Noise proves nothing. Often a hen who has merely laid an egg cackles as if she laid an asteroid. ~Mark Twain
We’ve named a puppy. We’ve named a cat. We’ve even named two horses and a dog. You all have been wonderful name pickers. With these dog names, you have me second guessing naming Frankie Frankie. Maybe I should have picked Jesse or Reggie, Prince or Banjo. Then again, Frankie seems to fit. For our white dog, you suggested several color appropriate names like Snowball of Ghost. I liked Lavon picking Elsie from the movie, Frozen and White Fang from Paula was a clever name. Mary’s Cameo was an imaginative take off on the color. Lola got a couple of votes.
Several of you thought Happy fit this white dog and you were so right. Especially in this picture. So let me tell you about our white dog buddy. First, none of you suggested her real name. Her owners, a couple who live down the road from us, named her Bunny. I wouldn’t have been surprised if one of you had suggested that name. Bunny is a Maremma sheepdog. (For more information about the breed here’s a link.)
I first met Bunny when she showed up in my yard. I didn’t know her people at the time, but I could tell she wasn’t a stray. Since she was very friendly and really liked Oscar who was still feeling fairly good when Bunny first started visiting, I was as happy to see her as she looked like she was to see Oscar and me. Luckily, she didn’t mind me checking her collar where I found a phone number. I called and reached her not very happy owner. What owner is happy when their dog has headed over the hill and ended up a mile or so from home? Not me for sure which is why Frankie rarely gets off that leash unless we are way over in the field where he won’t take off to a neighbor’s house.
But Bunny seemed to like escaping her yard and shirking her duty of guarding her owners’ hens. They have a chicken farm Clucky Hen Farm, and Bunny protects her chicken flock. The owner said she did a good job of that, keeping away the coyotes and raccoons and those hawks, but there for a while every few days she’d climb over her gate and come visit Oscar and me. She’d get here and have to lie down and rest a while. But she always looked really happy.
Maybe she needed a break from chickens. Maybe she was simply in love with Oscar. At any rate, I’d look outside and there would be Bunny. So I’d call her owners and they’d come over with a few treats, load Bunny up and take her home. But eventually, in spite of getting to be friends with us, they did get tired of Bunny escaping and managed to stop her climbing over that gate. Bunny decided to settle down and stick to business after that. Getting older probably helped or maybe Oscar being gone made the long run not worth it. Now I have to go visit her over there with her hens.
So those of you who thought Happy was the best name for her, you were absolutely right. She’s a happy dog guarding her hens.
The Final Pet to Name
I started to post another cat picture, but then I thought I’d end the game with something a little out of the ordinary since I’m guessing most of you have never had a pet hen. But I know you have great imaginations and will use them to come up with some great names for my hen. Well, it’s actually Bunny’s hen, but she’ll let us borrow it for my Name the Pet Game. Leave your suggestion in a comment and you’ll get an entry in my drawing for a couple of books. (Three winners will get their choice of one of my books and a grab bag book by a different Christian author.) Deadline to enter is midnight EST Saturday night, May 12, 2018, and you have to be at least 18 to enter.
When I was a kid, we had hens and now and again we’d name one of them. Hens can be pets with benefits since they might keep you in eggs for breakfast. As always, thanks for reading.
Have you ever had a pet chicken? Had hens at all?
Whether you have or not, what name do you suggest for the hen giving you the eye in the picture up top?
Comments 45
Well, I’ve never had a pet hen, but I have had a pet rooster. I was 11 years old and Roscoe was my rooster. He was named after a character on my favorite t.v. show, The Dukes of Hazzard. The Summer I was 11 my favorite pastime was riding my Huffy dirt bike. Even better than just riding my bike in the yard was my parents trusting me to ride to the convenient store down the road. Roscoe came to me when I called his name. When I got on my bike he knew he could ride along on my handlebar! It was so cute. When we got to the store he followed me up and down the aisles to get what we needed and then he would hop back up onto my handlebar and we would head back home. None of my friends believed Roscoe did this until they came to my house and saw for themselves. I still think of my very loyal, bike riding chick!
Author
Wow, Mandy, what a story! We needed a video of that. You and Roscoe would have been stars on the internet. A bike riding rooster. 🙂
I was given a baby chick for Easter when I was in 5th grade. I don’t remember what I named it. When it got too big for us to keep my parent gave it to a family that lived on a farm. Not too much later we had chicken for dinner and my older sister said we were eating (called it by name). I asked if it really was and my parents said it was not, that the couple had swapped one of theirs for mine in trade—-that mine wasn’t quite old enough to eat. Who knows???
