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In the early 40s, a very special chicken entered the annals of poultry history: Mike, the miraculous bird that refused to die after being beheaded.
Mike broke the unlikely record as the longest surviving headless chicken, having managed to survive for a whole 18 months without a head.
Mike’s incredible story begins on 10 September 1945 at the farm of Lloyd and Clara Olsen in Fruita, Colorado.
"During the 40’s many farmers supplemented their rations with selling eggs, milk, chicken, and preserving food," explains Mike's official page. "The Olsens were no different and were preparing a batch of 40-50 chickens for market. Lloyd would cut heads and Clara would pluck and clean the chickens."
Mike was one of the many male Wyandotte chickens that roamed in the farm’s yard and - as it turned out - he had no intention of becoming anybody’s dinner.
Despite its head being chopped off, the animal went on living for over a year.
The bird sadly passed one fateful night in a motel in Phoenix, Arizona.
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