Backyard Chickens Keep Dying

[Siliquini72]

Over the last few weeks we have lost 3 chickens .I dont see any ill symptoms . Any help would be great !

 

[realsis]

I'm so sorry for your losses! You don't see ANY symptoms or clues as to what might be happining? Any slight difference in behavior? Chickens can be very good at hiding illness. Did you notice any slowing down? Any depression or lethergie? They're are so many possible causes it would be impossible to guess without some clue or hint as to their behavior. what you CAN do is have a body tested at a lab or school then you will know without doubt what caused their deaths. I can ask is there anything posion they might could have gotten into in the yard? Like I said without some clues its so vast the possibility its really impossible to guess. Sorry I couldn't be of more help. Best wishes

 

[casportpony]

Over the last few weeks we have lost 3 chickens .I dont see any ill symptoms . Any help would be great !

If you live in the US or Canada there are many places that will do free or low cost necropsies on backyard flocks.

-Kathy

 

[Siliquini72]

They seem to be acting normal My original chickens are about 2 years old and the one just died last night . the rest i have had about a year and they where the ones that where dying . The only thing is they have been barley laying i went from 9-11 eggs a day down to maybe 2-3 a day out of 11 chickens now im down to 5 chickens . And just about a egg a day .

 

[cafarmgirl]

Have you checked them all very carefully for lice/mites and are they on a regular deworming schedule? Internal and external parasites can cause loss of weight and general body condition as well as lowered egg production, anemia and eventually death. Those are always the first things I consider and then go on from there. The possibilities are many however so a necropsy as mentioned is worthwhile if you want to know an exact cause.

As far as decreased laying though, it's also that time of year. When the days get shorter laying decreases and older hens often stop completely until spring unless artificial lighting is added.

 

[Siliquini72]

I have never done any deworming how would i go about this? Also i have never checked for lice or mites but i will do this when i get home today im still pretty new we have had them about 2 years with no problems . But i guess its time to start educating myself somemore

 

[Siliquini72]

Im picking up 5 more tomorrow i was going to use a old rabbit cage to keep them in for a while to stay away from the rest of the flock to make sure everyhting is ok .

 

[cafarmgirl]

A couple of good dewormers are Valbazen or liguid Safeguard goat dewormer. Dose is .5 ml for standard size birds, .25 for bantams, repeat the dose in 10 days. How often you deworm depends on your climate. Warm/wet climate = more parasites, cooler and/or dryer = fewer parasites in the environment. I live in central CA, it's hot and dry here from late spring to late fall. I deworm twice a year in late fall and again in late spring.

 

[appps]

Also for about $20 you can take a stool sample to your vet and they can check for worms under the microscope. Considering the rate they are dropping and that you just bought new ones it may be $20 well spent so if it isn't worms you can keep looking for another cause.

If it is worms it isn't a total waste of money as it will tell you exactly what type so you can target them with the correct treatment for type.

 

[casportpony]

Many vets in the US won't look at a fecal sample unless you bring your bird in, which makes it way too expensive for me, plus it's possible to get false negatives, so when in doub I worm, lol.

-Kathy