Dead hen diagnosis?

[Charles07]

My wife calls me at work this morning and tells me that when she went out to collect eggs, she found one of the hens dead in the nesting box.

She removed it from the box and went to dispose of it. She gently squeezed it and a yellowish pus-like substance oozed out of its...female orifice.

Info:

Coop is clean, water and food changed/cleaned twice daily or as needed. I changed their "sweet feed" cheap mix that the previous owner fed them to a laying mix about a week and a half ago...umm...last night we fed them cheerios and kix as a treat with a small bit of black oil sunflower seeds. Let's see what else, oh, the previous owner had a duck that thought it was a chicken, it even went so far as to attempt to mate with them, some of the feathers are missing from a few of the hens but not the one that died.

I can't think of anything else. I included as much as I could, even if it seemed trivial.

Some of my thoughts:

1. Problem with the change in diet? I have heard that some hens may die during their first laying, maybe related?

2. Problem with the egg as it was laid? Was the yellow pus or maybe yolk?

3. The sunflower seeds? They were from a fresh bag not even purchased 2 weeks ago, but maybe something in it the chicken could not tolerate?


Anything else?

 

[Charles07]

Small correction from my wife.

It was not pus-like, but more of a "discharge"

She said that the females here should know what that means.

 

[wildorchid053]

could it have been egg bound? sometimes an egg will break inside and ooze out.. the little broken pieces inside usually kill them.

 

[Charles07]

Quote:
I will go with this, unless someone else speaks up, thanks!

OK:

1. Previous owner feeds feed lacking in calcium
2. Calcium depletion, leading to egg that cannot be passed
3. Hen dies while trying to pass egg, evidenced by yellowish oozing from "ovary duct (?)"

If this is the case, I do not feel guilty at all. Yesterday, I started collecting shells for processing into calcium for the hens. I have had the birds for about a week, and surely I cannot correct everything in so short a time.

 

[chickenzoo]

Sounds like an egg/ egg production related issue. Most common in production type breeds. Just start giving them the calcium layer feed and it should help.

 

[Charles07]

Quote:
Thanks!

So far, the trend is egg related. My neighbor, the previous owner, stopped by and said "...the rooster jumped on the hen and broke an egg inside of her...it happens...".

a) egg broke inside of her from unknown cause
b) calcium deficiency translating itself into shell weakness
c) rooster broke an egg inside of her

Does that summarize the posting so far?

So:

1. Calcium added to diet to increase shell strength
2. Nothing else to add...

 

[Charles07]

Quote:
I am not discounting what has been posted so far, I am simply trying to organize my thoughts.

 

[Charles07]

And thanks again, to both of you!

 

[rancher hicks]

Have to say , You should not feel guilty, good gardne o' peas! You only had them for a week. How can you know what they've been fed or how they've been kept? I am sorry for your trouble but please don't feel guilty.

 

[Charles07]

Thanks!

I don't feel guilty. A meat/egg flock is just that. I am simply trying to be a good steward. What I can control I do, what I can't, I can't.

My biggest worry was some disease/mismanagement that I could have controlled.

One day at a time.

Thanks again for your kind words!