Mysterous Deaths...

[WallTenters]

Zero signs. Zero. Not a ruffled feather or a single sneeze. First victim, an EE bantam cockerel about 9mo died several months ago. Second, poor little Brutus, a little Serama cockerel today. Both were found dead after seeming to be totally healthy. No blood, no wounds, no weight loss, nothing. This most recent one died only a week and a half after coming home. The second little cockerel is in the freezer, waiting for a chance to go in for a necropsy.

Links: Both housed with same hens, except Brutus was also housed with an additional pullet. The three females are a bantam Americauna, a bantam Cornish and the newest one a bantam Cochin. All females seem completely healthy, still laying eggs. About twenty feet away is a larger chicken coop and run housing 8 Rhode Island Red hens. Again, they all seem very healthy. The two coops alternate mornings/afternoons or full days out free-ranging, except in the winter, when the bantams are in the green house and free range in there. They are outside now, have a heat lamp in one corner and seem comfy with that. The young cockerel and one hen were on the side of the roost near the heat lamp, the other two (the cochin and cornish) were on the other side, no one seemed to be crowding or avoiding/getting closer to the heat source.

Feed is small pellets, grit and oyster shell offered free choice in separate container. Water always available (well water - same the family and all other animals drink).

We thought the first roo was just "sometimes it happens" but now, very unconvinced of that.

Has anyone else had anything like this? Any ideas? I'm baffled!

 

[dawg53]

What did their poop look like, color and consistancy? Worms? Did they have lice/mites? Moldy feed? Did anyone spray the yard with some chemical? Just trying to get things narrowed down to figure out what happened and how to prevent/treat and protect your other chickens.

 

[WallTenters]

Thanks for the response. No, nothing's been sprayed. The only thing that has been used at all on the property is fish fertilizer on the plants in the greenhouse, but that should be safe around animals (it's basically pureed fish - smells aweful) AND the chickens can't get in the greenhouse now.

Poop looks normal, mite load on these guys is extremely low. We treated my mom's hens and the two little hens that were in there maybe two-three weeks ago with ivermectin - I think they didn't even need treating. No lice at all. We processed some of the RIR hens the same day, I saw no signs of internal parasites (and I checked intestinal linings).

Feed is good, stored properly. Again, these two cockerels were the only two birds to die and no one else is showing signs.

 

[dawg53]

Sorry for your losses...it must be coincidental, there's nothing to prove otherwise unless you can think of something that might have been overlooked. Let us know if you come across anything.