Mystery Death

[jorgey]

I got up this morning and went to feed/water and check on my chickens to find one of my hens dead!

Last night (only about 12 hours earlier) when I went out to them everyone appeared to be doing well. I always spend a lot of time with them just looking and watching when I feed and gather eggs and I didn't observe anything out the ordinary last night.

She was a 27 week old Delaware.
No visible signs of a fight, no blood, no scratches, no missing feathers.
Crop was not impacted.
No poop on the feathers surrounding the vent area.
Nothing, just dead.

She was laying under the roosts and it almost looked like sometime during the night she simply dropped dead and fell down to the ground (only about 3 feet).

I have never had anything like this happen before. In fact I have never lost a bird before, not even a chick! I am a little upset to say the least. I knew that my luck couldn't hold out for ever, but I would at least like to know what happened to her so I can make sure that it doesn't happen to any others.

I know it's a long shot, but any ideas???

 

[speckledhen]

I'm sorry you lost such a young girl. Sometimes, they just die, could be from a heart attack or whatever is in their genetic makeup.

 

[jorgey]

I wondered if it could be a heart attack. She was struck down in the prime of her life! I hope that the rest of them fair better than she did.

 

[Wagsmore]

2 weeks ago I had exactly the same thing happen to our 8 month old GLW. Mrs Whoo was fine at 9 pm when we closed her in the coop and by 8am in the morning she was face down on the floor of the coop like she fell off her perch dead. We only have 2 other birds 1 buff orp and a speckled sussex and both of those two seem fine. Very sad and worrisome though because like you I have no clue what happened.
The only small strange thing that I did notice was the day before her death she laid a very small egg, which like 1/2 her normal size.

I's sorry for the loss of your girl.