Given the color of this chicken I think Honeysuckle would be a great name—Honey for short. Fun game! Thanks. 😊
Author
Those older sisters can be a pester sometimes, Karen. My older sister wished I’d disappear most of the time when I was a kid, but we’re grand friends now. Honeysuckle is an interesting name, but I’m guessing several hens this color might end up being Honey. Glad you enjoyed the game. I’ll pick the winner tomorrow.
Henrietta is a good name for a hen, don’t ya think?
Author
A very fine name, Barbara. I’m guessing that many pet hens have sported that name.
Henrietta is a good name for a hen, don’t ya think?
I have a few pet hens , but the one that follows me everywhere I go is named Pizza.My two year old granddaughter,Emma , named her.so Pizza it is.I am very sure that isn’t the name of the hen in the picture so I will call it Thelma, after all there can only be one hen named Pizza!
Author
If your granddaughter said Pizza was a good name for your hen, it was a good name, Lisa. And it’s fun that your pet hen follows you around. Thelma is a fine hen name, and I think you’re right about only one hen being named Pizza. LOL.
Author
Diana, Penny and Henny Penny are the runaway favorites for names. They fit this hen.
Birdie, Peter is an unusual name for a hen, but it you think it works, it works.
Maria, Gert is the second most popular pick, but Bertie is good too.
Linda, you’re getting fancy with that name Gabrielle. That was the name of my first Shaker heroine in my book The Outsider. Nobody called her Gabby, but maybe we would this hen. You’re not the only person I know who does not like chickens. My youngest granddaughter says they are “creepy.”
Kathy, Goldie does absolutely fit this hen.
Connie, I like the nursery rhyme for Hettie Hen. And it is very true. Those coyotes and foxes love hen for dinner. That’s why my neighbors have Bunny.
Emily, Harriet is a good hen name. A good grandma’s name too. Hope you have had some good times with Grandma Harriet.
Author
Elizabeth, I like your brothers’ names for your hens. I’ve seen a few hens that could be a Mademoiselle, but Miss Molly is nice too.
Linda, Clucker certainly fits most hens I’ve ever met. 🙂
Betsy, there aren’t any limits of which name to suggest, but it is fun when you all suggest different things. The funny thing here is that Melanie had already said Gertrude shortened to Gerty. You two must be thinking allike.
Maryann, do you think your friends daughter will mind you naming a hen after her? But I like Vera. I named a dog after the guy who gave it to me once and he wasn’t a bit complimented the way I thought he would. LOL.
Meagan, Laverne is a good hen name. Obviously, right, since your sister has a Laverne hen.
Connie, everybody should get to gather eggs straight from the nest at least once in their lives. 🙂 But whether you’ve had hens or not, you came up with some good names. I can see a hen named Lizzie or Sadie.
Ola, you sound like you’re a chicken lover to call that hen Sweetie.
Faith, Henny Penny is the popular name. I guess we all grew up hearing the Chicken Little story about the sky falling.
I’ve never owned a hen,but, if I did, I would name it Harriet the Hen, after my Grandma Reynolds. 🙂
I like “Hettie” for this chicken….Hettie Hen best stay in the pen…a coyote or a red fox might have her for dinner.
She looks gold to me, so Goldie would be my choice for her name.
Never owned a chicken and was terrified of them as a child! I think this one looks like Gabrielle!
I was going to say Gert, but see that someone has already beat me to it. 😊 So I’ll go with my next choice, Bertie.
Peter. I don’t know why, maybe reading your story about Bunny. But she looks like a Peter to me.
I had two pet chickens that my grandaddy let me pick from a chicken farm. They grew bigger and we’re a pair, a hen and a rooster. I can’t remember what I name them. They both visited the mechanic that had a garage behind our house. I like really different names for my pets. I would name her Phoenix.😄
Author
Phoenix is an interesting name for a hen, but I think this old girl would like it. I had a pet banty rooster when I was a kid and I can’t remember what I named it either. Surely I named it something. Sounds like your pet chickens were neighborly. Maybe the mechanic fed them something.
Penny would be my guess.
I would go with Ruby ! My grandparents had lots of chickens on their farm in Owsley Co. Ky . My sister and I spent our summers there . I remember we would sit on a bench and wait till grandma would announce that it was time to gather the eggs and feed the chickens ….what wonderful memories ! I am considering getting some chickens ….the fresh eggs are so yummy !
Author
Glad my name the pet game brought back some good memories for you, Nancy. Hens just add personality to a farm. And of course, those fresh eggs that meant you got to eat lots of eggs in the spring and summer, especially. Ruby is a good hen name.