(US) Couple pays $4,000 for leg surgery on pet chicken

This could be the world’s most expensive chicken leg.

When Lily the chicken needed surgery, her owners sacrificed to do whatever it took to help their pet. She had gotten her left leg stuck in a barbed wire fence.

The veterinarian told Lily’s owners, Vicky and Sam Mills, that it would be extremely costly to save her leg. But the couple told the vet to do whatever it took to save their pet chicken.

It took seven operations and a leg amputation to get Lily back to normal. The Mills have paid almost $4,000 for their pet chicken’s medical bills. They took out a bank loan, and lived a minimal lifestyle for a year to pay for Lily’s treatment.

But the Mills said it is completely worth it to see a smile on Lily’s beak.

Initially, treatment failed, and the veterinarians said that Lily’s leg would have to be amputated in order to save her life. And then, the pet chicken was diagnosed with depression after the operation.

Pet experts said Lily was sad when she was alone in the house, so the UK couple left the television on whenever they left home.

Now, after her surgery and her treatments, she is back to normal. She occasionally does fall and has to be extra careful when crossing the road, but she is back to her plucky self.

Vicky Mills said: “She’s worth every penny. I love her to bits and it would break my heart if anything happened to her.” The couple said they couldn’t bear to put their beloved chicken down. They added that Lily is a happy hen again and is fine hoping around on one leg, but when she tries to scratch herself with her missing leg, she does fall over.

This three-year-old hen sleeps on a cushion in the kitchen and has the back garden to run around in. She likes to eat whatever is cooking in the kitchen, especially spaghetti bolognese.

Vicky said she has had Lily ever since she was two-days-old and said that she is more fun than a cat or dog.

“She struts about as if she rules the roost - she really thinks she’s top of the pecking order in our household.”

Reference: www.dailymail.co.uk

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