The story of how the cock Mike without a head lived

September 10, 1945. Rooster Mike: the beginning of the second life. Farmer Lloyd Olsen was waiting for his mother-in-law's arrival. In Colorado, it was customary to honor parents, so together with their wife they decided to cook a nice dinner in honor of her visit. And, of course, what is the table without a baked bird? Especially since the wife's mother was so fond of chicken neck! Lloyd, clutching an ax in his hand, headed for the hen house. Today, the choice fell on the rooster named Mike. Olsen, being a farmer, more than once conducted a decapitation procedure, so he confidently chopped an ax, trying to hit as close as possible to the base of the skull, leaving most of the cock's neck.

Lloyd knew that after the chicken was chopped off the head, she could not only run for several minutes, but also fly, so he waited. The longer the farmer watched the behavior of the headless bird, the more his eyes "climbed on the forehead": after a series of chaotic movements, the cock, as if nothing had happened, returned to his old life: he tried to peck the grain and peel the feathers. Recovering from the shock and laughing, Olsen decided to leave Mike alone, taking another cock as a "victim". Imagine his surprise when the next morning he found a sleeping headless bird in the hen-house with a stump under his wing ...

Since then, Lloyd has refused to care for the cock, every day more and more amazed at the duration of the second abnormal life given to Mike.

Headless, but famous!

Rooster Mike continued to live, and Olsen assiduously helped him: he fed from a pipette milk, small corn kernels. He pushed all the food right into his neck. After a while the farmer thought that it was unfair to hide such a miracle from other people's eyes. He hoisted his headless pet into the car and went to the University of Colorado, wishing to receive comments on such an existence. Scientists, having investigated the "victim", gave the following explanations: the blade of the ax passed very successfully, without hitting the carotid artery, and the blood clot sealed the wreath, thereby saving the bird from blood loss. Most importantly, most of the spinal cord survived, which is responsible for most of the cock's reflexes. By the way, there was one whole ear left, so that his life was not so boring!

Meanwhile, the headless cock Mike continued to live, recover and lean. At one point the farmer decided with the help of his bird to amuse the people and make money from it. And he went on a tour of the country. People lined up to look at the miracle bird, laying out for this spectacle of 25 cents. Mike got a great fame thanks to publications in various magazines, the Guinness book. As a result, its price was determined at $ 10,000.

The rooster lived without a head for another 18 months. His death was absurd and unexpected: at night he choked on his own secretions, and the "guardian" Lloyd did not have time to find a pipette to clear his throat.

The audacious story of the "Amazing Chicken" made such a strong impression on all farmers in the country that many of them tried to repeat Olsen's "feat" by chopping dozens of chickens. But all in vain - the second such Mike at anybody did not work.