3 dead Hens in a month....Need Help...

[willu707]

So about 3 weeks ago I went to let out our chickens, when I opened one of our two coops everyone came out except one. The Plymouth Barred Rock that didn't come out looked tired, and being a couple years old I didn't think much of it. She passed away that day, no discharge or major issues.

A week or two later my wife found one of 1+year old Giant Cochins dead outside. Again no signs leading up to this, no discharge or major issues.

Then tonight another passed away, she was just laying dead outside her coop. She was a Bhrama variety about 1+ years old.

All these times there have been no signs of issues. No major issues have shown themselves. The chickens free range our back yard where they have feed and water at all times. They were different ages, the two younger were raised and purchased together from a local feed store. The older had been raised by a girl in 4H. I'm just worried I'm going to have to cull the flock, which my wife and I do not have the heart to do. Any ideas? Internet searches have given me some random ideas such as fatty livers, an internal egg (since one had been very very broody). I'm just worried about 3 in 3 weeks

 

[willu707]

BTT. Anyone?

 

[chooks4life]

Chooks are hard to diagnose for many problems. If something striking across ages, breeds, and rearing methods was in fact responsible for the deaths (as it seems), then I would first think perhaps a virus, or secondly poisoning. Many things can contaminate their feeds, and they can ignore an environmental threat for years only to one day or month suddenly all partake of it. They can suddenly take to eating toxic plants or paint or whatever that they'd always ignored before. You're in suburbia by the sounds of it? Backyards can be utter nightmares because you don't know who, when, before you, used what, in which place; you can rest assured that in suburbia terribly persistent and damaging chemicals have been used. Some people just put them down as a matter of course around houses, fences, etc, as though grass was such an evil it warrants a greater and fatal evil.

Post mortems are great, but if you're too squeamish a vet could do it, but also I'd retrace your steps for the month before the first bird died. Did you visit anyone, did anyone visit you, or did you visit any place you could have picked up a new disease from? It doesn't have to be a place that has chickens or has recently had chickens. I've found the 'retracing steps' method invaluable often. Your memory will just adopt a constant note-taking habit once you do it a few times.

Best wishes, don't cull until you know you need to, please. It may just be stupid eating behaviours, for example they might have found styrofoam somewhere.