Found my favourite chicken...dead on the coop floor this morning. :(

[Verl]

I'm not sure what happened to her.. one other girl was standing over top of her sprawled out body clucking telling me something was wrong.
she was acting weird the other day and was crouched down on the ground while the other hens pecked at seeds in the ground...normally she would be all over food... and i noticed her vent seemed dirty.
any ideas what could have been wrong? should i do a deep clean in the coop now?

i feed them a layer pellet, and use a mix of straw and pine shavings in a deep litter inside the coop. and they free range all day. i was out most of yesterday so didnt really see them much to notice how this one hen was acting.

 

[LJoWilly]

I miss so sorry for your loss

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

Greetings Verl,

So sorry that happened, today of all days.

Sounds like she was sick for a while. If her vent was dirty, she most likely had diarrhea. When a chicken has constant diarrhea, it will deplete them of strength. Then, what ever was causing it: virus, bacterial, or even a heavy worm load, will overwhelm the chicken's immune system.

At this point, only a necropsy will reveal the exact cause of death. Many keepers, do send the body out to a Vet or state lab for this.

Don't panic, just check the run and coop to see if there is any diarrhea droppings from the other chickens. If not, yes, I would still clean out all the old bedding and spay the coop with bleach water or other safe disinfectant. Then, put all fresh bedding. Also, clean up any droppings in the run. Worst case scenario, if it was infectious, the others have been exposed. So, just be vigilant for the next two weeks, to see if any are showing symptoms of illness.

If you need advice, post again, and the members of BYC will be here for you. I myself, do check my BYC Alerts 2-3 times a day.

God Bless, and welcome to BYC!

 

[Verl]

Greetings Verl,

So sorry that happened, today of all days.

Sounds like she was sick for a while. If her vent was dirty, she most likely had diarrhea. When a chicken has constant diarrhea, it will deplete them of strength. Then, what ever was causing it: virus, bacterial, or even a heavy worm load, will overwhelm the chicken's immune system.

At this point, only a necropsy will reveal the exact cause of death. Many keepers, do send the body out to a Vet or state lab for this.

Don't panic, just check the run and coop to see if there is any diarrhea droppings from the other chickens. If not, yes, I would still clean out all the old bedding and spay the coop with bleach water or other safe disinfectant. Then, put all fresh bedding. Also, clean up any droppings in the run. Worst case scenario, if it was infectious, the others have been exposed. So, just be vigilant for the next two weeks, to see if any are showing symptoms of illness.

If you need advice, post again, and the members of BYC will be here for you. I myself, do check my BYC Alerts 2-3 times a day.

God Bless, and welcome to BYC!

View attachment 1193938

Thank you ❤ yes she has always been a bit slower than the other girls.. .I got her 5 months ago and she was a year and a half then. Not that she was sick that long but it wouldn't surprise me if she has been sick for a week or two. shoot. I feel so bad. I am new to all this. I have a dewormer ...should I add to their water just in case?

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Thank you ❤ yes she has always been a bit slower than the other girls.. .I got her 5 months ago and she was a year and a half then. Not that she was sick that long but it wouldn't surprise me if she has been sick for a week or two. shoot. I feel so bad. I am new to all this. I have a dewormer ...should I add to their water just in case?

Hi, welcome to BYC and happy Thanksgiving!

Sorry for you loss.

I would NOT worm without getting a fecal float ($15 at my vet, doesn't have to be avian) first to determine if you even need to but also what species you should be treating for since not all meds treat all worms and treating for what you don't have while not treating what you do is a waste of time, money, and a drain on the birds system. In addition if you worm a bird that's already under the weather and that isn't their issue it can simply make them worse. Worming DOES tax the system.

Have you ever checked for lice, mites, or other parasites?

What breeds? Some birds will do better on a higher protein feed than layer. Especially if they are heavier bodied breeds like Rock, Marans, Wyandotte. Especially during molt... feathers are made of 90% protein and the amino acids that make it up. That is why they stop laying during molt in order to put their energy toward growing feathers. Very often when a lady is weakened by molting is when illness will try to get her.

What do you feed, including treats and supplements? Free range? How many bird for how much coop/run space?

Chickens being prey animals will hide any pain or illness as long as they possibly can or it makes them look like an easy target. Sometimes their own flock will even off them, nature is brutal. She may have had something bugging her for much longer than you realize. But you can't blame yourself. Being familiar with your flock and noticing smaller clues will come with time if you pay attention.

Hopefully you won't have anymore loss. If you do, I highly recommend getting a necropsy do determine if you have something ongoing. It requires the body to be refrigerated. Links for that..

