Oh the Possibilities!!!!!!!!!! While I cannot offer you a solution I can offer you some food for thoughts.
BTW I am west of you Middle TN. and have experienced two of my quail dieing, but about two weeks apart. Similar symptoms. No weasel. I changed feeds and it stopped.
I would strongly consider caging your birds and isolating the one you mention that is acting sick just in case it is Coccidia. Coccidia will kill within 2 or 3 days once it starts. I strongly believe because it dehydrates. Sterilize the containers with Ammonia as chlorine will not have any effect, but since you said there are no symptoms of such, use some bleach to clean the containers afterwords as well. Together the fumes are Toxic so don't mix. Coccidia can live in the ground for a very long time laying dormant.
Ponds are almost always contaminated with something bad. If its not the local farmers water supply for refilling the insecticide tanks, it could be accidental run off from a neighboring farmer or your own insecticides, maybe cleaning water source for that empty poison bucket or dead animal that fell. In saying that, Keep in mind that a pond is a water source for ALL wildlife and not an isolated water sourcee. Any of all wildlife and/or tame domesticated animals could be carrying a disease and contaminate the water supply for other animals. Just because one animal is immune does not mean it cant still be transferred to other animals if the water is contaminated. In saying that there are different strains of Coccidia for foul and Canines that do not seem to transfer.
The opossum is a baffling twist to the story and I am just wondering if it is just coincidental (maybe, maybe not). But I would not even consider the goats as their reputation is that they can eat or drink anything and keep going. Maybe because they have four stomachs. Still the story you told reminds me of the old story about DDT insecticide. It did not kill, but effected the eggs through the food chain causing them to be deformed or thin walled eggs and never hatch. The key word being FOOD CHAIN. DDT used to be used in gardens.
The Bug would eat the vegetable that had the DDT on it, a bird would eat the insect, the predator would eat the bird. All offspring would be deformed or DOA, thus ending the future populations In addition, the rains would come in and wash the DDT into the ground or creeks and also have the effect underground insects as well as some fish eggs.Fish eating the insects as well.
In such exasperated story, such may be the case with you using insecticides on the Jap Beatles or contaminated water source. Poor water is bad for birds in the first place. Fresh water is always recommended.
Still 1-2 birds dieing per day does sound Hinky and too consistently coincidental. Almost like a mink is getting them. Minks will bite and suck blood not eat. Sometimes they will rip the throats, other times bite like a vampire. Since you said there are no mutilations, look for punctures on the neck area. Still you mentioned a specific age group, so unless the predator is finding them an easy prey I doubt that any predator would be so selective.Mind you minks are not the only predator that can kill without obvious evidence. Poisonous snakes can bite out of defense if the chickens are attacking them. Since you have them in the barn, such might be another possibility. Ours used to attack snakes and eat them. Remember a Chicken is a carnivorous as well as a herbivorous.
I am not much on round worms and other parasites.
In my last mention of another possibility, you mentioned your feed. Such could be molded or if you are buying planting corn, sorghum, Millet..... and such from a coop it may have insecticides on it as it is used during planting. If so, Find a feed mill, or buy the commercial feed for the birds.
Hope this helped in some way.
BTW I am west of you Middle TN. and have experienced two of my quail dieing, but about two weeks apart. Similar symptoms. No weasel. I changed feeds and it stopped.
I would strongly consider caging your birds and isolating the one you mention that is acting sick just in case it is Coccidia. Coccidia will kill within 2 or 3 days once it starts. I strongly believe because it dehydrates. Sterilize the containers with Ammonia as chlorine will not have any effect, but since you said there are no symptoms of such, use some bleach to clean the containers afterwords as well. Together the fumes are Toxic so don't mix. Coccidia can live in the ground for a very long time laying dormant.
Ponds are almost always contaminated with something bad. If its not the local farmers water supply for refilling the insecticide tanks, it could be accidental run off from a neighboring farmer or your own insecticides, maybe cleaning water source for that empty poison bucket or dead animal that fell. In saying that, Keep in mind that a pond is a water source for ALL wildlife and not an isolated water sourcee. Any of all wildlife and/or tame domesticated animals could be carrying a disease and contaminate the water supply for other animals. Just because one animal is immune does not mean it cant still be transferred to other animals if the water is contaminated. In saying that there are different strains of Coccidia for foul and Canines that do not seem to transfer.
The opossum is a baffling twist to the story and I am just wondering if it is just coincidental (maybe, maybe not). But I would not even consider the goats as their reputation is that they can eat or drink anything and keep going. Maybe because they have four stomachs. Still the story you told reminds me of the old story about DDT insecticide. It did not kill, but effected the eggs through the food chain causing them to be deformed or thin walled eggs and never hatch. The key word being FOOD CHAIN. DDT used to be used in gardens.
The Bug would eat the vegetable that had the DDT on it, a bird would eat the insect, the predator would eat the bird. All offspring would be deformed or DOA, thus ending the future populations In addition, the rains would come in and wash the DDT into the ground or creeks and also have the effect underground insects as well as some fish eggs.Fish eating the insects as well.
In such exasperated story, such may be the case with you using insecticides on the Jap Beatles or contaminated water source. Poor water is bad for birds in the first place. Fresh water is always recommended.
Still 1-2 birds dieing per day does sound Hinky and too consistently coincidental. Almost like a mink is getting them. Minks will bite and suck blood not eat. Sometimes they will rip the throats, other times bite like a vampire. Since you said there are no mutilations, look for punctures on the neck area. Still you mentioned a specific age group, so unless the predator is finding them an easy prey I doubt that any predator would be so selective.Mind you minks are not the only predator that can kill without obvious evidence. Poisonous snakes can bite out of defense if the chickens are attacking them. Since you have them in the barn, such might be another possibility. Ours used to attack snakes and eat them. Remember a Chicken is a carnivorous as well as a herbivorous.
I am not much on round worms and other parasites.
In my last mention of another possibility, you mentioned your feed. Such could be molded or if you are buying planting corn, sorghum, Millet..... and such from a coop it may have insecticides on it as it is used during planting. If so, Find a feed mill, or buy the commercial feed for the birds.
Hope this helped in some way.
