Stock photo of a common hen -not the real Marmalade. Marmalade was much better looking.
An award-winning hen has passed away after a short illness, aged 4 and a half years.
Marmalade, a Red Mottled Leg-Horn hen, had smashed local records after stolidly and unflinchingly delivering five clutches of chickens every year during her short-lived but fruitful and breed-driven existence. The owner of the rather fertile creature, Offaly farmer John Dolan, is said to be in deep mourning after Marmalade’s untimely passing.
Apart from spawning 181 offspring in total, Marmalade’s outstanding career includes feats such as being chosen to lead the St. Patrick’s Parade in the town of Banagher in 2018, followed by a public drinking of Guinness for the delight of the locals, who photographed the event for PR purposes.
But Marmalade’s gung-ho lifestyle finally caught up with it, as it is understood that she had suffering of ill-health lately. The hen passed away peacefully in the arms of Mr. Dolan’s loving daughter Emma in the early hours of this morning.
The distraught owner confessed that he “could not bear” the thought of burying Marmalade’s feathery corpse, and that he had hoped to get seven years worth of chickens out of it. Alas, this was not to be.
Marmalade is now destined to become an icon of reverence for locals and hens the world over, as Mr. Dolan intends to have it stuffed by a taxidermist. Marmalade’s final resting place will be a hen-sized glass cage to be observed, adored, and serve as inspiration for less accomplished hens.