I lost one of my girls.

[Ext 918]

I feel horrible. We had a hen pass this morning. Can heat stress cause a hen to pass a day after it occured?

The tarp that covers their run had ripped on Tuesday. It just disintegrated from the sun. I ordered another one, but it isn't scheduled to arrive until Saturday.

We kept icing the ground for the hens, giving cool water, electrolytes and probiotics. Yesterday, my littlest, Henny Penny, collapsed. My Husband dipped her legs in cool water and she seemed to recover. I ordered a cheap tarp to give some cover. When I got off work at 1am, she wasn't roosting. She was by the water, but not drinking. I gave her more electrolytes and probiotics and she drank.

This morning she ate and seemed fine. At 1pm my husband went out to check them and Henny Penny fell over dead right in front of him. There are 12 other hens and all seem fine. Can heat stress kill almost 24 hours later after she seemingly recovered?

 

[BoundlessLove]

I’m so sorry this has happened to you.
It could have been too much for her. How are your other hens?

 

[Ext 918]

All of them are doing great. No interruption in egg laying, eating well, and demanding shoulder scratches.

 

[BoundlessLove]

That’s great news! So glad the rest are all doing well.
Again I’m sorry about your hen.
Do you have something you can temporarily drape across for shade until the other tarp is delivered?

 

[Ext 918]

I had a cheap tarp, 3 large bags of ice and duct tape delivered yesterday. I'm pretty sure walmart put me on a watchlist over it. I chose 'leave at door' since I was at work, they changed it to 'this order requires a signature'. My husband put the tarp up last night. It covers about 1/3 of the run.

I guess I'm just shocked that she passed after it seemed like she was back on her feet.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

I had a cheap tarp, 3 large bags of ice and duct tape delivered yesterday. I'm pretty sure walmart put me on a watchlist over it. I chose 'leave at door' since I was at work, they changed it to 'this order requires a signature'. My husband put the tarp up last night. It covers about 1/3 of the run.

I guess I'm just shocked that she passed after it seemed like she was back on her feet.

So many animals seem to power through illness and pain, and then collapse when it’s too much.

 

[Pigeony]

Yes, heat stress could cause a hen to die a day later and that sounds like what happened. I'm sorry for your loss.

 

[Mrs. K]

You know, the other ones are making it. Could have been a physical ailment, maybe weaker heart- and the temp was just too much, but wouldn’t kill a normal healthy bird.

Nothing lives forever, it is not like you were abusing them. I don’t think you were responsible for her dying, it was just her time.

 

[Ext 918]

Mrs. K. it could have been. I ordered 20 chicks, anticipating a good chunk of loss on day old shipped chicks. I only lost one, so I was lucky in that sense.