I found a dead chicken this morning

[Brown Chick]

My cream leg at has been looking bad. She lost feathers and felt really thin. I treated with corid, special feed gave rooster booster. I thought she was better but found her dead today. So I cut her open and found an air soft BB in her gizzard right at the opening. I felt so bad for her. Is it safe to say that was what killed her?

 

[RosemaryDuck]

My cream leg at has been looking bad. She lost feathers and felt really thin. I treated with corid, special feed gave rooster booster. I thought she was better but found her dead today. So I cut her open and found an air soft BB in her gizzard right at the opening. I felt so bad for her. Is it safe to say that was what killed her?

It definitely could have contributed. BBs do a lot of damage especially at close range. I would put some cameras up if you can, to see if you can catch who did it. So sorry for your loss.

 

[HeatherKellyB]

Did she ingest the BB or had she been shot? Where are you located? A lot of birds are molting right now and that can really bring a bird down. Are any of your other birds loosing feathers?
@aart
@azygous
@Wyorp Rock
@Eggcessive

 

[Brown Chick]

It definitely could have contributed. BBs do a lot of damage especially at close range. I would put some cameras up if you can, to see if you can catch who did it. So sorry for your loss.

I was thinking she ate the bb. I didn’t think about being shot by one. My son used to shoot those in our yard when he was 8 he is 18 now. They are everywhere. Still sad.

 

[HeatherKellyB]

Are we talking about the plastic airsoft 6 or 8mm BB's?
Many of these are biodegradable nontoxic

 

[pennyJo1960]

I was thinking she ate the bb. I didn’t think about being shot by one. My son used to shoot those in our yard when he was 8 he is 18 now. They are everywhere. Still sad.

I think your right as we have glass the birds have scratched up that where garbage had been burried on the property

 

[Banana01]

Was she going to sleep at night with a full crop over the period of her condition and weight loss? There are instances of chickens ingesting foreign objects and surviving depending where the object ends up. If the bb is inside the gizzard, it isn't fatal, but if the bb caused a blockage, she would have stopped eating and you wouldn't see food emptying from her crop. But a full blockage would be fatal in a couple of days. Maybe a partial blockage would cause a slower death.

I was thinking worms when you described her. Do you deworm your chickens or have problems in the past?

 

[azygous]

It depends on if the BB is lead or steel. Lead BBs will give a chicken heavy metal poisoning if they ingest them. If it's steel, you should be able to get a wand magnet and go through your yard and find most of them so other chickens don't eat them. Lead won't cling to a magnet, so it would be best to keep your chickens away from the target area.

 

[Brown Chick]

Did she ingest the BB or had she been shot? Where are you located? A lot of birds are molting right now and that can really bring a bird down. Are any of your other birds loosing feathers?
@aart
@azygous
@Wyorp Rock
@Eggcessive

Yes one other bird is loosing feathers and looks poorly. She has new feather growth. I have them on flock raiser and rooster booster her appetite is not normal

 

[Brown Chick]

Are we talking about the plastic airsoft 6 or 8mm BB's?
Many of these are biodegradable nontoxic

Yes it was right at the opening of her gizzard.