Sudden death!

[Kmcode3]

New to backyard chickens. One of our chickens came out the coop fine this morning. But wife found it on its back 2 hours latter not breathing. Nothing new to diet or yard. Rescued baby chicks from a pet store after Easter this past spring. Learning as we go. Any thoughts on preveting other chickens from same fate. The 2 yellow chicks turned white but got huge fast. This is one of the ones that passed today. Pet store knew nothing about type of chickens that they were. In researching online it is apparently common for bigger birds to suffer heart attacks? Any insights?

 

[HappyDancin']

Yes, that's true...especially the meat birds! (which get huge, fast!) What age did it die?

Oh, and welcome to the Backyard Chickens forum!

 

[someusername]

RIP chicken

 

[Grits&Eggs]

welcome! - sorry for your loss. Did you say you just got them last easter or just a couple months ago easter? ...what is their routine? are they all eating and drinking normal? mine are 4 months and still growing, can you post a pic of the remaining chicks?

 

[WhiteWyan]

Hey OP I think you're on to something. My advice is to Google "cornish cross chicken" along with the age of your chicks. If they look like your birds, then that's probably what they are. I'm assuming since it was Easter, they are 5 months old? These guys must be huge now if they are the "meatbird" variety. Yes they are prone to health issues and heart attacks. I'm so sorry to hear about your feathered friend.

Maybe if you put them on a diet or try to get them to move around more they might get in better shape. I hope the rest of your birds are okay.

 

[Kmcode3]

Thank you for the welcome and the reply. We got them in April, so about 6 months old.

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

Sorry for your loss. Bear hugs!

 

[annaBsChick]

I am sorry that happened. It sounds pretty traumatic. I found poultryDVM's chicken symptom checker tool to be a prettyuseful for narrowing down possibilities - http://www.poultrydvm.com/views/symptoms.php

 

[Kmcode3]

Thank you so much.

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry for your loss. I would agree that it would be possible that your dead chicken was a meat bird, a cornish cross. Occasionally, these birds are accidentally bought by people thinking they are egg layers. Meat birds are typically meant to be butchered around 6-8 week old, and if they are kept past that time, they can suffer from leg injuries and heart attacks. Can you post a picture of the remaining white chicken? This is a picture of growing cornish cross meatbirds—note the heavy bodies: