HELP! Sick and Dying Roosters

[Country Rose]

I am lost at where to turn next ... I hope someone maybe able to help or shed light ....

We have free running chickens at our horse ranch .... In the last couple of days we have had 3 roosters die and don't know why ....

The roosters seem to look "DRUNK" .... stumbling around .... they then lay down and die ... My first instinct is poison .. but we run a kids program and NO ONE around would lay poison down for our animals to get at .... we have pigs, sheep, goats, turkeys, bunnies, horses, ducks and chickens ... so far only the chickens are affected ..... any ideas???

We thought WNV but all we read says no they would not die ... can be infected but not death ......

HELP!?

 

[sussexgal]

Got a compost pile or any pile of barn cleanings that have become a source of mold they could've gotten into? Fungal toxins can cause what you are describing....

 

[Country Rose]

The compost is on the other side of the ranch ... and we clean and haul away every morning ... but I will take a closer look when I head back to the ranch ......

It is the mold that will do it??? Because they scratch at EVERYTHING ....

 

[MissPrissy]

Since you run a ranch I would suggest that you a have necropsy done to find out specifically what is going on.

 

[Country Rose]

We called around and the cheapest necropsy is $350 .... We were on the phone for an hour and a half ..... No one knows anything .... None of the other animals are affected ..... and so far only our roosters .... are hens seem to be fine ......

Thanks for the advise .... going to go see if I can find a mold source .... it really looks like poison to me ..... That would be really sad! Can't teach farm class to city kids without chickens and 5 different colors of eggs! ...

Have a good day! Thanks again!

Country Rose

 

[sussexgal]

Miss Prissy is correct - a necropsy will tell you for sure. Birds have a number of sources that poison them - fungal toxins are only one thing. Maybe others can chime in here about plant and seed sources that are deadly to chickens... also - by chance do the children feed the birds treats? Maybe stuff they are eating and throw to the birds... salt overload can be a toxin too. I was trying to think of a quick fix for you.... it seems alittle strange that only the roos are being affected.... it does seem like it's something they have gotten into rather than an infectious agent of some sort. JMO

 

[MissPrissy]

Call your state vet. You can get a necropsy cheaper than that. A school of poultry at the university will sometimes do them for $5.

 

[Country Rose]

We have had chickens for 13 years running around .... we have great great great grandchickens ...... nothing has changed ....

The link has a vet in Northern California ..... we are near Disneyland ... not much as far as farm anything around here .... took several phone calls to vets not to find a single one with any answers .... called a bird farm who said ........ uhhhhh we think ..... I would not even know where to start looking ..... I just googled chickens and found you guys .......

If anyone can lead me I will follow ... but I do have horse lessons in 30 minutes so I have to go .... please feel free to email me with anything to help .... our chickens are our business ... but they have names and the children know them ..... and Charlie Brown ..... Road Runner and Red are no longer around ...... I know ... the kids name them ..... you should see Hedwig our white and gray one ......

thank you again!

 

[CarriBrown]

Country Rose,

You can call the State Vet in San Bernandino and they will come out to your place and remove dead or dying birds. They will do the necropsy for free (in most cases... if you are a commercial operation they may charge). Worst case, you can overnight a dead bird to them.
Click the link on my signature at the bottom. There is contact information and instructions on my personal page. I've been through this before, so if you need help or have questions, just PM me.

 

[CarriBrown]

A couple more things...
They are closed on the weekends. They will only be there until 5pm today. If you have another rooster die over the weekend, put it in the fridge (I know it sounds gross, but it's really the only way you will get answers) and contact them on Monday. Even if you don't have one die over the weekend, contact them on Monday to get someone out to your property to remove any sick or dying birds from your place. They can also do swabs for you, up to 10 birds.
I've had to keep one bird in the fridge over the weekend. I put it in a plastic bag or two, then in a paper bag. I dropped it off Monday and had tentative necropsy results emailed to me just hours later. They want as fresh a "sample" as possible.