Please help, 5mth old pullet going down fast!

[Tonyroo]

Did you check her crop in the morning to see if it was empty?

 

[ToniaM]

Did you check her crop in the morning to see if it was empty?

Yes, and it was. It may have been empty yesterday and it just looked full from her neck bone curving outward. It’s very misleading.

 

[MysteryChicken]

I have never internally checked for an egg. Did the glove, oil and tried. I only got Mayne an inch in was scared I would hurt her. Googled some on how to do it. Do I need to go deeper?

You can go as far as your second knuckle on your finger.

But usually if there's an egg right there you can feel it right at the vent, or one knuckle deep.

 

[Kiki]

My broody hen hatched her. Her sister is laying. And I don’t have any new birds. She is the only one at this point showing any signs of anything wrong. But I know they are good at hiding some illnesses.

What exactly do you feed and are you sure this bird has been eating well?

 

[ToniaM]

You can go as far as your second knuckle on your finger.

But usually if there's an egg right there you can feel it right at the vent, or one knuckle deep.

I tried again. Assuming I’m in the right spot I got to what felt like a second right muscle area/opening. Nothing was between these two spots.

 

[ToniaM]

What exactly do you feed and are you sure this bird has been eating well?

I feed all flock and recently started mixing in nutrena feather fixer and chick grower 20% because some are molting. They get sunflower seeds or watermelon/cucumbers later in the evening after they’ve had all day to eat their feed and free range. They have constant oyster shell and egg shell available along with grit. They also free range every day on over half an acre that is fenced in.

the only thing new is the two types of food I mentioned and I’ve been making mash for them in the morning lately. Simply adding warm water to a few dishes but they have dry feed available all day.

 

[Mrs J]

Thank you all for trying to help. I just went to check on her and she was in the corner and had died. That fast.

Awww so sorry to hear that! so sad!!

 

[ToniaM]

If you can keep her body cold, then you could call your state vet lab to see if they could do a necropsy today. Then ask if they cannot today, if the body could wait until Monday am. They could look for a cause of death. You also could open her abdomen and look at her organs to see if she had some sort of infection or other problem. Take pictures to post here if you do one yourself. So sorry for your loss. Here is a list of state vets:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry-labs.html

Thanks for the info, it was too late by the time I saw this. And our lab is only an hour from here. Saving info.

 

[ToniaM]

So sorry, she must have been very unwell. Just a precaution, can you check the area your flock free ranges for plants poisonous to chickens? Just to rule that out.

I did find a goldenrod plant outside the run growing against the fencing. Doesn’t look like any was eaten. I read it would take a lot to harm them. Always a chance it was that I guess? She was drinking water in bathroom when I left her, 30 min later I went back and she was gone.

 

[Kiki]

How long have you had this bird and when was the last/most recent time you brought any bird home?