Did my chicken freeze to death?

[elmo]

Quote:
Yes, respiratory problems are likely long term but dropping dead suddenly off the roost doesn't really sound to me like a respiratory problem from ammonia, with no prior respiratory symptoms.

 

[geoff40]

I am in central NH too. Your bird didn't freeze, trust me. Mine are out in a small coop and they are doing fine. As was said, sometimes they just die an you will never find out why. Similar to fish in a tank. As long as the rest are doing well and show no signs of illness, just go with it.
Don't turn on the heat. You'll likely do more harm than good.

 

[crazyhen]

When hens begin to lay or about to is a very hard time on their bodies. If anything is not right they can die suddenly. Cold , I do not think will hurt them. They have a down linner under those feathers. So sorry for your loss.

Gloria jean

 

[xyresicchick]

Check the food for mold, or food that may have gotten wet and stuck together. Bad food can kill quick.... within a matter of hours. I've lost a few from bad feed.

 

[goldtopper]

Cut her open and see if she was an internal layer. Sometimes you just gotta find out. It'll look like cooked egg all throughout her oviduct.

 

[coltmiller]

6 of my chickens were found dead this morning. The 3 left are not laying yet. My kids tripped over the cord and did not realize that they killed the light in the chicken coop. The weird thing is they were found dead in the chicken run and not in the coop. They had no visible marks.

Did they freeze to death? There has been 3 days of mid to lower teens. For Columbus GA this is really cold. We were having a hard time keeping thier water from freezing.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

What breeds are they?
Have you been keeping them in a warm building?
What is the light in the coop for? They need a dark period.
If they've been acclimated to winter, there's no way low teens can kill a chicken.
It's been down to minus teens here and I have a bit of frostbite on roosters combs but I'd be shocked if any died.

If I had 6 chickens die overnight, I'd definitely get a necropsy. I'd suspect poison, botulism or if your coop is closed up, ammonia poisoning.
Check their feed for mold.

 

[Hokum Coco]

Did my chicken freeze to death? NO!

What else could have happened last night? Too many possibilities to list! It could have been just poor genetics. Loss is part of keeping any animal you must except that from the get go or you are setting yourself up for heartache.

Experienced chicken owners cull these birds at first glance. Sounds to me your birds are pampered and your birds are laying which means everything is right in their world.

I think you may have noticed this bird not as vocal and active as the rest and suspected things were not right with her the last few days. That window of opportunity is the only chance you may have had in saving her.

In most cases as harsh as it sounds most times you are better off just culling her when you examine her and ruled out treatable illnesses or conditions.

We were getting 5-8 eggs daily (not all of the hens had started laying yet), including one hen that appears to be laying rubbery eggs that break on a daily basis.That is normal with hens at the beginning and near the end of their laying cycle it should fix itself hopefully or again just poor genetics. I think you know what experienced owners would do.

 

[Hokum Coco]

6 of my chickens were found dead this morning. The 3 left are not laying yet. My kids tripped over the cord and did not realize that they killed the light in the chicken coop. The 3 left were in the coop? The weird thing is they were found dead in the chicken run and not in the coop. They had no visible marks. Maybe a weasel they kill just for sport look for a neck bite.

Did they freeze to death?No There has been 3 days of mid to lower teens. For Columbus GA this is really cold. We were having a hard time keeping thier water from freezing Canada -40º no heat or light in coop.