Having a bad morning here. While I was feeding I turned around and my black copper marans roo in the bachelor flock is reaching his neck up and gaping his mouth. He didn't seem to be getting any air. Moments later he was dead after thrashing around. I felt so helpless, and now am super worried for the rest of the flock. This was a healthy, going through molt 10 month bird. He is not in one of our breeding groups, he is the companion for an older blind rooster with mobility issues. I'm not sure how that guy will handle this, although he didn't even notice his friend dying in front of him (not enough to stop eating). Mobile coops are on pasture, and these boys have been in the same spot for about 6 weeks. The rest have stayed in their spot for the summer as we needed to do our best to protect against avian flu outbreak getting nearby areas, and that messed up our usual rotational movement.
I'm hoping someone will have a suggestion as to what might have happened, what I could do in a similar situation, and if I should be worried about flock health. Thanks so much.
I'm hoping someone will have a suggestion as to what might have happened, what I could do in a similar situation, and if I should be worried about flock health. Thanks so much.
