A man in Ireland died after he was attacked by a chicken with a history of aggressive behavior, the Irish Examiner reported Sunday.
“The inquest in Ballaghaderreen into the death of Jasper Kraus, of Killahornia, Creagh, Ballinasloe, Co Roscommon, heard he was attacked by a Brahma chicken,” the outlet said.
On April 28 of last year, Garda Browne of Clonark said he was called to the scene where he learned paramedics performed CPR on the man but were unable to revive him.
The man was reportedly found on the kitchen floor, laying in a pool of blood, and had a wound on the back of his leg.
According to the deceased’s daughter, Virginia Guinan, her father was not well, was in remission from cancer, and taking several medications.
A tenant of the home, Corey O’Keeffe, contacted the woman and relayed what transpired. When she arrived at the home, she found blood on the ground leading to where the chicken was kept, and realized it must have been the bird that killed her father.
One of the chickens had blood on its claws, leading her to believe it was the one responsible, because it had previously attacked her child.
According to the Livestock Conservancy, the Brahma chicken was apparently developed in America from large fowls imported from China.
“Early Brahma chickens were first shipped to America and then to England. This breed, together with the Cochin, fueled what became known as ‘Hen Fever’ – a national obsession for poultry that hit both America and England around 1850,” the site read.
Video footage shows images of the chickens:
Brahma chickens are approximately 30 inches tall, and the roosters weigh about 10 pounds while the hens weigh eight pounds, according to Chickens and More.
Per the Examiner report, O’Keeffe had returned from night duty when he later heard Kraus screaming for someone to come quickly.
That was when O’Keeffe noticed the blood coming out of the man’s leg, therefore, he called emergency crews for help, tended the man’s wound, and walked through CPR steps until help arrived.
According to O’Keeffe, the man was in and out of consciousness, but said “rooster.”
The outlet continued:
Giving direct evidence to the inquest, Dr Ramadan Shatwan said when he carried out the autopsy, the deceased’s face was covered in dry blood but there were no cuts to his face. Both lower limbs were also covered in blood. He said cause of death was due to lethal cardiac arrhythmia in the context of severe coronary atheroma and cardiomegaly.
The man also apparently suffered a heart attack because the blood supply to his heart was calcified.
“Coroner Mr Brian O’Connor, confirming the cause of death was in accordance with the pathologist’s findings, recorded a verdict of misadventure,” the Examiner article stated.