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- #1
- Jan 2, 2012
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Hello all,
I am brand new to the forum after searching for an answer to the cause of my rooster's death. He is a 5 or 6 year old bantam who has always been healthy to my knowledge. He lived at my boyfriend's house with various hens over the years, and came to live with us about 6 months ago. He lives with 2 bantam hens, 2 hens of different breeds (not really up on breeds), and a mallard duck. He was crowing as usual this morning, a hen sounded like she was laying an egg, and the duck was quacking away. It was a little noisy, but didn't sound out of the ordinary. I was in bed when this started and took a quick drive before checking on the birds. The first thing that I noticed was that one of the hens and the duck were out of the coop (not too unusual), then after putting them back in I noticed the dead rooster and that the bantam hens were missing. The rooster was on the ground just a few feet outside the coop sort of on his side with his wing outstretched, eyes closed, and a small amount af blood in and around his mouth. When I picked him up he was still very warm, and seemed to be holding on to the grass beneath his feet. There are no visible injuries, just the blood around his mouth, a very small amount of blood on the feathers around his head, and a small amount of blood on one foot. His neck is bent slightly, but I think that is because he was on his side.
There is a neighborhood dog who is walked without a leash who has come through our yard before and got one of the bantam hens, but she ended up being fine. The dog is my main concern, but no one here witnessed an attack and there was no unusual noise. My first thought was dog attack with internal bleeding, but would he have died so quickly? Do you think the dog would have any injury to his face since the rooster has blood on this foot? Could this be from natural causes or self-inflicted? Also, if the dog is a suspect, any advice on dealing with that issue or confronting the owner?
Our rooster was a true pet and member of our family, and we are reeling from the loss. It's easier for me to cope with a death when I know why it happened, so any advice or related experience will be greatly appreciated. Thank you all!
I am brand new to the forum after searching for an answer to the cause of my rooster's death. He is a 5 or 6 year old bantam who has always been healthy to my knowledge. He lived at my boyfriend's house with various hens over the years, and came to live with us about 6 months ago. He lives with 2 bantam hens, 2 hens of different breeds (not really up on breeds), and a mallard duck. He was crowing as usual this morning, a hen sounded like she was laying an egg, and the duck was quacking away. It was a little noisy, but didn't sound out of the ordinary. I was in bed when this started and took a quick drive before checking on the birds. The first thing that I noticed was that one of the hens and the duck were out of the coop (not too unusual), then after putting them back in I noticed the dead rooster and that the bantam hens were missing. The rooster was on the ground just a few feet outside the coop sort of on his side with his wing outstretched, eyes closed, and a small amount af blood in and around his mouth. When I picked him up he was still very warm, and seemed to be holding on to the grass beneath his feet. There are no visible injuries, just the blood around his mouth, a very small amount of blood on the feathers around his head, and a small amount of blood on one foot. His neck is bent slightly, but I think that is because he was on his side.
There is a neighborhood dog who is walked without a leash who has come through our yard before and got one of the bantam hens, but she ended up being fine. The dog is my main concern, but no one here witnessed an attack and there was no unusual noise. My first thought was dog attack with internal bleeding, but would he have died so quickly? Do you think the dog would have any injury to his face since the rooster has blood on this foot? Could this be from natural causes or self-inflicted? Also, if the dog is a suspect, any advice on dealing with that issue or confronting the owner?
Our rooster was a true pet and member of our family, and we are reeling from the loss. It's easier for me to cope with a death when I know why it happened, so any advice or related experience will be greatly appreciated. Thank you all!
