March 8, 2008 – I’ve named this hen Coquette, in honor of the hen buried in a paris cemetery in her own plot with the inscription “good friend for 25 years.” Linda from Paris was good enough to e-mail me this wonderful anecdote and I’ve been thinking for days about whether or not chickens can be good friends. So this morning, armed with some dry dog food, which my chickens love, I went out back and christened one of my nameless hens Coquette. We’ll see if she becomes a friend, or if I become attached to her, and if she lives 25 years, she’ll probably outlast me. She seems alert and industrious, though for a chicken. I hope the friendship grows. She will be my first chicken friend, it if takes.