Before we get started, just try to tell us that you can’t hear this picture.

In light of all the troubling news around the world, we wanted to take a moment to bring a little levity and humor to your day today. This piece written by Melinda Torr will be relatable to everyone, as we’ve all experienced one of those moments where we tried to do something good, only for it to go ridiculously, if not hilariously wrong—even if it didn’t somehow involve running with chickens.

I Work in the Suburbs and Got Chased Home by a Chicken

A True Story about Incidental Exercise and Chickens

I decided a while ago to walk to work to add some incidental exercise into my day. I live and work near an industrial estate.

There is a block of warehouses that I decided to cut through on my way home. I had seen chickens near these units. They would often be roaming free, looking for food in the grass by the road. I thought it was a bit amusing, there being chickens in an industrial estate, but I would just chuckle regularly and not really think too much about it.

I did not expect the chickens to take offense when I cut through the unit complex. But take offense they did.  They didn’t like me walking past at all.

I hadn’t taken too much notice of them, but the chickens did, however, take notice of me. As I walked through the complex of warehouses, a rooster began to follow me. He started sticking his neck out quite aggressively, but when I walked faster, he let me be. I walked along about four meters, and a chicken started chasing me. This chicken was really aggressive, making pecking motions at me with her beak. She stuck with me all the way to the main road. The chicken stuck its neck out and was walking really quickly, almost at a run, so I picked up the pace, too. My heart was beating fast!

Even though the birds were much smaller than me, they scared me quite a lot. I mean, how sharp are their beaks? Were they nesting nearby, and was I near their eggs? What damage could they do?  I didn’t want to run home with a chicken attached to me if it wouldn’t let go.

Once nearly at the main road, the chicken backed down. Phew! I was really starting to understand why people like roast chicken so much.  At least running from the chicken added a little bit of cardio to my day.

I avoided this shortcut for a while afterward but still use it now on the odd occasion. I am careful, but there has been no more foul play.

Melinda asks: Have you had any unexpected experiences with nature near your home or workplace? I would love to hear about them.

At Lit Shark, we’re so proud to take our work seriously—both in what we do for the literary community and what we’re going to do for animal rescue, conservation, and the environment. But we still know the importance of slowing down and sharing a few laughs. We’re very excited to welcome our newest contributor, Melinda Torr, starting off with a little levity and soon to be sharing much more!

P.S. Don’t forget that this story is not reflective of all chickens, all the time! Chickens are inherently nurturing and are actually super cuddly! But like thousands of other animals, sometimes they feel territorial, and they’ll act based on those feelings. This piece is here to make us laugh and enjoy a very human moment.