Rhode island reds acting strange and then passing away

[faithbygrace]

I have/had 4 hens for 2 years. 2 rirs, 1 Longhorn and 1 silver wyandotte. They all came at the same time so I haven't had an issue with pecking order. They free roam the fenced in back yard during the day and get locked up in the coop at night. During the winter they get a red light at night. They eat purina organic layer pellets. fresh/frozen thawed corn and meal worm treats daily. Occasionally they get some table scraps and yogurt. A month ago 1 of the rirs started acting strange and a few days later she passed away. Now the other rir is acting strange too. The other 2 girls seem to be ok. What am I doing wrong? Can chickens overeat? Please any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated. I hate to think I'm not raising them correctly out of my ignorance, this is my first time ever raising chickens.

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

Cut the corn out of their diets or give it to them less. There can be a lot of things that a chickenndies from Fatty Liver Disease and a heart attack are two that come to mind. You can always send your bird to your state lab for a necropsy.

How was your bird behaving before expiration?

http://www.heritageacresmarket.com/poultry-necropsy-labs/amp/

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I have/had 4 hens for 2 years. 2 rirs, 1 Longhorn and 1 silver wyandotte. They all came at the same time so I haven't had an issue with pecking order. They free roam the fenced in back yard during the day and get locked up in the coop at night. During the winter they get a red light at night. They eat purina organic layer pellets. fresh/frozen thawed corn and meal worm treats daily. Occasionally they get some table scraps and yogurt. A month ago 1 of the rirs started acting strange and a few days later she passed away. Now the other rir is acting strange too. The other 2 girls seem to be ok. What am I doing wrong? Can chickens overeat? Please any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated. I hate to think I'm not raising them correctly out of my ignorance, this is my first time ever raising chickens.

HI @faithbygrace Welcome To BYC

Can you post photos of your hen, her poop and housing?

"Acting strange" is very vague - can you describe symptoms?

If the actions are obvious, a video may shed some light on the situation. Upload your video to youtube and provide us a link.

 

[50-45-1]

My questions would be, why the red light at night?
Where in the world are you located? This will give us an idea of your season and weather, temperature.
Pictures of your coop might help.
Were your hens laying?
Egg bound would be a possibility.
Sorry for your losses!
I hope we can help you figure this out so you dont loose anymore.
Welcome!

 

[faithbygrace]

HI @faithbygrace Welcome To BYC

Can you post photos of your hen, her poop and housing?

"Acting strange" is very vague - can you describe symptoms?

If the actions are obvious, a video may shed some light on the situation. Upload your video to youtube and provide us a link.

When I say she's acting strange I mean she is lethargic, not foraging around, not talking to me, not running up to me to see if I have treats, like she used to do and like the other 2 girls are doing. I watched her for over an hour and didn't see her poop. I'm uploading pics of their coop. I'm a little embarrassed because we dont have a fancy one. My daughter and I built it using as many repurposed items as we could. Old milk crates for laying boxes, mismatched chicken wire and garden fencing, etc but please dont tell my hens they dont know they live in low income housing.
My girls live in south Carolina. I was told to put the red heat lamp on them at night so they would think it's more daylight and lay eggs throughout the winter months. Pictures of their coop are attached. Yes they have all been laying. At first I thought she might be broody but that is not the case. I've googled and heard it could be mites or liver damage but I hadn't heard of egg bound. How do I fix that if that is her problem.?

 

[faithbygrace]

Cut the corn out of their diets or give it to them less. There can be a lot of things that a chickenndies from Fatty Liver Disease and a heart attack are two that come to mind. You can always send your bird to your state lab for a necropsy.

How was your bird behaving before expiration?

http://www.heritageacresmarket.com/poultry-necropsy-labs/amp/

She was lethargic, not foraging around like normally, not running up to me to see what treats I might have, not talking to me like usual, standing and sitting still instead of foraging throughout the day. Just not acting like her normal routine. The wyandotte went broody last year so I know it wasnt that. Pictures of my girl and her coop are attached in a post below

 

[21hens-incharge]

The red light is not going to keep them laying. It WILL keep them awake and cranky.

A coop does not need to be fancy. It does need to be large enough for the number of birds and safe from predators.

Yes they can over eat. Usually it is treats that cause issues.

Fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome is caused by to many high fat low protein treats. It usually kills quickly.

I would stop all treats.

It very well could be reproductive issues too. Were they laying recently?
Have you checked for abnormalities like a hard abdomen?
Have you checked for egg binding?

 

[faithbygrace]

My questions would be, why the red light at night?
Where in the world are you located? This will give us an idea of your season and weather, temperature.
Pictures of your coop might help.
Were your hens laying?
Egg bound would be a possibility.
Sorry for your losses!
I hope we can help you figure this out so you dont loose anymore.
Welcome!

Sorry I'm new to these posts and I answered your questions in a different post. My girls live in south Carolina. I was told a red light at night in the winter tricks them into thinking it's more daylight so they lay eggs throughout the winter. Yes they were laying and I know it's not broody. Egg bound? Never heard of that. How do I know if that is what it is and if so how do I fix it?

 

[faithbygrace]

The red light is not going to keep them laying. It WILL keep them awake and cranky.

A coop does not need to be fancy. It does need to be large enough for the number of birds and safe from predators.

Yes they can over eat. Usually it is treats that cause issues.

Fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome is caused by to many high fat low protein treats. It usually kills quickly.

I would stop all treats.

It very well could be reproductive issues too. Were they laying recently?
Have you checked for abnormalities like a hard abdomen?
Have you checked for egg binding?

Thank you for the information. Got it...no more red light and no more meal worms. Yes she's has been laying. As far as hard abdomin and egg binding I wouldnt have a clue. I'm going to Google it now.

 

[21hens-incharge]

https://the-chicken-chick.com/chicken-egg-binding-causes-symptoms/

https://www.fresheggsdaily.com/2012/06/egg-bound-hens-how-to-recognize-treat.html

A couple helpful articles on egg binding.