Napoleon Dynamite

It is a sad week at out house. My husbands rooster Napoleon passed away. 

Napoleon was the rooster that we weren’t going to get.  We had decided that we didn’t want a rooster.  All that crowing & eating & fighting without giving us eggs.  No thanks.  Last year we went to a chicken auction to pick up a couple of ladies for the coop.  We walked in the door and I took about 10 steps.  I turned around to say something to my husband and he was holding Napoleon.  He was in chicken love. 

Napoleon & his 2 Mille Fleur D’Uccle ladies came as a trio.  When introducing him to the older hens – 3 standard egg layers, he tried to assert his dominance over the largest one & got his comb half ripped off & well beaten.  We painted his comb with purple antiseptic, giving him a real punk rock look.  When his head healed he went back in with the hens. This time he became king of the coop.

Napoleon was a bantam breed.  His crow was as tiny as his stature. When he was inside the coop with door shut, you could only just hear him.  What he lacked in volume & size he made up for with heart.  In September a massive owl attacked the coop & all of the ladies ran for cover under the house.  Napo stood his ground, puffing up his chest & crowing for all he was worth.  I think that the owl’s talon was bigger than his entire body.

Napoleon was not just a fighter.  He was a lover.  He loved all his ladies.  All of that loving led to something very special. A few weeks ago he had his first chick.  The new chick looks just like it’s all white Polish mom. But luckily it is booted and has one spot on his tummy just like its dad!   

Napoleon will be missed.