Berna Arnold and her 8-year-old son, Nathan, were instantly enamored with the chicken after seeing it walk around Verdugo Road and Mountain Street during a KTLA news report Friday.
“My son was sitting and goes ‘Mom,’ and I was like ‘I know,’” she said. “We were just mortified watching her.”
The chicken had been living behind the college’s electronic billboard for months, and was often seen walking into traffic at Verdugo Road and Mountain Street, raising concerns that it might cause an accident.
After managing to evade animal control officers from the Pasadena Humane Society, traps were set to snag the bird.
But the Arnolds got to Lucky first.
Prior engagements kept them from immediately driving the 60 miles south to Glendale, so Berna Arnold told her son, “We’ll drive; we’ll look for her. If we catch her, she’s ours. If she’s not, I am sorry.”
They waited until Sunday morning, packed up fishing nets and a chicken coop in the back of their Chevrolet Suburban and headed to Glendale.
With some swift maneuvering with the net and honking from passing cars, the family finally caught Lucky.
“We are just happy that she is happy,” Berna Arnold said. “We’re just happy to have her safe and to be loved.”
Lucky has fit in easily with the Arnolds and their pets, including a horse, a bearded dragon, a fish tank, lizards and three other chickens: Dolly, Raven and Granite.
For now, Lucky is living alongside the chicken coop until the Arnolds are sure it is healthy and won’t get the other hens sick. Lucky is brought inside their home at night.
“Whomever had her before must have handled her quite a bit because she’s real easy and just wants to be held,” Berna Arnold said.
The chicken was probably a pet because it is friendly, she said, adding that most breeds aren’t as approachable.