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-to-send-a-bird-for-a-necropsy-pictures.799747/

https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/nahln/downloads/all_nahln_lab_list.pdf

And a symptom checker tool to help narrow down possibilities of future illness...
http://www.poultrydvm.com/symptoms

You don't have to feel bad. It's a learning process for all of us! At least you have BYC now. It's been such a helpful, useful, and caring community. My chicken life has been made so much more whole with all the people willing to share the challenges they face and solutions.

Hope the rest of your flock continues to thrive!

Also hope you have a happy Thanksgiving!

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry for your loss. Some common problems that hens over a year and a half can suffer from are crop problems (sour or impacted crop,) internal laying, or egg yolk peritonitis. Diarrhea can be a symptom with many problems--egg peritonitis, intestinal diseases, crop problems, and respiratory diseases.If she hasn't been molting, and not been laying recently, I would suspect an internal laying problem. The best way to get a diagnosis is to let the state vet or poultry lab do a necropsy. Some people do simple ones at home to look at internal organs, and can sometimes tell what was wrong.

 

[Verl]

Sorry for your loss. Some common problems that hens over a year and a half can suffer from are crop problems (sour or impacted crop,) internal laying, or egg yolk peritonitis. Diarrhea can be a symptom with many problems--egg peritonitis, intestinal diseases, crop problems, and respiratory diseases.If she hasn't been molting, and not been laying recently, I would suspect an internal laying problem. The best way to get a diagnosis is to let the state vet or poultry lab do a necropsy. Some people do simple ones at home to look at internal organs, and can sometimes tell what was wrong.[/QUOT

Aw thank you! I am in Canada, but

Sorry for your loss. Some common problems that hens over a year and a half can suffer from are crop problems (sour or impacted crop,) internal laying, or egg yolk peritonitis. Diarrhea can be a symptom with many problems--egg peritonitis, intestinal diseases, crop problems, and respiratory diseases.If she hasn't been molting, and not been laying recently, I would suspect an internal laying problem. The best way to get a diagnosis is to let the state vet or poultry lab do a necropsy. Some people do simple ones at home to look at internal organs, and can sometimes tell what was wrong.

Hi, welcome to BYC and happy Thanksgiving!

Sorry for you loss.

I would NOT worm without getting a fecal float ($15 at my vet, doesn't have to be avian) first to determine if you even need to but also what species you should be treating for since not all meds treat all worms and treating for what you don't have while not treating what you do is a waste of time, money, and a drain on the birds system. In addition if you worm a bird that's already under the weather and that isn't their issue it can simply make them worse. Worming DOES tax the system.

Have you ever checked for lice, mites, or other parasites?

What breeds? Some birds will do better on a higher protein feed than layer. Especially if they are heavier bodied breeds like Rock, Marans, Wyandotte. Especially during molt... feathers are made of 90% protein and the amino acids that make it up. That is why they stop laying during molt in order to put their energy toward growing feathers. Very often when a lady is weakened by molting is when illness will try to get her.

What do you feed, including treats and supplements? Free range? How many bird for how much coop/run space?

Chickens being prey animals will hide any pain or illness as long as they possibly can or it makes them look like an easy target. Sometimes their own flock will even off them, nature is brutal. She may have had something bugging her for much longer than you realize. But you can't blame yourself. Being familiar with your flock and noticing smaller clues will come with time if you pay attention.

Hopefully you won't have anymore loss. If you do, I highly recommend getting a necropsy do determine if you have something ongoing. It requires the body to be refrigerated. Links for that..

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-to-send-a-bird-for-a-necropsy-pictures.799747/

https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/nahln/downloads/all_nahln_lab_list.pdf

And a symptom checker tool to help narrow down possibilities of future illness...
http://www.poultrydvm.com/symptoms

You don't have to feel bad. It's a learning process for all of us! At least you have BYC now. It's been such a helpful, useful, and caring community. My chicken life has been made so much more whole with all the people willing to share the challenges they face and solutions.

Hope the rest of your flock continues to thrive!

Also hope you have a happy Thanksgiving!

Aw thank you! I am Canadian but we are having turkey anyways! Haha.

So she is an Americauna about 2 years old. She has definitely been molting...like it seems way more than the others. I don't know if she ever lay an egg from the time we got her to be honest.
Her poop smelled really funky back in the summer...like sick funky and I bleached the area where she roosts and then it didn't seem to smell anymore. I just did a deep clean in the coop and her poop wasn't watery...it looked like long curled up tubes with some white in it. And a lot of it. (I know it was her a from this past week because she is the only one who roosts in this spot). The others so far seems ok...all eating and running around.
Oh yes. Our 5 ...now 4 hens free range all day and share a coop and run with 6 guineas..the guineas roost in the outdoor run and only go inside to eat. It is about 12 feet long by 3 ish feet in depth. Long and skinny!