Help! Chickens Dying

[newbiefarmgirl]

As of the beginning of November I had a flock of 34 chickens. The flock was comprised of my original 14 hens and 1 rooster, who were purchased spring of 2023. I purchased 13 more hens in April. I hatched out 2 hens with an incubator early spring, and a broody hen hatched out 2 hens and 2 roosters with summer.
Starting the first week of November, I have had random deaths of seemingly healthy birds. None of the original flock has died, but 2 of the ones I bought this spring plus 3 of the 4 my hen hatched out have died (5 total), approx. 1 per week. They all died in the same place - found on/under/beside the rooster bars in their coop. We find them when we let the birds out in the morning. All but one have been stiff. They all look peaceful, like they're asleep - no signs of trauma, struggle or injury. None have been observed to be acting peculiar the day before. I'm a stay-at-home mom with four children (3 teens) who are all very involved with managing the animals, so we definitely would have noticed one of them not acting right. Nothing has been changed in their feed. They have access to clean water. No sudden temp changes, day or night. Any suggestions?!? The only thing that can get into our coop are small mice. We don't generally keep feed in there, though.
I would love to hear some thoughts or theories.

 

[nuthatched]

Sorry you lost some birds.
What's their diet? Any chance they found something toxic or moldy?

 

[arianna7]

Oh no, I’m really sorry to hear about your chickens! That sounds super stressful. It could be a few things—maybe some kind of illness that’s sneaking in, like a respiratory infection or coccidiosis. Sometimes, they can look fine one day and then suddenly go downhill.

Check for any toxins around, like moldy feed or plants that could be harmful. Stress could also be a factor; if the coop feels cramped or there’s not enough ventilation, that can cause problems too. And keep an eye out for any predators, even small ones like mice can bring issues.

If you can, it might be worth having a vet look at the ones that have passed. They might find something that gives you a clue. Just keep watching the rest of your flock closely for any signs of trouble. You’re doing a great job taking care of them—hang in there! Let me know if you need more help!

Best of luck,
Arianna

 

[newbiefarmgirl]

Sorry you lost some birds.
What's their diet? Any chance they found something toxic or moldy?

We live out in the middle of nowhere. The only place they go besides our property is to forage in the alfalfa field beside us that has been cut down since the end of September. We get our feed from a local farmer who grows non GMO feed. I haven't noticed any difference in that either in site or smell. He mixes small batches and we purchase every couple weeks.
Our first frost is in September, and it has been under 32 at night for many weeks, so nothing is growing here. We are in the high desert, and there is no snow yet.

 

[newbiefarmgirl]

Oh no, I’m really sorry to hear about your chickens! That sounds super stressful. It could be a few things—maybe some kind of illness that’s sneaking in, like a respiratory infection or coccidiosis. Sometimes, they can look fine one day and then suddenly go downhill.

Check for any toxins around, like moldy feed or plants that could be harmful. Stress could also be a factor; if the coop feels cramped or there’s not enough ventilation, that can cause problems too. And keep an eye out for any predators, even small ones like mice can bring issues.

If you can, it might be worth having a vet look at the ones that have passed. They might find something that gives you a clue. Just keep watching the rest of your flock closely for any signs of trouble. You’re doing a great job taking care of them—hang in there! Let me know if you need more help!

Best of luck,
Arianna

Thank you for the encouragement! I may save future one, if any, and take them in to a vet for a look.

 

[nuthatched]

We live out in the middle of nowhere. The only place they go besides our property is to forage in the alfalfa field beside us that has been cut down since the end of September. We get our feed from a local farmer who grows non GMO feed. I haven't noticed any difference in that either in site or smell. He mixes small batches and we purchase every couple weeks.
Our first frost is in September, and it has been under 32 at night for many weeks, so nothing is growing here. We are in the high desert, and there is no snow yet.

Does the farmer have a nutritional break down on the feed? Making feed is not nearly as simple as most think.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Starting the first week of November, I have had random deaths of seemingly healthy birds. None of the original flock has died, but 2 of the ones I bought this spring plus 3 of the 4 my hen hatched out have died (5 total), approx. 1 per week. They all died in the same place - found on/under/beside the rooster bars in their coop. We find them when we let the birds out in the morning. All but one have been stiff. They all look peaceful, like they're asleep - no signs of trauma, struggle or injury. None have been observed to be acting peculiar the day before.

I'm sorry for your loss.

Can you set up a game camera or a camera in your coop to see if there's something going on during roosting?
If possible, also set up a game cam outside the coop to see what's coming around at night.

Losing 1 per week spaced out is interesting.

How much space is in the coop (sq ft). You have more than 1 rooster with the flock? Do you note any drama?

Hard to know what's going on. Could be something outside is startling birds and they fly up/panic, bonk their heads (it happens), die of fright.
Do you notice the rooster(s) crowing in the night, then finding a dead bird the next morning?

Necropsy may reveal what's going on. With you losing that many in a short period of time, saving the body and sending it to your State Lab will give you the most answers. Depending on your State, the fee may be anywhere from free to $$$$$. You'd have to look it up or give them a call to find out. Refrigerate carcasses, don't freeze them.

You can find your Lab here:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry...PKTgKr7Ld2ddZSasXfgeUOYGM1ARSxNG6NguZeLuCFBJH

 

[newbiefarmgirl]

I'm sorry for your loss.

Can you set up a game camera or a camera in your coop to see if there's something going on during roosting?
If possible, also set up a game cam outside the coop to see what's coming around at night.

Losing 1 per week spaced out is interesting.

How much space is in the coop (sq ft). You have more than 1 rooster with the flock? Do you note any drama?

Hard to know what's going on. Could be something outside is startling birds and they fly up/panic, bonk their heads (it happens), die of fright.
Do you notice the rooster(s) crowing in the night, then finding a dead bird the next morning?

Necropsy may reveal what's going on. With you losing that many in a short period of time, saving the body and sending it to your State Lab will give you the most answers. Depending on your State, the fee may be anywhere from free to $$$$$. You'd have to look it up or give them a call to find out. Refrigerate carcasses, don't freeze them.

You can find your Lab here:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry...PKTgKr7Ld2ddZSasXfgeUOYGM1ARSxNG6NguZeLuCFBJH

The coop is approx. 14x20 with plenty of roosts for all the birds.
Two of the males, both of which died, were cockerels that were headed to freezer camp next week (we thought they were hens until a couple weeks ago). Our main rooster is pretty chill even with them around.
Thank you for your suggestions. I think the game cam may be my next step.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Do you have any farm machinery/ heavy equipment on the property? Check under and around it for leaks of any kind, gasoline, oil, antifreeze, etc. There have been reports of chickens foraging under equipment and getting into toxic materials that way, but I believe they look and act sick before they succumb and die. Worth checking into anyway. Generally chickens avoid toxic plants but they have no instincts protecting them from man-made pollutants.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

The coop is approx. 14x20 with plenty of roosts for all the birds.
Two of the males, both of which died, were cockerels that were headed to freezer camp next week (we thought they were hens until a couple weeks ago). Our main rooster is pretty chill even with them around.
Thank you for your suggestions. I think the game cam may be my next step.

Good idea.
With the incidents being spread out to around 1 a week, I would suspect something is coming around. I've noticed predators make a circuit/have a route. Some come nightly, while others seem to come just about every few days to a week.

None of the original flock has died, but 2 of the ones I bought this spring plus 3 of the 4 my hen hatched out have died (5 total), approx. 1 per week. They all died in the same place - found on/under/beside the rooster bars in their coop. We find them when we let the birds out in the morning.