2 Hens dead in less than 24 Hours!!!!

[Annie's Backyard Flock]

I returned home from vacation and all seemed well. We had had a heatwave while I was gone. (I live in S.E. PA) My grown daughter and a friend of mine did the best that could be done. If I had been home, it wouldn't have been any different. I returned (Wednesday) and within 12 hours, I noticed one of my barred rocks (1+ yrs old) was lethargic. It was hot, but not as hot as it had been. The next morning (Thursday) she was even more lethargic and weak so I brought her into the air conditioning to give her body a break. When I picked her up to put her into a cage, she "gurgled" when she was picked up. I figured her lungs were in trouble from the high heat and humidity. She stayed in, ate a little watermelon, drank a little and stayed quiet. 2am Saturday morning she past.

I've been watching the rest of the flock. No others seemed to be in trouble. I've kept everyone hydrated, fed and cool, as best as possible. Went out tonight and was missing a hen. I looked just to the side of the coop and found another dead hen, not even in rigor so it was less than 4 hours. This time it was one of my Turkens. I'm at a loss. There was no sign of ANY trouble with her today. The heat was only in the mid 80's with a dew point in the low 60's. Turkens are known for their ability to tolerate heat and are naturally disease resistant.

Neither chicken showed any sign of eye or nasal discharge. Turken even laid an egg today. I'm very nervous now for the rest of the flock seeing I don't know the cause. We have another heatwave coming starting Monday until Wednesday. At a loss as to what has happened and what to do.

Thinking of:
*power washing the inside of the coop
*disinfecting everything
*trying to find an antibiotic, broad spectrum, of some kind in case it's a bacteria infection. (not my favorite option)

I really have no other thoughts. Please chime in with anything I can do before I lose any more.

 

[questions543]

Im so sorry.. I dont know what to do but I just lost my first favourite chick today to coccidiosis Itried everything I could and she still could'nt make it

)

 

[CMV]

Well, the first two options can't hurt. They are a lot of work for you, but if you are willing and able to do it then go right ahead. I don't like the third option because you have no idea what you may be treating for. Antibiotics carry their own risks that are not to be discounted. Using them is a risk vs. benefits endeavor, but you have no clear evidence that there will even be any benefit.

I like to look at the most obvious problems first and work from there. You are assuming the heat is to blame, but you said that the heat had already subsided when the birds died and at least one of the birds was particularly heat tolerant. That says to me that the heat was not the issue. And if it was, it was only a factor and not the cause. Have your birds been checked for bugs and worms lately? Those are the most obvious culprits. They would leave a bird open to the effects of stress (heat).

 

[Nigellas]

could it be MG?
http://www.ruleworks.co.uk/poultry/M-Gallisepticum.htm

 

[FlyHigher]

Is it Newcastle disease？

 

[rbaker0345]

In this weather, its probably coccidiosis. Look for diarrhea, especially bloody diarrhea. It may be black, digested blood or red, frank blood. You could rule coccidiosis out by bringing a fecal sample to your vet and asking them to run a fecal flotation. I would take a sampling of fresh poo from each chicken and mix it. You may have to follow them around. Even a small animal vet that doesn't see chickens should have no problem looking at their poo. Coccidia and worm eggs in chickens look the same under the microscope as they do in dogs and cats. My dogs vet charges me $17 to run a fecal and that is money well spent in order not to just be throwing random treatments and antibiotics at them. If there is nothing in the fecal, then you can narrow it down to mycoplasmosis or a bacterial Upper Respiratory Infection. These can be treated with confidence with a broad spectrum abx. If you find that you are treating for an URI, you can help them by making a mash of some kohl crop greens like broccoli rabe or kale, some garlic, olive oil, cumin, red pepper flakes (a little) and vanilla wafers. The garlic and olive oil are both antibacterial and the greens supply vitamin C and beta carotene which support the health of mucous membranes, the cumin and red pepper help to clear sinuses.

 

[FlyHigher]

Well, if it's coccidiosis, then the best medicine will be "Toltrazuril".

 

[Annie's Backyard Flock]

Thank you all for your input. Unfortunately, we are heading into another heatwave starting tomorrow and they've upped the temp to 100 plus with a heat index above 105. Thinking I may bring the whole lot into the A/C.

I checked everyone for parasites and found nothing; mites, red spiders, flees, etc. Stools run the normal gambit. No bloody stools were found anywhere in the coop, run, or yard.

I really examined the 2nd hen that passed and found something interesting. She had had a prolapse 9 months ago, with no repeat in the problem since. However, when I fully examined her, she seemed to have part of her innards hanging out out. I'm thinking the 2 deaths are unrelated. The first was definitely from the heat. The second may have been from a previous issue that happened again with dire consequences. She had been on the nest during the day and I assumed she laid an egg but had complications I didn't notice. The whole flock is acting fine. I'm still scrubbing down everything I can to make sure I haven't missed anything.

It is just disconcerting to go without any loss and have 2 in 24 hours. I expected it over our bitter winter, but fortunately didn't have any loss. I probably shouldn't have tested fate when I mentioned I had had no winter loss, and have seemed to win the gender lottery with each new chick batch. I haven't a roo in my chicks only hens. That will teach me to keep my mouth shut.

I'm going to see what the next few days bring. I have to be careful of whom I ask for help seeing it is unclear if my borough allows chickens. So, taking stool sample to the vets is kind of the last resort for me. If I can figure it out myself, I can keep having my hens. If I inform anyone, I may lose them all anyway. A little bit of a "balancing act" here. I actually can have a horse on my property, because I'm in horse country, but hens are looked "down upon" by the uninformed town officials.

So, again, thank you all for your ideas. I will take them all and try to solve this dilemma. Stay cool, if you're in the path of this new heat coming.