And because I'm about to become a mother, it is especially painful. Even though there was nothing we could do to help Bonney, the instinct in me refused to accept that we couldn't do more. My heart hurts so much. RIP Bonney. Chase butterflies in the sky.