Sudden death of bird, no idea what happened

[banghair]

So one of my favourite little ladies died this morning, she is a serama, probably about 5 months old.

Yesterday morning when we let her out of the coop she was acting a bit odd, lethargic and puffed out. (EDIT: Late afternoon her temperature seemed to drop, forgot to add this) By last night she lost all mobility and showed symptoms of severe wry neck. This morning, probably early hours as she is stiff and it is 7:30AM she has passed away.

She had no other symptoms aside from what I mentioned here and it happened very quickly, no other animals are displaying any signs that anything is wrong. Do you have any idea what could have caused this?

RIP Thumbelina

 

[Sparrows]

@Eggcessive can you help?

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry for your loss. What is your location? With her age, wry neck and sudden loss, Mareks disease comes to mind. Wry neck can also happen with a head injury, and in vitamin E or riboflavin deficiency. Do you feed a balanced feed? What has the temperature been there in her coop? Have you added any new birds to your flock recently? If you are in the US, the best way to get a diagnosis is by having your state vet perform a necropsy. They also test for certain diseases. Here is a list of state vets to contact, and meanwhile keep the body cold, not frozen, and wrapped in 2 clean bags:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry...7IOlHOhP-eD8qMtZ70RNq6BMO9kVUn3x6so7q0Z_JgEr8

 

[banghair]

Sorry for your loss. What is your location? With her age, wry neck and sudden loss, Mareks disease comes to mind. Wry neck can also happen with a head injury, and in vitamin E or riboflavin deficiency. Do you feed a balanced feed? What has the temperature been there in her coop? Have you added any new birds to your flock recently? If you are in the US, the best way to get a diagnosis is by having your state vet perform a necropsy. They also test for certain diseases. Here is a list of state vets to contact, and meanwhile keep the body cold, not frozen, and wrapped in 2 clean bags:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry...7IOlHOhP-eD8qMtZ70RNq6BMO9kVUn3x6so7q0Z_JgEr8

She is vaccinated for mareks, not sure if that matters, her paralysis didn’t start with her legs either though I know that’s not always the case with mareks. She is on co-op 18% + Scratch now that it’s colder. The temperature is probably between 7-9 C. No new birds since August, and I live in BC Canada, there has been a recent avian flu outbreak near me, but I am out of the zone for it technically, and there’s no other symptoms with her or the other chickens so I’m reluctant to think it’s that as well.

 

[Eggcessive]

Scratch does not help to keep them warmer, and it has very little protein and nutrients. I would give just a little as a treat. The regular balanced feed has all of the nutrients and vitamins/minerals they need. Hopefully, it was not Mareks or avian influenza. Here is a link for help in testing or necropsy:
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/...-and-crops/animal-health/animal-health-centre

 

[banghair]

Scratch does not help to keep them warmer, and it has very little protein and nutrients. I would give just a little as a treat. The regular balanced feed has all of the nutrients and vitamins/minerals they need. Hopefully, it was not Mareks or avian influenza. Here is a link for help in testing or necropsy:
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/...-and-crops/animal-health/animal-health-centre

I found another bird dead in the coop today, definitely worried. Left a message with the appropriate agencies just in case. They’ll likely send someone out to test just because of the outbreak here. Hopefully it’s not bad news. Will update during the week.

 

[Altairsky]

Could it be cocci?
I have experience with small birds like finches and canaries. Small birds die pretty fast and the cause of death is not cocci itself but it's often hypotermia (the bird die during the night when it can't maintain its body temperature anymore because of cocci-induced starvation).
Keeping the bird warm (35-38°C) allows it to save all the energies required to keep itself warm and direct those unspent energies to fight off the infection.
Hypotermia can cause neurological issues like wry neck.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would also look at the feed and scratch for any off color or odor that could be mold. If there are any feed spills, clean top hose up. With your cold temps now, there may not be a mold problem, but mold poisoning can look neurological. Coccidiosis should be looked at, but more common in warm, wet, muddy conditions. A vet should be able to do a fecal float on some fresh collected droppings. Coops should be cleaned and dry fresh shavings or bedding added as needed. Please keep us updated on any findings.

 

[Canadian Wind]

Sorry for your losses.

Even if a bird is vaccinated against Mareks it doesn't mean they can't get it. The vaccine was very good at getting rid of the milder forms but is ineffective against the more virulent ones.

Hope you find out what happened and sorry again.

 

[banghair]

Could it be cocci?
I have experience with small birds like finches and canaries. Small birds die pretty fast and the cause of death is not cocci itself but it's often hypotermia (the bird die during the night when it can't maintain its body temperature anymore because of cocci-induced starvation).
Keeping the bird warm (35-38°C) allows it to save all the energies required to keep itself warm and direct those unspent energies to fight off the infection.
Hypotermia can cause neurological issues like wry neck.

The serama was inside with the heat on, but maybe with the silkie it could have been that.