Dead chickens

[Nikki4049]

Hi I had a flock of 11 chickens, over the past 5 months 5 have died. They are dying at a rate of 1 per month they seem to get a little lethargic a few days before they die however they are still in good body condition. Any help would be appreciated I want to add more to the flock but scared or more dying

 

[rebrascora]

Hi and welcome to BYC
I'm sorry you are having such a sad time with your flock at the moment.

I think we will need a lot more information to have any idea of what might be going on but to be honest the most sensible thing would be to send one off for a necropsy. State agricultural departments (if you are in the USA) usually have a diagnostics lab and the cost is often subsidised for poultry, so it is a much cheaper option than going through a private veterinary practice and in some states it is even free! You need to refrigerate the bird (not freeze) as soon after death as possible and then arrange delivery to the lab.

You are right to be wary of adding any new ones until you know what you are dealing with.

Useful information would be....How old are they? How long have you had them and where did you get them? What do you feed them (including main feed and treats)? What breed(s) are they? What does their poop look like when they get sick? Have you checked them over for any signs of injury or abnormal swelling? Have you checked their crop function when they get sick? Do they still eat when they are sick?
Where in the world are you? It helps if you include this info on your profile page, so that we can see at a glance each time you post. Some diseases are more prevalent in different parts of the world and during different seasons and medication is branded differently in some countries so it helps to know roughly where you are..... country and nearest city is enough. What have you tried treating them with when they get lethargic? Have you considered cutting one of the dead ones open yourself to see if you can find anything wrong? .... I appreciate not everyone has the stomach for it but it can be interesting and surprisingly informative, even without any medical training.