2 chickens dead with blue body and combs need help identifying what killed them

[BirdGirl2004]

Hello, I really need help identifying what happened to my 2 chickens! This weekend, I went to my lake house for about 2 days, but when I left them I had them inside an electric fence so no predators could get to them. When I got back, I found that two of my chickens were dead. One of them was about 1 year old and the other was about 1 1/2 years old. When I found them, they looked to have been strangled to death. The combs and the wattles were blue, and the body was also. They didn't look to of had much blood on them, one of them maybe had some on its wing.
Any ideas? Thanks!

 

[Shamo Hybrid]

Perhaps your neighbor knew of your vacation and decided to take revenge out on you! But then again it could be due to the heat, although I'm not sure it gets that hot in Indiana?

 

[BirdGirl2004]

Perhaps your neighbor knew of your vacation and decided to take revenge out on you! But then again it could be due to the heat, although I'm not sure it gets that hot in Indiana?

No, it wasn't that hot this weekend! Like 70-80's! And no... it wasn't the neighbors

 

[BirdGirl2004]

anyone else??

 

[Shamo Hybrid]

anyone else??

Maybe they died of a broken heart, thinking you went away and left them behind forever.

All kidding aside, it could be a coincidence that the both of them suffered a heart attack, though I doubt that. I think it could be a dog that killed it. They don't usually kill to eat but will bite real hard and break their necks or something...... you could have just missed the puncture wound, they will be hard to detect and leave little blood.

 

[arrowti]

Strangulation could be the result of a constrictor snake. Some people have reported large rat snakes trying to eat their chickens, but due to the size of the chicken, fail to swallow them. The result is a chicken dead from strangulation and possibly bleeding if it was bitten.

I'm sorry you lost your birds.

 

[Coop de Grass]

Hello, I really need help identifying what happened to my 2 chickens! This weekend, I went to my lake house for about 2 days, but when I left them I had them inside an electric fence so no predators could get to them. When I got back, I found that two of my chickens were dead. One of them was about 1 year old and the other was about 1 1/2 years old. When I found them, they looked to have been strangled to death. The combs and the wattles were blue, and the body was also. They didn't look to of had much blood on them, one of them maybe had some on its wing.
Any ideas? Thanks!

You say they looked strangled to death. Because of the color of the wattles, or because their necks were odd looking or both? Were they near each other? Near the fence? Could something have tried to pull them through?

 

[BirdGirl2004]

You say they looked strangled to death. Because of the color of the wattles, or because their necks were odd looking or both? Were they near each other? Near the fence? Could something have tried to pull them through?

They looked strangled because of the blueness, of their combs and bodies. they were not near each other, and they also were not near the fence. There aren't really big snakes in Indiana, so I'm not so sure it was a snake!

 

[BirdGirl2004]

The thing that really got me, was that our family friend had the same thing happen to her! Could it be a disease going around?

 

[dotporter]

My first thought was poisoning. It can't be cyanide poisoning from apple trees or cherry trees. They'd be bright red, not blue. Maybe a walnut tree. But, I'd rather think rat or mouse poison. A mouse eats poison, gets into the pen and dies. Chickens eat the dead mouse.