All have heard the classic question, “What came first: the chick or the egg?”
In a rare incident, a hen literally gave birth to four chicks at Jangalpara village near Tangla town in Udalguri district of Assam without laying any egg.
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The hen delivered the chicks at the home of Dipak Saharia.
On learning about the incident, many people visited Saharia’s residence to see the hen and her chicks.
The hen is a Vanaraja breed developed by the ICAR – Directorate of Poultry Research, Hyderabad in the poultry owned by the Saharia family.
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“The hen did not hatch any egg for three months and on Monday we found one chick near the hen and till Tuesday it had given birth to four chicks out of which two died,” Ajit Saharia said.
He added: “The hen was in a poultry room with concrete walls and it is not possible for other animals to enter there.”
“The egg must have got hatched inside the hen’s reproductive system. The natural hatching process, which takes around 21 days, might have taken place inside the bird’s reproductive system. However there were no shells and blood in the chick’s body,” said a rearer.
“Although it seems unbelievable, it is a very rare incident and I have never come across such an incident. Genetic reasons might be there as birds and mammals share common ancestors,” said Center for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC) Veterinarian, Dr Samsul Ali.