My Chicken just died

[thechickmagnet]

Happy Easter... not really... this morning I let my 9 chickens out of their run into a large pen where they like to be... they all ran in and about 40 minutes later Lucy dropped dead. She is a Rhode Island red about 8 months old. She was healthy, I hope it was something like her heart and not something that will get the other girls ill.
Is it ok to eat their eggs? I don't know, quite a shock. Love you Lucy

 

[Davlyn]

Quote:
Sorry about Lucy

That happened this winter to pearl . I found think she caught a cold.

 

[dmccann]

I am sorry for your loss ,i have been there.

 

[Okie Amazon]

Quote:
First let me say that I am so sorry for the loss of your girl.


Now to address the above. NEVER freeze any animal you intend to have necropsied. Freezing explodes all the cells and any thing microscopic will be useless. Keep well refrigerated, but NEVER freeze!

 

[marinesmom02]

I am new at chickens. Justa started in May of 2009. I got 5 chicks then & another 7 in Aug. one of my chicks from Aug. I just found dead in the coop about 2 hrs ago. She was fine this morn. I was checking for eggs and she was laid 1/2 in & 1/2 out of a nest box & there was another hen in the box on a fw eggs. I went to move " Boots" (4 yr old grand girl named her that )  & she didn't feel right & then I knew she was dead. I moved the other hen off the nest & took the eggs. Then removed " Boots". There was no sign of anything on the bird as I could see. They have a huge area to roam, I give them fresh veggies & fruit, breads, cracked corn , their layer pellets. fresh water. I run a red heat light ( so it's not to blinding )  , as I live in NH. What would cause a chicken to suddenly just die ?? I am so upset over this. I love my chickens so much. Hubby told me to chill " it's just a chicken "  But I don't feel that way. Can someone give me an answer ??? Hubby won't let me pay for the vet to an autopsy .

 

[marinesmom02]

I'm so sorry, we got chickens in March as babies thinking we would lose some but they survived, until now. We lost 5 of them all in their boxes. They were all fine prior to us finding them in the am.

 

[Taniamarie]

Glad to read I'm not the only one that's gone a bit chooky over my chooks.
My favourite chicken just died suddenly too. She was a cute black Austrolorp with hairy hobbit feet.
I'm also very upset and beating myself up over it. I hadn't had her long from a breeder. I noticed someone in the flock had bloody mucuous poos so gave them all a molasses, oatmeal, garlic, cider vinegar, cayenne pepper food tonic on advice. A few days later this particular chook was really messy round the rear and not moving. I gingerly put her in a safe warm laying box, and went to work researching madly about worms and cysts, only to come back to her dead outside the box.

Anyone know what this may have been? The rest of the flock are absolutely fine with normal poop. While new to chooks too, I also have tried to do everything right. They have a lovely freerange chook garden, and I feed them scraps, pellets, grain, grit – they even have their own vege patch! I change their straw weekly and pestene dust. I've since put some cider vinegar into the water to hopefully ward off any more nasties.

Paranoid now. Any advice?

 

[ChicknChickn]

I know how you feel. I just had two four day old chicks pass this morning. Broke my heart. I have been bawling all morning.

 

[OrpieOwner]

I hear that bread is not good for chickens. That could have made her ill.

 

[Taniamarie]

Oh sorry to hear that. It will pass. And don't worry, it seems to be the natural cycle of things that chickens will come and go, through no fault of your own. Since my last post, one old girl passed away – I noticed she was looking a bit grey and manky. But in general my whole flock seems very healthy and happy. I am strict about splashing apple cider vinegar into their water everytime I change it. I suspect it is a great tonic! Recommend. I have since learned from others that chickens carry all sorts of nasties that are difficult to detect and control at times. You can only do your best.