Random Death

[ChrisW1]

Hey guys. I registered here primarily to ask about this. I just went down to my coop and found one of my (previously 6) hens dead. She was normal and seemed healthy yesterday. Normal food and water, clean co-op and yard, nothing new. It was weird, I've honestly never seen that before. She was curled up on her side on the ground and laying on her head. I felt her, and it didn't seem like she was egg bound. Her crop was empty though, so it seems like she hadn't eaten since yesterday maybe? No discoloration on her crown aside from being light pink, because of lack of blood flow. No trauma or feather loss. It reminds me of when turkeys get blackhead, but chickens can't get blackhead. Looks like she didn't even go to the perch last night but curled up in pain and died. She was the alpha hen too. Should I be concerned about some phantom chicken COVID spreading to the other birds or something? What could have caused it? What can I do to prevent it from spreading to the others if it is a disease?

 

[ChrisW1]

Hey guys. I registered here primarily to ask about this. I just went down to my coop and found one of my (previously 6) hens dead. She was normal and seemed healthy yesterday. Normal food and water, clean co-op and yard, nothing new. It was weird, I've honestly never seen that before. She was curled up on her side on the ground and laying on her head. I felt her, and it didn't seem like she was egg bound. Her crop was empty though, so it seems like she hadn't eaten since yesterday maybe? No discoloration on her crown aside from being light pink, because of lack of blood flow. No trauma or feather loss. It reminds me of when turkeys get blackhead, but chickens can't get blackhead. Looks like she didn't even go to the perch last night but curled up in pain and died. She was the alpha hen too. Should I be concerned about some phantom chicken COVID spreading to the other birds or something? What could have caused it? What can I do to prevent it from spreading to the others if it is a disease?

I'm thinking about putting cayenne pepper and ACV in the water as an immune boost/prevention for them. Because I don't know what else to do lol. Is there something better?

 

[coach723]

How old was she? There are innumerable things that can cause a death like this, without a necropsy it's just guessing. They often will thrash around some when dieing, so how they are laying, body position is rarely a clue to the actual cause. If you still have the body you can refrigerate it (don't freeze) and contact your state lab for necropsy, in many states it's not terribly expensive. The information gained can be informative, and may bring peace of mind. Or you can learn to do an informal one yourself to look for obvious abnormalities in organs.
https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry-labs.html

 

[ChrisW1]

She was 3 years old. I already buried her, so I guess all I can do is just watch the rest of the flock for anything abnormal. Thank you!