I've had a dead chicken outside my house for I don't know how long, and it's actually starting to bug me. Do the animals you buy in hearthfire respawn, and if not how do you end up replacing them?

No they dont respawn, the option to "improve" your house reappears with your steward, though not always straightaway i have found.

Just curious but has anyone tried carrying the carcass far enough away from the house where it doesn't load every time you visit? Maybe it will respawn or the option to buy a new one will show up faster if they game isn't constantly re-loading the old/dead one every time you visit... (Note just tossing out a wild probably not true idea).

I moved one of my poor dead chickens when it didn't go away. Took a few days, but finally disappeared. Strange that the horse goes away quickly.

damn skeevers are still in the basemant. hope they vanish soon. even tossed them in the forge to see if that helped. it didn't. now the celler smells like roasting skeever.

Skeever bodies will never go away while you are there, you have to leave the area of the house for some things to be cleared, and your chickens will respawn if you stay away for 10 days. The cow and the horse you have to buy again.

Speaking of Bandits. I'm so glad I moved my family from Heljarchen to the Lakeview House. EVERY time I fast travel to Heljarchen I get attacked by something, it never fails. Yet it doesn't happen when I head to either Windstad or Lakeview. LOL

Did you build Hekjarchen Hall first Agrona?