Sudden death - 2 month old Araucana roo

[margiejoe]

Hi y’all, I am extremely devastated- I found my 2 month old Araucana roo (Named Crow) dead today in the run. I didn’t see any sort of trauma to his body. I examined his face, butt, and felt his crop and everything looked fine. Here are some details that may help

- he was my only araucana, he lived with a lavender maran roo, 3 barnevelder Roos, 1 barnevelder female and 1 EE female. All are the same age.
- he was smaller than the rest of the flock which I thought was typical for the breed. No one was aggressive towards him though or kept him from food.
- he ate a diet of Purina medicated starter-grower
- he was allowed to forage in the yard a couple times a day. He was out yesterday and was acting normally
- he and the rest of the flock have not started sleeping in their coop yet, they sleep under it against a wall, huddled together. They do go in their coop though during the day to hangout. I had just thoroughly cleaned the coop 2 days ago.
- yesterday I gave them some spinach (ripped up and took out stems) and some oats with bacon grease mixed in.
- it rained overnight and temps were in the 40s. I went out to check on the group around 8AM. Everyone was up and about except for Crow, who was still huddled against the wall but awake.
- 3 hours later I came to check and he was dead, lying in a different area of the run.

Does anyone have an idea what might have caused this? I’m really worried about my other chickens Thank you

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry to hear about Crow.

Unfortunately, without further examination or diagnostics, it would be hard to know why he died.
If you still have the body, wrap it in plastic and keep it cool in the refrigerator. Make arrangements to send it to your state lab for analysis.

https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry-labs.html

 

[margiejoe]

I'm sorry to hear about Crow.

Unfortunately, without further examination or diagnostics, it would be hard to know why he died.
If you still have the body, wrap it in plastic and keep it cool in the refrigerator. Make arrangements to send it to your state lab for analysis.

https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry-labs.html

Thank you for your response. My husband does not want to send him to the lab, he thinks Crow just wasn't strong enough to make it . It was a very rainy and cold night and I am thinking he was in shock from the cold. So I am making the other chickens sleep in the coop from now on.

 

[Saveria]

My amerucana roo has survived -30 degrees, so that shouldn't be it. There are failure to thrive cases, you can leave it at that, but watch the others closely in case it is something else.

 

[margiejoe]

My amerucana roo has survived -30 degrees, so that shouldn't be it. There are failure to thrive cases, you can leave it at that, but watch the others closely in case it is something else.

Oh wow! Google says that the Araucana breed does well in the cold, but I thought maybe since he was only 8 weeks it got to him. Yes, I've been checking on the others every hour. I noticed 2 watery looking diarheas in the coop this morning, but after checking throughout the day I didn't see any more. I watched each of them and they all seemed to be eating and drinking normally. I gave them some grated carrots and they all went for it and just were generally acting normal all day.

 

[Saveria]

If he was fully feathered and off of heat he should have been fine, but maybe it just exacerbated whatever else was going on.

I always trust it when they go like that. Even if you are able to help them get back to health there is no guarantee they will stay there, and though they may be alive, they may not live a happy life. Don't get me wrong, a lot of chickens just need a problem fixed when they are sick, but there are ones that will always have a hard time being healthy. It is sad in the moment, but sometimes it is the best thing in the long run.

 

[laboroflove]

I would get a fecal done on your other birds to see if there are any parasites at play. That can claim lives, especially in young chickens.

 

[Saveria]

Just an aside, you don't want to give too much oats or bacon grease to your chickens. Just have it be a treat that they don't get very often. Oats have compounds in them that the chickens can't break down, and bacon grease can contribute to fatty liver disease. This is not what killed him at all, but that will help the others live longer and be healthier.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you for your response. My husband does not want to send him to the lab, he thinks Crow just wasn't strong enough to make it . It was a very rainy and cold night and I am thinking he was in shock from the cold. So I am making the other chickens sleep in the coop from now on.

Yes, some are just weaker than others. It can absolutely happen.
If you lose another in a short period of time, it would be best to investigate further.

 

[margiejoe]

Just an aside, you don't want to give too much oats or bacon grease to your chickens. Just have it be a treat that they don't get very often. Oats have compounds in them that the chickens can't break down, and bacon grease can contribute to fatty liver disease. This is not what killed him at all, but that will help the others live longer and be healthier.

Thank you for this info!