Washingtonians

[Ogress]

OMG! I just killed by BO hen that was not doing so well!!!!

3 minutes ago she was happily eating an apple, and I spent all morning here reading up on what could be ailing her and was convinced that either she's eggbound or had an egg break in her. I read to give her a warm bath, so I picked her up with much panicked protest, she flapped real hard to get away from me when we got to the sink, and the instant I put her in the water, she flipped her head back like her neck was broken, gasped f1 breath for air, closed her eyes and she was dead!!!!

Her abdomen is swollen, it was not yesterday. What have I done???

She was almost acting normal again - just slow, not uncoordinated, no respiratory problems.

 

[jbear]

whoops sorry Cloverleaf..! I didn't read down enough.. lol!

 

[jbear]

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aww..

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

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You didn't do anything. If it was that easy for her to stress herself to death, it was NOT your fault!!! Repeat - NOT YOUR FAULT! If her abdomen is all swollen, she was likely an internal layer and had egg peritonitis.

I'm so sorry!!!

 

[jbear]

what clover said..
i tried to type that.. came out wrong.. so what she said.
It is for sure NOT your fault .. absolutely.

 

[Ogress]

What causes them to become internal layers? What do I do with the dead hen? I feel horrible. Prior to her slow wlak and not jumping up on things anymore (all since Saturday) she had beed a friendly hen that never minded being picked up. I did find 2 soft-shell eggs in the nest box last week. Perhaps they were hers. She was a 9 month old hatchery bird that went broody a few weeks ago and had not been laying regularly since, though she was no longer broody at the time.

I better get her out of the sink before Alex comes home; poor thing.

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

To my knowledge nobody knows the "why" of internal layers, though I have read on here that it is more common in hatchery birds. BUT I lost a bantam Ameraucana to internal laying just 2 months ago that was definitely NOT hatchery stock.

And she was 2 years old, and had never had any soft shelled eggs from her. Though I know that is a sign to watch for internal laying.

As far as what to do with her - bury her, take her to your vet's office for communal cremation (assuming you don't want her ashes back, and communal is MUCH cheaper than a private cremation) or...and I don't want you to think of this as heartless, but simply as another option...regular garbage....

That's usually what I do with chicks I have to cull.
I'm lucky in the fact that I work at a vet's office, so it's not a big deal for me to take deceased adult birds to work with me, but it's an expense, and not one everyone can afford.

 

[hallerlake]

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If putting her in water killed her, she was not long for this world anyway. It's not your fault. I'm sorry.

 

[ByN8ureHomstead]

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I put mine in a bag and they in the trash can.

 

[SadieSue]

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I believe so. I had asked if you had any Auracanas available. That was the breed I had promised my daughter could be hers. So I think we're still looking...