Please help with dead hen

[abbachick]

I have a Dominique hen that acted a bit weird yesterday morning. She put her head in a corner and wouldn't come out. I checked back on her after 2 hours and she was laying in the nest and seemed a bit ill. I had originally thought she was trying to lay an egg in privacy as she kept straining but nothing was coming out. When I went out in the evening, she was dead in the same nest box and ant's on her face. None of the other birds touched her.

I do get snakes in the barn, but she has no marks on her anywhere. I have a couple of options as I see it. One, we live near a school and they like to "help" us with fire ants by putting out poisen near our fence-line. Two, the day before I turned some decaying wood so the birds could eat the bugs. I also had some water leak in their barn, though I have it cleaned up now. Other than poisen or mold, I am left with illness. So far the rest of the flock seems ok, but it's only been a day.

Other possibly related problems: the egg production went from around 8-12/day to 0-4/day about a week ago. Previouse to that the shells are very brittle, or the hens lay with no shell. I have given lots of oyster shell, they get DE on their food, and I feed scratch and layer feed. Please help if you have any ideas.

 

[abbachick]

Update; sick polish hen this morning. She is just standing around with her beak open, softly crawing and sneezing loudly every so often. She acts like breathing is a problem for her and is wheezing a bit. Please help before another one get's ill!

I am calling the local ag this morning and also going to purchase a round of antibiotics for the flock, I'm just afraid it's too late for this one. She just won't move! I do have her quarantined away from my other birds, so maybe I'll get lucky.

 

[purpletree23]

I'm so sorry you are having so many problems. I don't know how to answer your questions but readers will be getting home soon and could be of help. Hang in there.