One of my EE hens died!

BettyR

Songster
12 Years
Mar 1, 2008
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Texas Gulf Coast
My hens were 19 weeks old on Wednesday and haven’t started laying yet. They are all heavy breeds so I’m guessing that’s why it’s taking so long.

I always kept Production Reds in the past and they would start laying between 3 and 4 months but they also burn out pretty quickly so I decided to try my hand at some different breeds this time. I have never had this much trouble with chickens before in my life.

The EE hen just up and died...she was fine yesterday morning and I didn't notice any odd behavior during the day but when I went to go close the chicken house up for the night she was sitting by the outside feeder and wasn't in the house with everyone else. I picked her up and put her in the house and she was sitting right where I left her this morning dead....is it possible that she died from a lodged egg even though she had not started laying yet?

I see no sign of illness in the rest of the flock. They are all bright eyed and bushy tailed.

Any thoughts?
 
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that's sad.
condolences only, no advice.
 
Sorry for your loss. Point of lay is often the second hurdle becdes chickhood that they must survive though. Could have been getting ready to lay but something might have moved or developed wrong inside. Did you open her up to look?
 
Quote:
No it didn't occur to me to do that.

In years past I have had many chickens...I would usually order a couple of dozen Production Reds in the Spring through the feed store...take them home and almost let them raise themselves. I never had brooders...our weather is so warm in April I would just stick their little butts in a cage in the chicken house and they would be fine. Our chicken house here at the new house wasn’t ready in time so I put together a brooder just so I would have a place to put them...I have never had a mortality rate as high as I have had with this group.

I lost one the day after I got them and one the following week. I lost another one at around a month and after we moved them to the big chicken house I had left a feed sack in the corner overnight and one of my hens got behind it and I think some other chickens got on top of her and she suffocated.

Then there is Frankie...she is a little cross beak. The kids call her Frankie...which is short for Frankenstein because they say she looks like she was put together out of spare parts. She has a cross beak, a hump back, hen legs and a rooster tail. Her little body is so small if she ever does lay an egg I’m pretty sure it will kill her. I don’t have the heart to put her down....she has such a cute personality and she seems to be enjoying her life so I see no reason to cull her.

Maybe the Production Reds are just a hardier breed but I can’t remember ever having a chicken just up and die on me like this....if I got 24 chicks then I raised 24 hens.
 

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