A bunch of our chickens are named for Harry Potter characters. Nymphadora, or Dora, is a particular favorite because of her fluffy cheeks and penchant for coming inside. When she sits on the windowsill looking in, and I discretely open the window for her to step in, I tell myself that there are people who let their cats in the house and no one looks askance at them. She has her favorite places to cuddle up and once laid an egg on Benjamin's bed. Don't tell him. He would not be amused. We did buy chicken diapers at the feed store, which are repurposed dust masks. They mostly work. 

A few days ago Dora was wheezing. The twins and I gave her extra bits of banana and cuddling, but it got worse. I went online and found remedies like boiled milk with garlic and onions, poured over steamed rice. Yes I did that for my chicken. You see I love her and it did not seem like too much to ask. Some websites suggested antibiotics but my chicken hero disagreed. He affirmed the power of garlic. 

Then I texted my homeopathy guru. He has cured all manner of sniffles and headaches at our house, and I asked him for a remedy for respiratory distress.

Pulsatilla.

I drove over and he handed me a little white envelope. 

"Really, Lori? Chickens?" 

"I love her!" I suspected he had probably done as much for his great lumbering dogs but I didn't mention it. 

She slept inside that night, in a box under the table. She had opinions about this but we barricaded her in and she acquiesced. I did not want her energy spent on enduring the freezing temperatures for twelve hours. 

In the morning her wheezing had subsided and she could breath through her mouth again. I hugged her, which she did not seem to mind. 

This morning she is preening in the coop, probably deflecting comments from her sisters about being teacher's pet. I am happier about the spring in her step than I am about the feistiness of Hermione or Molly, though I love them too. 

There is a couple that is doing well. We check on them regularly and I know that things have improved since last spring. Possible reasons are their efforts to exercise together, and the attention they are giving to things like leisure reading and taking interesting classes. Bedtime has a new strategy that seems to be working well, and causes less stress than in the past. They are pretty faithful about Sunday night dates, and while we chatted they laughed a lot. I even let myself believe that my prayers for them were as beneficial as garlic.