Lethargic chicken died

[Cuatro Pollitos]

Our favorite chicken, who chased after my husband to sit on his lap, started showing symptoms about a month ago.. lethargic, didn't want to be picked up. The other chickens were fine. I took her to the vet, who didn't find anything wrong, but recommended worming. I asked him to give her antibiotics too, which he did.

She began to recover her energy and moved about normally, but still did not want to be held (unusual for her). I noticed lots of pinfeathers on her head and face and, while she wasn't apparently losing a lot of feathers, when I examined her, I found pinfeathers under her feathers. I figured she had been acting listless and unfriendly because she was uncomfortable from molting.

The pinfeathers on her head increased, but I didn't see any progress, otherwise, in the molt. Now, a month after the first episode of acting ill, the symptoms recurred a couple of days ago. She acted weak and was not moving around much, so I brought her in the house to watch her. She convulsed and died this evening.

I can't figure out what would have killed her. The other chickens are fine. Her symptoms came and went, except for the fact that she no longer ever wanted to be held, and acted like it was painful (again, I thought it was because of the molt).

Any ideas?

 

[dawg53]

Did you worm her like the vet recommended?

 

[rebrascora]

More information might help but ultimately we can only guess and a necropsy by your state diagnostics lab would be the way to get definitive answers. If you decide to go that route, you need to double bag her and refrigerate her body and then contact your local facility.....
I believe this would be the place ....
http://www.nmda.nmsu.edu/vds/

It looks to be in Alberquerque

Edited to add....

Age and breed of the bird and diet might be helpful for us to hazard a guess and if you know when she last laid an egg. Reproductive disorders are common in hens over 3yrs old and can come to a head at this time of year. Moult can cause abnormalities in shell quality as their egg laying system comes to the end of it's cycle and starts to shut down for the winter and soft shelled or shell less eggs can lead to infections developing. It is also a time of year for Marek's outbreaks to occur due to the stress of moult and that disease can exhibit in a multitude of different symptoms. Did she have any abdominal swelling? Was her crop functioning? How was her body condition. Did she feel like skin and bone when you picked her up or was she a good weight or maybe even unusually heavy? They are just a few questions that might give us some clues to go on if you don't go for the professional necropsy.

 

[Sue S]

So sorry for your loss

 

[rebrascora]

Goodness, yes, where was my sensitivity in answering you thread earlier... I'm so very sorry for your loss! She was obviously a very special bird and you must be missing her dreadfully!