Necropsy on Laying Hen

[whiteybird]

Found a hen dead this afternoon and somehow found the courage to perform my first necropsy. Noticed yesterday that she had been having trouble breathing, and it worsened overnight. Heavily labored breathing this morning with a stridor, either on in or exhale or both. Crop looked pretty full for 8:30am. By noonish today the stridor was quite loud and on both in and exhale. She was gaping. Planned on tending to her after I finished working but didn't get the chance.

Sorry for the amateur photos, and complete lack of photos of the crop, esophagus, and trachea. Crop was full but not distended with whole grain feed, some tiny seashells and oyster shell, and short bits of grass. Slight amount of foul smelling liquid. A small amount was at the top of the trachea where I guessing she aspirated during the throes of death. Expected to find evidence of worms somewhere but didn't see anything obvious.

If anyone is willing to review the attached and provide insight it would be greatly appreciated!

 

[PattyNH]

Good for you for trying to determine what was wrong! I'm interested to see people's thoughts.

 

[Folly's place]

I don't know, but in years gone by Dr. Fulton at Michigan State University would look at emailed necropsy pictures and give an opinion. He's the best!
Mary

 

[Fluffyflufffluff]

Found a hen dead this afternoon and somehow found the courage to perform my first necropsy. Noticed yesterday that she had been having trouble breathing, and it worsened overnight. Heavily labored breathing this morning with a stridor, either on in or exhale or both. Crop looked pretty full for 8:30am. By noonish today the stridor was quite loud and on both in and exhale. She was gaping. Planned on tending to her after I finished working but didn't get the chance.

Sorry for the amateur photos, and complete lack of photos of the crop, esophagus, and trachea. Crop was full but not distended with whole grain feed, some tiny seashells and oyster shell, and short bits of grass. Slight amount of foul smelling liquid. A small amount was at the top of the trachea where I guessing she aspirated during the throes of death. Expected to find evidence of worms somewhere but didn't see anything obvious.

If anyone is willing to review the attached and provide insight it would be greatly appreciated!

My vet charges $35 for the basic examination and then the price for a thorough necropsy begins at $75 (+ the initial $35), and I have to add another $60 if there are cultures involved. The cost is $165 for a complete and thorough report, but you'll know exactly what killed the hen.

 

[Mtnboomer]

Nothing beats a professional. I applaud your courage, but amateur "necropsies" don't tell you much. Worms do not indicate cause of death or even poor health. Certain worms are carried around with no issue whatsoever. You can see organs that may be the wrong color etc. (assuming that you know what the right color is) and assume they were not functioning properly but that still doesn't give you cause of death or why an organ failed, if it failed, or if it was just distressed.
Many will complain about the cost or lack of a professional in the area, but state livestock centers, vet schools, teaching hospitals etc. have the expertise, usually take mail-ins, and are much cheaper than a private vet. There is cost involved and for just a chicken it can seem excessive, but if you want to ACTUALLY know what killed it and be sure its not something infectious and spreading to the rest of your flock, the professional is the only way. Otherwise its just a guess. Educated, maybe, a good guess, could be, but still just a guess and doesn't replace the years of trained expertise.

(Disclaimer: my wife is a veterinary pathologist and performs necropsies for a living. So our fee for the general work is avoided, but if samples are taken for biopsy, we still pay the same for processing as everyone else)

 

[whiteybird]

I know what I did doesn't really amount to anything, but I was partially curious to see if anything was obviously amiss. This hen is a year old and has never been wormed, so I figured I might see some evidence of worms, especially considering the gaping. I mean to treat them, but as of late have put it off since there are egg shortages and friends are buying our eggs. I have Valbazen, though it's expired.

Several years ago I had found a local "exotic" vet who worked with chickens but I believe he passed away. FL state does provide necropsies and cultures but overnighting a +-6 lb package isn't cheap, and I don't particularly want to drive it there myself and risk exposure to Corona. If it happens again I'll reconsider.

 

[Folly's place]

You can chill, not freeze, a carcass and store it in plastic in the frig for at least three to five days before having a necropsy done. then, if more die within that time, you have more to send, and more reason to have that done.
Mary

 

[whiteybird]

then, if more die within that time, you have more to send, and more reason to have that done.

Good point.

 

[whiteybird]

My vet charges $35 for the basic examination and then the price for a thorough necropsy begins at $75 (+ the initial $35), and I have to add another $60 if there are cultures involved. The cost is $165 for a complete and thorough report, but you'll know exactly what killed the hen.

I just looked at FL's fees. the full necropsy with forensics and research is $250.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry for your loss.

Yes, everyone is correct...it would just be a guess on our part. Yes, it is best to leave it to the pros, but sometimes that is not an option.
Wow. $250 plus shipping that's a lot of $$$, but you would, like the others say, get an official report.

That said I will give you my 2¢ - Just so know, I'm not an expert or vet - just a backyard keeper like you.
It is very hard to know exactly what was going on for sure.
I look at all your photos, which are very good. And good for you for doing this yourself!

First thing I noticed was the fat. Likely a contributor of whatever else was going on with her.
This makes it difficult to lay eggs, but you don't see any egg matter or signs of internal laying, but the fat could sure restrict organ function and the reproductive system.
You may want to think about what you feed and how much - limit treats?
I've found that some hens are not that active, may be fattier than others and/or are hogs.
I feed all mine the same, but some of my really big dual purpose gals seem to have more fat in them than say a Leghorn.