Is the end of life a stoppage of heartbeat or a loss of breath? There are many surprising examples in history, such as when a heart stops beating for 10 minutes or more, it is still possible to be rescued, and when breathing stops for 20 minutes, it does not necessarily mean the end of life.
Have you ever heard of an ordinary rooster that survives after its owner has its head cut off? It sounds ridiculous, but it's real.
In Colorado, USA, every year on the first weekend after Mother's Day, a unique themed event is held to commemorate the "headless chicken" incident that swept the United States more than 70 years ago.
The story takes place in 1945 on a farm in Fruta, Colorado, where a farmer named Roddy is preparing a hearty lunch for his mother-in-law. He was as busy as ever, slaughtering cattle and sheep and preparing for the cooking.
While preparing to kill a rooster, an accident occurred. When he skillfully cut off the rooster's neck, he found that the rooster did not stop moving immediately, but gradually became weak after a short struggle.
Although the situation was not new to Roddy, he was shocked by the scene. He thought the chicken was dead, but when he grabbed it and was about to go to the kitchen, he found it still moving. What's even more incredible is that despite losing its head, the chicken was able to sit up with a flutter and walk freely in the yard.
Roddy's wife exclaimed at the sight of this, causing the chicken to flapp its wings again, and then regain its composure. Roddy was surprised to realize that the chicken was not dead. Out of sympathy and respect, he kept the chicken and named it Mike.
To help Mike recover, Roddy carefully washes its wounds. In the process, he discovers that Mike's wound is extremely strong in clotting and can almost stop bleeding quickly. It was this particular physiological mechanism that allowed Mike to survive.
After the news broke, Roddy's farm became the focus of activity, and people from all around came to witness the miracle. Even legends about Mike spread around the campus.
At first, Roddy received the visitors warmly, but as the number grew, he began to feel overwhelmed. His family's vegetables and fruits were quickly consumed by these "Mike fans", which made him feel unprecedented pressure.
Knowing that this situation could not last long, Roddy decided to take Mike as an exhibit and take it to various places for exhibition. Under his careful care, Mike became fatter and fatter, and apart from the absence of a head, it was not much different from a normal rooster.
Roddy set the price of Mike's exhibition at 25 cents, which was not expensive at the time. Surprisingly, due to the daily influx of tourists, Roddy was able to earn an average of $4,500 a month, which equates to 18,000 people visiting each month.
This sudden fortune made Roddy very happy. He spread Mike's story all over the country, and he was relented by the continuous advertising.
In just half a year, Roddy took Mike to hold many exhibitions, and Roddy's name became widely known. Not only did he use the money to buy a lot of furniture for himself, but he and his wife's standard of living improved significantly. But the good times didn't last long, and the ensuing problems began to plague him.
In 1947, Roddy was negligent in an exhibition and forgot to clean Mike's wounds, resulting in Mike suffocating to death, ending Mike's legendary career as a headless chicken.
Mike's death caught the attention of scientists, who performed a detailed autopsy on Mike. They found that Mike survived because Roddy only cut off a third of his head when he cut off it, while most of his brain stem was preserved.
Although 70 years have passed on Mack's story, Americans still miss the chicken to this day. To commemorate Mike's tenacious vitality, they hold an annual commemoration. Somewhere in the state of Rollado, people also observe the third weekend of May each year as Mike Day in honor of this extraordinary rooster.
While Mike's story is amazing, it also provokes some food for thought. For Mike, it may have experienced unimaginable pain and suffering, and although it was lucky to survive, the experience could have been extremely difficult.
In the aftermath of Mike's death, conservationists breathe a sigh of relief, arguing that death has become a relief as a relief for Mike to endure the pain of a headless life every day. This story also makes people think about whether life should be controlled and used by humans in this way for animals, and whether we should be more respectful and caring for all life.