What is the usual cause of natural death in chickens?

[Jtaranc]

I have a pair of bantam porcelain d'uccles I got at tractor supply years ago.

One roo and one hen and they paired off in our flock. The hen is broody right now. This morning i opened the lay box to collect eggs and my d'uccle roo was dead next to his hen

No wounds or anything. Its like he knew he was gonna die and laid with her. Normally he'd never go in there.

My husband said he went into the coop like normal to eat and was normal all day.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Sorry for your loss, he was a handsome boy. How old was he? The only way to know cause of death for sure is to send the body to a state lab for a necropsy. If you still have it, refrigerate it, double bagged until you are ready to ship it. Do not freeze it. Would you like a list of state labs?

 

[Ridgerunner]

According to a poultry science professor that worked a lot with backyard chickens the leading cause of death for backyard chickens is predators. Things like dogs, foxes, and raccoons. I'm glad you avoided that as it could really be traumatic. It sounds like he went peacefully.

He was normal all day so that eliminates a lot of things. He was not sick or have a lingering injury. Not kidney or liver disease, for example.

My guess is the same that gets a lot of older people, heart attack or stroke. Something that kills quickly. A necropsy might reveal the actual cause, might not.

You said you got him years ago. Sounds like you are missing an old friend.

 

[Jtaranc]

Sorry for your loss, he was a handsome boy. How old was he? The only way to know cause of death for sure is to send the body to a state lab for a necropsy. If you still have it, refrigerate it, double bagged until you are ready to ship it. Do not freeze it. Would you like a list of state labs?

He was 6.

We buried him this morning. He wasnt sick, no one else is sick. I just feel bad he laid down with his partner and died. Maybe he felt it coming on.

We were thinking maybe his heart gave out.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I think it's very sweet that he was with his partner when he died. And that he went peacefully.

 

[Mrs. K]

I call that sudden death syndrome. They are fine, and then you find them dead. They were so fine, that you find it hard to believe he was dead. An older chicken lady told me, it was a heart attack or stroke... and that we should all be so lucky."

Good life, quick end.

Mrs K