My hen suddenly dies

[Yogurt48]

Can somebody please explained what happened to my chicken? I first noticed she was distant and wasn’t around the flock. So because of that i isolated her from the other chickens to see what was wrong with her. I saw no visible injuries with her but she was very weak. Spent around 20 minutes with her and she suddenly started bobbing/nodding her head (not as in normal chicken, like constantly moving up and down) and her eyes got watery. Stupidly, I didn’t know what to do so i googled her symptoms. Then, she threw her head back and she started to go limp as a ragdoll and gawking and twitching on her back. Then she stopped breathing. I didn’t know what to do but cry. This is my first time owning chickens and I do not know what happened to her.

 

[SandyRiverChick]

I'm so sorry. It's always sad for me and I've had chickens for 20+ years. You didn't mention age or breed.... It's just way too hard to start guessing what was the cause without more detail. It could be relatively normal and to be expected if say she was a high production (shorter life expectancy,) 3-4year old? Or it could be a long list of things if say she was youngish, healthy, purebred... I'm just sorry for your loss.

 

[Yogurt48]

I'm so sorry. It's always sad for me and I've had chickens for 20+ years. You didn't mention age or breed.... It's just way too hard to start guessing what was the cause without more detail. It could be relatively normal and to be expected if say she was a high production (shorter life expectancy,) 3-4year old? Or it could be a long list of things if say she was youngish, healthy, purebred... I'm just sorry for your loss.

Thank you. She did have a high production and she was very young and was only 1 years old. she was also a lohmann brown.

 

[BDutch]

lohmann brown

Sorry for your loss.

Are you new with chickens? What are your goals? Did you do some research before buying? Bc Lohman brown are bred for high production and you can’t expect them to live a long chicken life.

Two things crossed my mind bc it sounds like a brain/nerves problem.
A stroke followed by a seizure.
Bird flu (hope not).

If you want strong and healthy chickens you best avoid buying high production hens or chicks from commercial hatcheries who ship chicks. Maybe look for someone who has a hobbyfarm or chickens as a real hobby within driving distance next time you want to buy new chickens. Someone who sells hens /trio’s (quarantine) or hatchery eggs. Pay a visit and pick them up. Ask for advice. Dive into learning, do some research about different breeds, hatching with an incubator if you only have production hybrids and don’t want to buy pullets.

 

[Eggcessive]

Very sorry for your loss. If you still have her body, you could open the abdomen and do a home necropsy to look at her abdominal organs. She could have had one of a number of problems, including egg binding, reproductive infection, cancer, intestinal or gizzard obstruction, or others. The video below will help to identify the organs, and then you can post any pictures here for opinions. Your state vet lab can do a more thorough necropsy if you keep a body cold and send it in.

 

[Bawkbok]

I'm sorry your chicken died. Every loss is devastating, especially the first one. Our first death was similar - fine in the am, went south quickly and dead within minutes. Suspect a bad heart. I cried for weeks.

With being new to chickens, realistically, you will experience more mystery illnesses. There is much to learn about chicken health and this is a good place to start. Many knowledgeable people, information and articles here.

I suggest keeping an eye on the rest of the flock; hopefully it was just specific to that bird and nothing contagious. Wishing you the best.