2 roosters dead

[21hens-incharge]

A different thought......

I had a group of birds that got spooked by a fox checking the perimeter of the run. I couldn't find one bird. I looked for an hour for any sign of her.
I found her alive and rather stuck under the nest boxes only because her buddy kept looking under them. Only the ends of my boxes had a gap. The front had a 2x6 on edge to hold it up. Lucky for my girl they were not screwed to the wall.
There were several areas the Fox had tried to dig under to get in the run.

What I am saying is extreme fright could have caused them to hide there.

 

[BriaS]

I am old school, and perhaps sometimes overly concerned, but my rule of thumb is to never let my animals run out of water. Considering your heat, and the fact that they are drinking their water dry, I would certainly consider other options for water.

It's great that you change their water twice a day, but my approach was to put in a metal 3 gallon waterer which I only have to refill about once every 10 days. I do check it twice a day, and clean it out if needed, but my 10 chicks take about 10 days to drink it down. I also have a feed pan with water in it out in the chicken run. That I dump and clean out more often, but I always make sure there is water in that too.

Water is fundamental to all animals, and it's the first thing I would consider if you don't find any other obvious signs of attack. Especially since you are having a heat wave. Best wishes.

I’m not sure if it is allowed or appropriate to post pictures of the dead cockerels but I can if that would help. It seems like you’re right though. I need to figure out a better way to water them daily.

 

[BriaS]

Well It has been hot here too, and i have to check on my birds several times a day, cause i am just very paranoid. The birds were pretty young, maybe a snake got in there and killed them? There would not be any external injuries if that's the case. How big is the netting? A chicken snake could of very well got in there and killed them and left the bodies. I have had that happen to me on occasion. Just a thought of course, if that's not the case then i would probably say they overheated or got dehydrated. Sometimes shade is not always enough. I found that on the really really hot days, i'll mist my chickens or use a shower hose on them to cool them off. I have even gone as far as putting them in cool water up to their bellies to help cool them off and just splash them over some. I am home all day so i got the time to do this, some do not. But it is a suggestion. Chickens are sensitive on their feet so maybe putting a pan of water that is not that deep will help them because i have watched my chickens just stand in a pan of water to cool themselves.

I can post a picture of the coop and the chickens if that would give a better idea of it. I have been trying to get them in the sprinkler frequently but they didn’t really like it. I think I need to get a larger water container so they don’t run out as frequently. But the older hens I’ve had for over a year and they have a similar set up. A snake is a huge possibility. I once found a small hole about a half inch around in the netting and it could’ve been from a snake. Also I used to see mice but not anymore so the snakes could be eating the mice too.

 

[gtaus]

I’m not sure if it is allowed or appropriate to post pictures of the dead cockerels but I can if that would help. It seems like you’re right though. I need to figure out a better way to water them daily.

People post pictures of necropsies they perform on their dead birds. I'm not an expert on chickens, but maybe a picture would help someone else if you notice anything strange. Especially if there was an attack. I would not worry about posting a picture of a dead bird. At worst, you could always delete in an edit if needed. I have yet to see a picture removed.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Even cutting a milk jug in half will work for water.

While you work on getting a bigger waterer for them get some milk jugs out there.

I use dog water dishes that cost like $5 each and last for many years. Yes even when water has frozen in them.

https://www.jefferspet.com/products...MIm52VibqN5AIVErvsCh30QA1lEAQYBCABEgLLZfD_BwE

Well look at that....even cheaper than my local store!

 

[BriaS]

Even cutting a milk jug in half will work for water.

While you work on getting a bigger waterer for them get some milk jugs out there.

I use dog water dishes that cost like $5 each and last for many years. Yes even when water has frozen in them.

https://www.jefferspet.com/products...MIm52VibqN5AIVErvsCh30QA1lEAQYBCABEgLLZfD_BwE

Well look at that....even cheaper than my local store!

That’s what I use lol! Not that exact one but I’ve always used dog bowls

 

[AmyJane725]

I know I’ll likely need to get another one since he’s used to being with the other two.

I wouldn't advise getting any more cockerels. They'll just end up fighting.

 

[BriaS]

People post pictures of necropsies they perform on their dead birds. I'm not an expert on chickens, but maybe a picture would help someone else if you notice anything strange. Especially if there was an attack. I would not worry about posting a picture of a dead bird. At worst, you could always delete in an edit if needed. I have yet to see a picture removed.

Coop for reference

 

[BriaS]

A different thought......

I had a group of birds that got spooked by a fox checking the perimeter of the run. I couldn't find one bird. I looked for an hour for any sign of her.
I found her alive and rather stuck under the nest boxes only because her buddy kept looking under them. Only the ends of my boxes had a gap. The front had a 2x6 on edge to hold it up. Lucky for my girl they were not screwed to the wall.
There were several areas the Fox had tried to dig under to get in the run.

What I am saying is extreme fright could have caused them to hide there.

Looking at the coop I realize how easy it would be to dig under.

 

[BriaS]

I wouldn't advise getting any more cockerels. They'll just end up fighting.

Do you think he’ll be fine alone? I’ve kept the males separate from the females because of the fighting. The were attacking the hens but not each other which is weird.