I lost my first hen today

[CityslickerHomestead]

How do I prevent this from happening again?

I’ll post photos when I get them, but my spouse just called to say he found our Welsummer (one of seven in a mixed-breed flock) deceased not more than an hour after I checked on them before leaving for work.

She was 15 months old and one of two Welsummers in my backyard flock. They all just started free-ranging in March as we have an abundance of grasshoppers we wanted to control.

He saw no signs of predator activity and so I asked him to inspect her body for signs of damage. It turns out she had a prolapsed vent, and I feel horrible I did not see it or notice it early enough to help her. I just keep thinking about the pain she was in.

A couple of days ago she started sleeping on the poop board and not the roost bars, but I assumed she was hot and didn’t want to be next to the others. Yesterday she kept hanging in the coop by herself and I assumed she was going to lay (which she did.)

I’m now worried they have a calcium deficiency in their diet and I’ll have this problem with my other hens. Since free-ranging they’ve been eating all the grasshoppers time their hearts content. I purchased feed specifically designed for free-ranging hens, but the protein content of the feed is 20%. So I’m thinking maybe they have too much protein in their diet because of the grasshoppers and 20% feed?

They have access to eggshells and oyster shells. Should I buy liquid calcium and add it to their water?

 

[BantyChooks]

I don't have any input on your calcium question, but I wanted to offer my sympathies for your loss.

 

[CityslickerHomestead]

I don't have any input on your calcium question, but I wanted to offer my sympathies for your loss.

Thank you. I feel like I failed as I should have caught this earlier.
When I get home from work tonight I’m going to catch and inspect each of the remaining six hens. They’re pretty skittish but I don’t want any of them to suffer from something I could potentially fix.

 

[JDChickChat]

I’ll post photos when I get them, but my spouse just called to say he found our Welsummer (one of seven in a mixed-breed flock) deceased not more than an hour after I checked on them before leaving for work.

She was 15 months old and one of two Welsummers in my backyard flock. They all just started free-ranging in March as we have an abundance of grasshoppers we wanted to control.

He saw no signs of predator activity and so I asked him to inspect her body for signs of damage. It turns out she had a prolapsed vent, and I feel horrible I did not see it or notice it early enough to help her. I just keep thinking about the pain she was in.

A couple of days ago she started sleeping on the poop board and not the roost bars, but I assumed she was hot and didn’t want to be next to the others. Yesterday she kept hanging in the coop by herself and I assumed she was going to lay (which she did.)

I’m now worried they have a calcium deficiency in their diet and I’ll have this problem with my other hens. Since free-ranging they’ve been eating all the grasshoppers time their hearts content. I purchased feed specifically designed for free-ranging hens, but the protein content of the feed is 20%. So I’m thinking maybe they have too much protein in their diet because of the grasshoppers and 20% feed?

They have access to eggshells and oyster shells. Should I buy liquid calcium and add it to their water?

I'm so sorry, sending lots of love!!

 

[Tamdog]

I'm sorry. That is so hard.

 

[hayley3]

How do I prevent this from happening again?

I’ll post photos when I get them, but my spouse just called to say he found our Welsummer (one of seven in a mixed-breed flock) deceased not more than an hour after I checked on them before leaving for work.

She was 15 months old and one of two Welsummers in my backyard flock. They all just started free-ranging in March as we have an abundance of grasshoppers we wanted to control.

He saw no signs of predator activity and so I asked him to inspect her body for signs of damage. It turns out she had a prolapsed vent, and I feel horrible I did not see it or notice it early enough to help her. I just keep thinking about the pain she was in.

A couple of days ago she started sleeping on the poop board and not the roost bars, but I assumed she was hot and didn’t want to be next to the others. Yesterday she kept hanging in the coop by herself and I assumed she was going to lay (which she did.)

I’m now worried they have a calcium deficiency in their diet and I’ll have this problem with my other hens. Since free-ranging they’ve been eating all the grasshoppers time their hearts content. I purchased feed specifically designed for free-ranging hens, but the protein content of the feed is 20%. So I’m thinking maybe they have too much protein in their diet because of the grasshoppers and 20% feed?

They have access to eggshells and oyster shells. Should I buy liquid calcium and add it to their water?

I would think you would notice thin egg shells if they were calcium deficient, have you seen any thin-shelled eggs? Are they overweight? Too much protein will also cause diarrhea, did she have a dirty backside?

 

[CityslickerHomestead]

I would think you would notice thin egg shells if they were calcium deficient, have you seen any thin-shelled eggs? Are they overweight? Too much protein will also cause diarrhea, did she have a dirty backside?

The Welsummer in question did not have pasty butt. She did however go through an unexplained mini-molt a few months ago. I wasn’t expecting their first adult molt until this fall when they would be 18 months old.

The one hen I WAS worried about, a GLW, has always had thin/corrugated shells and lately has a pasty butt. I’ve been checking her out and she does not appear to have any vent issues. However she’s the only one with these egg issues. Despite having equal access to food and supplements. The rest of the hens have super thick shells and no pasty butts.

 

[hayley3]

Just an odd thing to mention....when my SLW got very overheated her vent was pushed out. I freaked out but when she cooled off, her vent was back to normal.
So was that just a rare oddity or is that something that happens when they get overheated.
Could yours have been overheated?

 

[hayley3]

The Welsummer in question did not have pasty butt. She did however go through an unexplained mini-molt a few months ago. I wasn’t expecting their first adult molt until this fall when they would be 18 months old.

The one hen I WAS worried about, a GLW, has always had thin/corrugated shells and lately has a pasty butt. I’ve been checking her out and she does not appear to have any vent issues. However she’s the only one with these egg issues. Despite having equal access to food and supplements. The rest of the hens have super thick shells and no pasty butts.

When chickens pant excessively, it increases their respiratory rate that in turn, also influences egg laying. This is because the amount of ionized calcium in their body. For laying hens, since they require a high amount of calcium for eggshell formation, it often results in the increased development of thin-shelled or smaller eggs and/or decreased egg production.

See more at: http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/heat-stress

 

[CityslickerHomestead]

Just an odd thing to mention....when my SLW got very overheated her vent was pushed out. I freaked out but when she cooled off, her vent was back to normal.
So was that just a rare oddity or is that something that happens when they get overheated.
Could yours have been overheated?

It’s possible.
We have been experiencing a lot of heat. This time last year I was home more often and left them many frozen treats like blueberries in ice cubes. Since i haven’t been home this summer I just make sure they have plenty of clean water all around the yard and I give them frozen blueberries to cool down.