Hen died out of no where

[colette peters]

Colette, I am so sorry for your loss and appreciate you Shari g the preliminary results. My hunch is it’s the bamboo, not the miner’s lettuce, which seems tender like butter lettuce to me.

Kathy, mine love the coop cups, too!

I’m getting these coop cups tomorrow.

 

[Kathy Golla]

I’m getting these coop cups tomorrow.

Oh no! I’ve gone and corrupted your beautiful design! If anyone says anything just tell them they were a gift from a relative and you are forced to display them.

 

[Stephine]

Rivertown in Petaluma?

yes

 

[Stephine]

I, too, suspect the bamboo, rather than the miners lettuce, unless, maybe, she slurped down a bunch of the long stems in one piece.
It might be just her having a taste for it... Do you have multiple feeders? Could she possibly have been kept away from the feed by hens higher up in the pecking order? I am wondering why they didn’t find any regular feed in her stomachs.... and why she focused on rough greens.

 

[Arwon]

Thanks for posting, very strange, I thought chickens could eat most vegetable/grass matter.

 

[colette peters]

I, too, suspect the bamboo, rather than the miners lettuce, unless, maybe, she slurped down a bunch of the long stems in one piece.
It might be just her having a taste for it... Do you have multiple feeders? Could she possibly have been kept away from the feed by hens higher up in the pecking order? I am wondering why they didn’t find any regular feed in her stomachs.... and why she focused on rough greens.

Hi yes we have two feeders and water accessible. One is in the run the other in the bamboo side.
Loretta has lived in that habitat for three years and this is the first time anything has ever happened. She was the mother hen and on top of the pecking order.
And back to the bamboo it’s groomed almost half way up to the stalk. The only way for them to eat it would be if the leaves fell. It’s very free of leaves at the moment. And not sure they’d eat the dead brown ones that do fall.
I’m convinced she slurped the miners Lettuce cause that’s the only thing that I changed. And I gave two handfuls on Friday, and she passed on Saturday morning 11a.
And she showed not one sign of being slow or sleepy. My 10 year old loves these girls and she has such a pulse on them. We both observe all the girls before they roost. All 13 were happy at 7p.
And she’s the one who found her breathing heavy in the coop at 9a.
But I guess I’ll post another update on the FINAL necropsy. Probably by Monday.

 

[colette peters]

Thanks for posting, very strange, I thought chickens could eat most vegetable/grass matter.

It’s the one and only thing I changed. I picked two handful of the lettuce from a neighbors yard the day before she passed. And the mature stems and roots she must have slurped up and that’s what tangled up inside her intestine and killed her wish I would have cut it up.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

There is no straw around them except for their bedding which has enzymes processed in it for digestion.

What is the bedding? Is it straw?

 

[colette peters]

@Wyorp Rock i believe it is straw. I only use it inside all over their coop and in the nesting boxes.
I’ve been using it 3 years.
Picture attached of the product.
I’ve read a post about it here on BYC and seems to be a good product. But can’t believe people payed $12.95 for it. Costs me $24.00 here in California.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

@Wyorp Rock i believe it is straw. I only use it inside all over their coop and in the nesting boxes.
I’ve been using it 3 years.
Picture attached of the product.
I’ve read a post about it here on BYC and seems to be a good product. But can’t believe people payed $12.95 for it. Costs me $24.00 here in California.

I see. It's chopped hay/straw with PDZ added to it.
Could be that she was eating the straw too, you never know.