Dead chick.

[WillyJ]

I went out to the coop this morning and one of my new chicks that I have separate from the flock was dead and laying on it's side. With a flat look to it. It had no signs of sickness. Any ideas what might have caused this?

 

[rlbrand]

how old is it?
do you have a brooder in the coop?
is it with other chicks its age?

could be a number of things, but need more information first.

 

[WillyJ]

It was 2 months old and in a separate part of the coop with one other chick the same age. I had them attached to the main coop but separated by a wire fence so the flock could get use to them. No brooder. It's hot this time of year. High 90s but they had plenty of shade and water

 

[rlbrand]

huh... I assume the flat look is just from the other chick with it walking on it or pecking it once it was dead...

were there any signs of sickness or weakness at all in days or more prior?

What are the temps in the coop? Does it fluctuate a lot from daytime to nighttime?

 

[WillyJ]

No signs of any sickness. It stays in the mid 90's throughout the day and drops into the 80's at night. Haven't had any trouble from any of the other birds. Just want to make sure it's not some sort of sickness that could cause problems. She was fine yesterday.

 

[rlbrand]

it is odd... i guess it would have to be some sort of sickness or virus... If there were no signs leading up to it to give you an idea what it was, its hard to say if your other birds are at risk or not... Do you have a vet or anywhere near you that will test your chick for cause of death? I really sorry for your loss, and my lack of help for you.

 

[WillyJ]

No vet unfortunately but I appreciate you trying. Hopefully it was just a freak thing.