Anyone have any Ideas of what could cause liver damage in a hen?

[nittanyxi]

One of my hens just died from what I suspect is was liver damage or liver disease.

Does anyone know if that could be caused by something in their environment that I could change or if it is just something that chicken happend to have.

Are liver problems commen in chickens?

Aside from the fact that she fell over dead today she was healthy looking and a pretty consistent layer. 11mo. old.

 

[Imp]

Check out Lymphoid Leukosis. It hasn't been posted about alot.

http://www.welphatchery.com/poultry_health.asp

Sorry you lost one.

Imp

 

[nittanyxi]

thanks for the tip. I don't think it was that. This hen had no outward illness and was very healthy looking.

 

[kelar]

Chickens get fatty liver disease & the liver suddenly ruptures and they drop over dead. I had a necropsy done on a hen this happened to. The pathologist said it usually happens with chickens that are overweight and in full lay. Her suggestion was to watch the fat & protein content in food - not over do it with treats, such as BOSS etc. More access to exercise and greenery. I can't remember the technical name of the condition right now, but if you research fatty liver disease you will find a lot of info on it.

 

[hillbrothers eggs]

Hi,

I had a Buff Orpington die last year after a couple hour struggle. I had found her walking around outside panting and wheezing. I brought her in thinking she was egg bound because I could feel something in her belly that felt like the end of an egg. I also felt something else which I thought was another egg. I put her in a warm bath and massaged her belly. I gave her some oat mill, olive oil and some calcium. She continued to struggle until she died in my arms. I did a necropsy on her and found that she had excessive tissue that had grown around her liver. It was the size of my fist. Around this tissue was a lot of fat. That is what I felt when I pushed on her belly. All other internal organs looked good. As far as I know she was laying fine. She was our biggest and prettiest chicken. Very heavy. I never had any other test done. The fatty liver diagnosis made the most sense to me. I just had another orpington die today and I thought it might be the same thing, but after doing a necropsy, I think she was egg bound. I have pictures on my last post I did. Look up posts for firemanhill.

 

[Moxiechick]

We lost a couple of chickens in the past few months.

I had a necropsy done on one and the vet said the liver was inflamed, which is usually a sign of a toxin. We suspect that what may have happened is that water runoff from the road wasn't draining properly, due to the ground being frozen coupled with ice dams in the run. We just had a load of sand brought in and plan on building a french drain, and then putting sand in the run; as soon as it stops raining that is!

Take a careful look at your run and see if there is anyway any contamination from chemicals could inadvertently gotten into it.