Squeamish Vegetarian Considering Doing Necropsy.... Assistance Please?

[arizona_chicken_noob]

Yesterday afternoon I found my favorite chicken had dropped dead near my back patio, and this morning my other runner up favorite was dead under the roost bar. I have no idea what is going on. About a week ago 1 more chicken just mysteriously dropped dead in her run, right outside the coop.

I seem to be able to keep a cool head about this but they are my pets, and I can't let this go on without some answers. I see that my state lab does necropsy for $285 with a 10-day turnaround, and I called one local vet who said cats/dogs only. I put the latest body in the refrigerator and will try calling my regular vet tomorrow.

This is leading me to consider attempting an autopsy, because I have to figure out what this is and stop it.

Signs and premonitions: None. Everyone was acting very normal, active and eating . The only nontypical things that I noticed chicken #1 had slightly (very slightly) raised feathers on the rear of her back, maybe just 1/4" higher than normal, almost like a short haired dog who is excited. Otherwise she was so normal. And chicken #2 had started a molt the other week, which I thought was an odd choice of timing but I can see from the body that her feathers were indeed growing in / actual molt. The first chicken to go (an easter egger who passed last week) was always flighty and feisty.

No damage to any of these bodies. No signs of egg binding before or after. Tons of normal chicken poops still splatter my yard and back patio. I think all of these birds were about 15-23 months old. Not a lot of egg laying going on lately but I attribute that to the Phoenix summer heat.

I did start to switch foods from Nutrena Naturewise Starter/Grower to Nutrena Naturewise "Nourishing Layer", both are 18% protein but the latter has calcium (as it is not chick starter). Can find no recalls for this feed, don't particularly suspect it. A few of my hay bales lately have plastic in them, but these birds can eat all kinds of nonsense and live. Now wondering if any rodent pests have died in my yard after eating poison, that I just haven't seen. These birds have a lot of free time in the yard.

At this point I have to do something, and if my regular vet declines a chicken, I will just gather up the strength to do this myself (with your help of course). Are there instructions for this sort of thing? I am still a bit shocked.

 

[Saveria]

Yes, totally normal to feel shocked. I think that is how we all feel with multiple deaths, it's traumatizing.

Here is a thread with a video. Just go ahead and post questions or if you need more info.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/necropsy-planning.1571935/

Some diseases known to cause multiple deaths are fatty liver disease (not contagious, but I have heard of multiple chickens in a row dying from this), mareks and avian leukosis. I didn't pick up on signs from those, and you typically see mareks in younger birds, or older ones that just got exposed, but you could check out the symptoms quickly to be sure. Hopefully, someone else will be along shortly and can offer more insight.

So sorry this is happening. I remember the last time I had multiple deaths, and it kind of paints your whole world grey. So awful. I hope it is a distant memory very soon.

 

[Eggcessive]

I usually do my own necropsies on hens that die, just to look at their organs for signs of illness. Cancer, internal laying, fatty liver disease, crop or gizzard blockages, and Mareks disease tumors on organs may be found. But that does not replace a professional necropsy by a state vet pathologist, where they collect tissue samples and take cultures for bacteria, viruses, and fungus. Have you seen any signs of poisoning, toxins, coccidiosis, or other symptoms? Sorry for your loss.

 

[Saveria]

Maybe you can do a gofundme to help cover the cost of the lab. I did that for a diagnostic test for a stray cat I took in, it actually worked pretty well.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would try to rule out any moisture that has caused mold in a feed container, and note any blue green color or odd odor. If you do the necropsy open the gizzard to look for any plastic, metal, or blockage. Could heat have been an issue?

 

[arizona_chicken_noob]

Thank you guys very much I will bravely attempt to follow the video if my regular vet won't do it. And if one more passes I will send them to the state lab. I could swing the $285 although it does hurt a little.

Have been reading the signs of coccidiosis and I just haven't seen any lethargy, poofing (minus the tiny feather ruffle the 1 bird had), weird poop, or huddling. When I picked up each of these gals they did have good heft and seemed the same as when I have been allowed to hold them briefly.

After Chicken #1 died last night I looked right at #2 and said, "but you look so normal (minus the molting), you'll be just fine, right?"

They get virtually no treats from me just their chicken food so I would be very interested to see if they still got fatty liver.

The one other thing I can think of is that a friend is staying with me and trying to help around the house with some chicken chores. I don't think their shallow wading tubs w/ bricks have been getting dumped lately, just refilled, and you know they poop in those all the time and maybe just keep drinking out of them (separate clean water always available). So that could be a lead.

edit: All vaccinated birds from hatcheries, no adult birds or friends w/ chickens ever came over. No neuro behavior observations, although Mareks does occur in AZ I hear.

 

[Mother-Hen-Michele]

I am so sorry this happened to you

If you feel up to it, please update the post with what you learned. Maybe your babies lead to someone else saving theirs by learning from your experience.


I sincerely hope there were no more deaths in your flock, it is hard to live with.

 

[RedRooster706]

I hate that your chicken died. My condolences. This brings to the surface my beginning days as a backyard chicken farmer. My first 5 hens were a gift from a friend. His girlfriend bought them at Tractor Supply (chain store), and had nowhere to keep them, when they got bigger. All of my new girls were very well taken care of by me. They all systematically died, at different times, within a year or 2, of unknown causes, except 1. I replaced them with Meyer hatchery chicks. Going on 4 years no more sudden unexplained deaths. The moral of this story? (And Im not implying that you didnt do this) but, buy your birds from a reputable hatchery not a chain store. Stick with a hatchery that will answer the phone and make what's wrong right.

 

[Mother-Hen-Michele]

I hate that your chicken died. My condolences. This brings to the surface my beginning days as a backyard chicken farmer. My first 5 hens were a gift from a friend. His girlfriend bought them at Tractor Supply (chain store), and had nowhere to keep them, when they got bigger. All of my new girls were very well taken care of by me. They all systematically died, at different times, within a year or 2, of unknown causes, except 1. I replaced them with Meyer hatchery chicks. Going on 4 years no more sudden unexplained deaths. The moral of this story? (And Im not implying that you didnt do this) but, buy your birds from a reputable hatchery not a chain store. Stick with a hatchery that will answer the phone and make what's wrong right.

You make a good point. (I don't know if it applies here, but generally it is true)

My first hens were from a place that breeds for commercial poultry farms and long lifespans are not the goal, so I have had to deal with lots of health issues. They were unnaturally good layers and that gave them lots of reproductive health issues as they aged.

Over dinner at my in-laws at some point, my sister in law asked what killed one of my hens and I just answered "menopause" with a defeated tone. I was so used to that being a problem it was a complete answer to me. She choked for how unexpected my candor was. "She had a full cycle every day for 3yrs, then it killed her." There is more to it, of course, but that is a complete answer.

I would have preferred a longer retirement for each of them, but some were too worn out. I never needed that many eggs... I liked their company in the garden.

I have become really good at draining ascites... not a task I enjoy. (Nor do my 'patients' enjoy it) but I have managed to keep some alive for years with this, and allowed them a better retirement as a result.

Breeding for health instead of eggs would have been better for me. But I didn't know...