Why did my chicken die?

[TOPSY147]

Hi
I am a new member hoping to get some advice on keeping my chickens. I purchased 3 hens in July this year (all POL)- 1 black Rock, 1 Maran Cou Cou and 1 Warren and up to last week they were all fine.

Last Wednesday my husband noticed that one of them had runny poo-pasty white and watery, but they all seemed to be OK. Then on Saturday morning he found the Maran Cou Cou near death. We examined her to see if she had an egg broken in her vent or anything and she really smelt, plus we found all the feathers missing from her breast down to her vent and she was very skinny. She was the most difficult of the 3 to handle so we had not noticed anything until then. There was no sign of parasites and the area was not red. She rallied a little when we gave her water with a syringe but sadly died Saturday evening. Does anyone have any idea what killed her.

If it was just the diarrhoea we would have thought it was due to something she ate but the missing feathers are a mystery. I wormed them 2 months ago and put cider vinegar or poultry drink in their water regularly. They are fed on layers pellets with the odd treat late afternoon-meal worms, corn, or veg etc.

At the moment the remaining two seem OK are are laying.

I would appreciate any advice.

PS She wasn't egg bound and I have now wormed the other two who seem alright and are continuing to lay.

 

[CariLynn]

Sometimes chickens just well, die. I have had several hens die in this year and a half ownership of chickens. My last hen I lost seemed fine one week, then the next week she was listless, drank and drank, seemed to have a hard time using one side, and was very thin. Instead of asking on line or wracking my brain and worrying myself sick, I called my large animal vet, explained what was going on, and in she went. Thank goodness I had the forethought to to this, he humanely put her to sleep, he sent samples of tissue away for a necropsy and you know what? She passed of cancer at 3 years of age.

I am learning, that while chickens are fairly easy to keep, wonderful little pets to have who provide hours of entertainment and joy, but sometimes we can't save them, that nature takes over and we loose our little chickens. Just par for the course when we own animals.

 

[easttxchick]

Internal parasites would have been my first guess.

 

[Chicken_Pauper]

Age of the chickens? Have you wormed them?

Here... check this out... you could have just seen normal poop... http://www.chat.allotment.org.uk/index.php?topic=17568.0

Best info on worming here... Search "Worming" or "Worming with Valbazen".... note info posted by dawg53.

Good luck.

 

[Chicken_Pauper]

Also search "sour crop", or "bad odor" coming from chicken's beak, etc...