Bantam Rooster died out of nowhere

[Cheems]

So this morning, my black japanese bantam died out of no where. He was around 3 and a half months old I believe, somewhere around there. He seemed to have passed in his sleep and as far as im aware, he didnt have any signs of being attacked, or anything. I am devastated and I loved that rooster so much, by far my favorite chicken. I dont want to do an autopsy. I have lost chickens in the past, but this guy was such a sweet rooster and he meant a lot to me. I just wanted to ask to see if anyone knows why this could have happened, if there are things about japanese bantams that could cause this, or anything that I should know. I have another black japanese bantam, this one is a hen, should I be concerned about her safety? Only recent or different things that happened are we started introducing them to some young lavender orpingtons around a month old to them.

 

[nrs3]

I have never dealt with East Asian or Bantam varieties of chickens, so take my words with a grain of salt. I have had two roosters (a father and son) pass away from what I am fairly sure were heart attacks. From what I can tell, heart attacks can happen suddenly and without a real reason. By any chance was the rooster’s face purple when you found him? Im not completely sure if this happens only when they have heart attacks, (as I have only ever lost chickens to heart problems) but it is a place to start.

 

[Cheems]

I have never dealt with East Asian or Bantam varieties of chickens, so take my words with a grain of salt. I have had two roosters (a father and son) pass away from what I am fairly sure were heart attacks. From what I can tell, heart attacks can happen suddenly and without a real reason. By any chance was the rooster’s face purple when you found him? Im not completely sure if this happens only when they have heart attacks, (as I have only ever lost chickens to heart problems) but it is a place to start.

His comb was black/purple

 

[nrs3]

His comb was black/purple

In that case your poor rooster probably had heart failure, indicated by how blood could not pickup oxygen without the pumping of the heart and therefore went the standard purple-blue color.

 

[Cheems]

In that case your poor rooster probably had heart failure, indicated by how blood could not pickup oxygen without the pumping of the heart and therefore went the standard purple-blue color.

ah, ok, thank you for letting me know, do you or anyone think there could be any cause for this? Like perhaps a diet type issue, or is it pretty random

 

[Cheems]

Do you think it could be genetic perhaps? I just got this rooster from tractor supply

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry for your loss. It would be impossible to tell what killed your young cockerel without having your state vet perform a necropsy and testing. I think most chickens will have a black or dark comb with death, just as humans are cyanotic from lack of oxygen to the tissues. Have you ever had another chicken die under a year old before?

 

[nrs3]

ah, ok, thank you for letting me know, do you or anyone think there could be any cause for this? Like perhaps a diet type issue, or is it pretty random

For me it was pretty random. I don’t know if it’s a rooster thing, but I’ve heard of people also loosing hens. My only assumption is that our father rooster passed on to his son. I don’t think it really has anything to do with diet, as the chickens likely aren’t eating poisons (they’re pretty good at sussing out what will kill them) and their food isn’t artery clogging fat.

 

[Cheems]

Sorry for your loss. It would be impossible to tell what killed your young cockerel without having your state vet perform a necropsy and testing. I think most chickens will have a black or dark comb with death, just as humans are cyanotic from lack of oxygen to the tissues. Have you ever had another chicken die under a year old before?

I have never had a chicken die under a year old before, unless your talking about chicks that had just hatched, ive had around 1-2 die around when they first hatch from eggs unfortunately

 

[Weeg]

I agreed with @Eggcessive, there is no way to know what happened unless you send him in for a necropsy.
Most all chickens have purple/darker colored faces and combs after death. Its a normal thing and doesn't necessary show a specific disease.

Do you feed any treats? If so, how often and how much? What type of feed do you feed them?