There’s a cat in the hen house! Normally those words would strike fear into the heart of a farmer, but in this case, it was a very different story.
This farmer was stopping by the hen house to collect the day’s eggs when he noticed on of the hens was behaving just a little bit strangely. She was sitting on something, an egg presumably, but didn’t want to budge. Eager to get his chores done, the farmer gently moved the hen aside and, getting the shock of his life, discovered she’d been roosting above a tiny black and white kitten! The kitten, apparently only a few days old, actually looked like it had been quite comfortable in the straw bed under a warm hen. What had probably happened is that the kitten had been abandoned by the mother cat and when the hen happened to see it, her empathy and maternal instincts kicked in.
While the farmer was staring slack-jawed at his surreal discovery, the hen started getting visibly nervous, obviously wanting to get back to keeping her furry “chick” warm. Bizarre though this arrangement was, the farmer figured that it was working well enough and he let the hen get back to the business of motherhood.
We’ve posted a video about this unusual foster parent below. Many of the people who’ve seen it have expressed concern for the kitten’s well-being. A hen can provide warmth, love, and security, but only a mother cat or a human armed with an eyedropper full of formula can keep a kitten fed. We don’t know the rest of the story, but it’s a good bet that the farmer took care of everything. He must have had plenty of experience bottle feeding baby animals and providing care at all hours. Chances are, this kitten grew up to be an excellent farm cat, dealing with rodents and (hopefully) playing nicely with the hens.
How did you like this incredible example of inter-species empathy? Let’s hear from you in the Facebook comments. Be sure to like and share this heartwarming story!
