- Feb 24, 2012
- 58
- 1
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So I'm sure I dont have enough information to give to get any help. But at least wanted to get some ideas and share my story. I had 4 hens approx 2 yrs old. Went out to feed them one evening and noticed that my black austrolorp was not out in the run with the others. I found her laying under the coop near their feed, dead. She was laying on her side, her comb, eyelids, and wattle very pale and slightly blue. We did a quick check over of her body before burrying her. She may have been a little underweight. She had food in her crop. No sign of wounds. Other than being deceased and the skin being slightly blue she looked like a normal healthy hen. I had noticed no strange behavior prior, but had also not spent a whole lot of time with them that week as we were preparing for a big trip out of state with the horses. I would think I would have noticed anything different anyways as I do check on them daily and know my girls pretty well. They have fresh water all the time and layer pellets in front of them full time as well. Though they had somehow managed to dump their waterer at some point that day and were out of water when i checked and found her. I cant immagine her becoming dehydrated within a couple hours and he skin did not seem dehydrated either.
I did not think to check her vent to see if she had become eggbound or something. She was an excellent layer and had had no previous issues.
They have a small run attached to their coop and I do not let them free range much due to lots of dogs. They had not been out to free range in a couple of weeks. They do have grass in their run as we move it around. So thinking she couldnt have eaten anything like grass with poison on it, or strange berries or bushes.
The other girls seem fine. They are moulting and have pretty pale wattles/combs and are not as fat and feathered as usual. Rue (the one who died) was the only one seeming to not be moulting. She seemed to have a different schedule than the other girls. This does seem to be the longest moult my girls have had, with the most feather shedding. But they are by no means naked, they are still fully covered, just not as full and their tail feathers are scant.
So anyone have any ideas on why my Rue just apparently dropped dead?? I am worried about my other girls, but they seem healthy other than the moulting.
I wonder about worms. Have not seen any in poo, but know they could still be present. I read on here somewhere that ivermectin horse wormer can be used. I have plenty of that!
I looked around the site for other similar stories, but most seem to have some sort of apparent illness involved. Ie: whole flock knocked out by disease
I did not think to check her vent to see if she had become eggbound or something. She was an excellent layer and had had no previous issues.
They have a small run attached to their coop and I do not let them free range much due to lots of dogs. They had not been out to free range in a couple of weeks. They do have grass in their run as we move it around. So thinking she couldnt have eaten anything like grass with poison on it, or strange berries or bushes.
The other girls seem fine. They are moulting and have pretty pale wattles/combs and are not as fat and feathered as usual. Rue (the one who died) was the only one seeming to not be moulting. She seemed to have a different schedule than the other girls. This does seem to be the longest moult my girls have had, with the most feather shedding. But they are by no means naked, they are still fully covered, just not as full and their tail feathers are scant.
So anyone have any ideas on why my Rue just apparently dropped dead?? I am worried about my other girls, but they seem healthy other than the moulting.
I wonder about worms. Have not seen any in poo, but know they could still be present. I read on here somewhere that ivermectin horse wormer can be used. I have plenty of that!
I looked around the site for other similar stories, but most seem to have some sort of apparent illness involved. Ie: whole flock knocked out by disease
