Hypothermia?

[casportpony]

Call the lab and ask for their FedEx number.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/799747/how-to-send-a-bird-for-a-necropsy-pictures

-Kathy

 

[dhopper122]

I did the post necrosis on him and I think I found the culprit: kidney failure. The pericardium was whitish in color, heart was enlarged, liver had white spots, but the kidneys appeared to be okay. But, hey, what do I know? I had been feeding them oyster shell, as some of my girls were throwing soft shell eggs. I had just backed off the calcium a few days ago, when he dropped yesterday morning. And he seemed to have been okay, as I saw him and another rooster sparring. So, this caught me off guard.

 

[casportpony]

I did the post necrosis on him and I think I found the culprit: kidney failure. The pericardium was whitish in color, heart was enlarged, liver had white spots, but the kidneys appeared to be okay. But, hey, what do I know? I had been feeding them oyster shell, as some of my girls were throwing soft shell eggs. I had just backed off the calcium a few days ago, when he dropped yesterday morning. And he seemed to have been okay, as I saw him and another rooster sparring. So, this caught me off guard.

Does kidney failure cause white spots on the liver? I think @ChickenCanoe

-Kathy

 

[Beekissed]

I did the post necrosis on him and I think I found the culprit: kidney failure. The pericardium was whitish in color, heart was enlarged, liver had white spots, but the kidneys appeared to be okay. But, hey, what do I know? I had been feeding them oyster shell, as some of my girls were throwing soft shell eggs. I had just backed off the calcium a few days ago, when he dropped yesterday morning. And he seemed to have been okay, as I saw him and another rooster sparring. So, this caught me off guard.

If the kidneys appeared to be okay, what makes you think he died of kidney failure? Sounds like he had issues with heart and liver more than renal from your description. An underlying disease, maybe?

 

[casportpony]

Oops. I think @ChickenCanoe has some interesting info about roosters and kidney problems from them eating layer feed.

Can you take pictures of the organs and email them to an avian pathologist at your lab? Sometimes I do that and they're usually willing to comment on them.

-Kathy

 

[Beekissed]

Seeing as how other chickens in the flock were also suffering hypothermia, I find it highly unlikely they all were suffering from renal failure from layer feed, particularly since some were hens.

 

[casportpony]

What diseases cause white spots on the liver?

-Kathy

 

[casportpony]

According to this, visceral gout can cause white spots on the liver:
http://www.vdl.umn.edu/prod/groups/cvm/@pub/@cvm/@vdl/documents/asset/cvm_asset_350829.pdf

-Kathy

 

[dhopper122]

I am currently sending the open breast pictures to the Kansas State University professor incharge of the department. If anyone wants to see the pics, please contact me and I will forward to you. I was quite taken by the size of the heart and the color of the pericardium. [email protected]

 

[Beekissed]

I know simple renal failure doesn't manifest in white liver spots in humans, so I can't imagine it does in chickens. Why, Kathy, I thought you would be well versed in all the chicken diseases by now, figured you'd know for sure.