I think I am a chicken killer....

[Dani004]

I feel like every time I come for advice on here it is because one of my hens died.... wait that is what I do. Here we go again.

Since 2013 we've lost 3 ladies to animal attacks, (raccoon /fox,) and this season we have lost 2 randomly.

I am concerned about the two that passed away this season. One was in the spring, looked like she passed in her sleep.

The other was Wednesday. I noticed something was wrong on Tuesday, she didn't put herself away in her coop after a day of free ranging. I found her under her old coop and picked her up. She was really limp, almost lethargic, and not really responsive to me. I asked my husband to check on her when he got home late that night. He did, and she was sleeping on the floor of the coop where I had put her. She always sleeps perched on a bar we have for her and the other ladies. Wednesday night my husband came home from work and she was dead.

So this is where it gets even more wierd. I was away on a conference and couldn't help him dispose of her. He put her in the old coop, and took care of our son. Unfortunately, he got distracted (that is what 2 year olds do to parents! LOL) so he woke up very early and buried her. No raccoon or fox attempted to take her...We have a family of raccoons that hunt our chickens. Seriously we keep the coop pad locked because they rip any other lock off.

She stopped laying a few months back and was only about 2 years old max. Am I doing something wrong? I feel like the chicken grim reaper. I can write off the ones lost to preditors. But two lost in their own coop.....

 

[scratch'n'peck]

I'm sorry about your loss. Chickens can hide an illness and we often don't discover that something is wrong until it is too late. It is really hard to say what was wrong with her, because the symptoms you described come with many illnesses. For your peace of mind, check over your other chickens really well when you get a chance - look for parasites or any changes in poop etc.

If you have a string of unexplained losses you could opt to send out the chicken remains for necropsy. See link for info: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/799747/how-to-send-a-bird-for-a-necropsy-pictures

 

[quackingdom]

I've read that most chicken flocks (not ducks though) have an unexplained death every once in a while; a chicken just dies. It could be just coincidence, maybe, that two in a row died? Sorry it happened though.

Maybe the raccoons didn't touch the body because they didn't want to eat something that was already dead?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I've read that most chicken flocks (not ducks though) have an unexplained death every once in a while; a chicken just dies. It could be just coincidence, maybe, that two in a row died? Sorry it happened though.

Maybe the raccoons didn't touch the body because they didn't want to eat something that was already dead?

I agree, chickens just die, they don't tell us they are not feeling good, most only show symptoms a day before, I think you would do the same if you were in danger of being pecked to death by your flock mates if you look off. How old are your birds, about half of mine die by age 4, from something or another, it's normal, it is really hard to kill chickens due to every day care, I really wouldn't think you did anything to cause them to die, that is life. There are very few animals that want a rotting carcass for dinner, but maybe no one came looking that day.

 

[Mrs. K]

No, you are being unjustly hard on yourself. A lot of chickens die just as you described, they get lathargic, don't go to roost, and are gone in the morning. VERY often, my chickens die off about 3 years of age. If their comb goes bluish, I have been told that is a heart failure. Random deaths that you have described are just due to the fact that chickens are not a real long lived animal. It sucks when you loose a favorite, BUT then you have room for chicks!

When you have a problem, is when you have SEVERAL birds all at one time, say 3-5 birds dying within days of each other. Then I would be taking a very close look at the set up, do a narclopsy, and check the remaining birds carefully.

But a bird once in a while is a natural state of affairs. On this forum, many people do mention very long lived birds, but that is more of an exception. If you have hatchery birds, and most of us do start with those, their lifespan is not that long.

Mrs K

 

[Dani004]

Thank you so much everyone. I feel much better. I was really worried it was something we were doing. I guess I will get 2 new ladies next weekend. I didn't realize they had such a short life span.

 

[scratch'n'peck]

Thank you so much everyone. I feel much better. I was really worried it was something we were doing. I guess I will get 2 new ladies next weekend. I didn't realize they had such a short life span.

Well, if a chicken doesn't encounter any health problems, then some can live 6-8 years. I have read about even older ones, but in general chickens were not bred with longevity in mind.