3 hens/6months - dying peacefully?

[meganj]

3 hens have died in the last 6 months. They look as through they are just resting/nesting but their head is down neatly in front of them, kind of like tucked under their feet. Different ages, different breeds. 1 in a dust bath spot, 1 on the floor of the coop overnight, 1 in the nesting box. I did have security footage of the one overnight and she just layed down and never got up again. No noise, no flapping, nothing. Any ideas? Could it be something they are eating in the yard free range? Maybe just natural causes? This is a total flock of 15.

 

[chooki]

How old were they?

 

[mollypectolkesler]

First off, I’m so sorry this is happening to you and your flock!
When I’ve had this happen in the past, and we had the chickens necropsied, they told us it was a type of genetic issue that affected their respiratory system and heart.

Have you noticed if their waddles are changing color at all before they pass away? Also, are they still eating in the 24 hours before they pass?

It might be beneficial for you to find out if there is anywhere you can get animals necropsied in your area. We have ours done through a local college that has a veterinary program, so it’s much cheaper and they do all types of animals. It’s less than $100 for chickens and they test for everything. We have had them do alpacas, pigs, and chickens for us in the past. We have also been able to treat our animas for issues we didn’t even know they had until a necropsy was done.

I hope you get answers quickly and best of luck going forward!

 

[Eggcessive]

What is the age of your hens? What state are you in? If you lose another, take the body, kept cold or refrigerated, in or ship it overnight via Fedex or UPS to arrive on a weekday, to your state vet lab. Here is a list of state vets to find yours:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry...L5h4Xt137GBu32pWJZSRUY5DYhQyVrd4ODmF-Ab8otocc

 

[meganj]

Thanks for the input! They were 3 and 5.
The 5 year old I know had a reproductive issue and that’s what I assumed happened (she stopped laying, grew a large comb and started crowing) but it was around 18 months after that change that she died so I wasn’t sure. The second I have nothing significant to note, she was 3, and one of the heavier in the flock but also the lowest of the pecking order. The other 5 year old was the “sister”’of the first one, same hatchery and day bought, but showed no signs of illness.

I appreciate the feedback. It is probably just some population randomness.