Why Did My Friend Die?

[NubbyRyuu]

Welcome to Byc
Sorry for your loss
The only way to find out what caused her to die would be to get a necropsy done at your state vet

Necrospy? Like an autopsy? They've already buried her, so I don't think that'll happen.

 

[NubbyRyuu]

Is the photo you posted recent. Her frost bitten toes look to have healed very well and I would probably discount gangrene from that.
Production reds are prone to reproductive ailments as they get older but there is no indication of abdominal swelling from that photo which is why I ask if it was recent. Abdominal swelling is common with reproductive disorders so and it sounds like she laid eggs recently since your post suggests you are incubating her eggs... (good luck with that) so those things would probably rule that out.
A swollen foot could point to gout and/or possible kidney disease but unlikely if she was still laying eggs. Another cause of a swollen foot could be MS (Micoplasma Synoviae). Did she display any respiratory symptoms as well as the swollen foot. I know she is dead but can you post some photos of her and her feet as that might help us but to be fair we would still be guessing and a necropsy is the way to get to the bottom of it. Some state labs in the USA are heavily subsidised for such services, so it can be relatively cheap (even free in some states) whilst others are more pricey. Other parts of the world, veterinary colleges are the place to go for this service. Or you can perform a DIY necropsy and take photos of what you find and share them here and we will try to help you figure out what went wrong. Personally I hate the suggestion that a bird died of old age (or sudden death syndrome). There is always a medical cause of death whether we are able to pin point it or not is down to our knowledge and efforts to do so. If she was still laying regularly, particularly at this time of year, she was not a very old bird.

Edited to add clarification to my initial wording regarding reproductive disorder in the second paragraph.

No, it's an older photo (few months ago), as I wanted to try and show her at her best. I don't have any of her feet, sadly. But I do recall the way she handled it: laying down, holding it close to her body, toes kinda "curled" (not sure what it'd be considered).

Lol, while she's already buried, there's no way I could do an autopsy of her (and I was the only brave one to do a fetal pig in college in my group). Oh yeah, I never thought of the colleges like that. But I doubt their "body disposals" are "nice".

I do have some recent photos within the last couple days. I did feel her legs initially when I saw her limping and felt nothing out of place, and holding her, her weight felt fine and nothing to report on her belly.

Yup, she laid one single egg before yesterday, and usually laid one per day (some days there were none which I read was normal). But wow, you've given me quite a bit to look into! Who knew a lump in the foot could indicate a kidney problem!

 

[NubbyRyuu]

I really must apologise, as I did not offer my sympathies for your loss in my previous post. That was really insensitive of me . She was clearly a well loved chicken and you must be really feeling her loss even if she was not your bird.
I know it can be emotionally taxing thinking about cutting her open, but I find that it also gives me some closure and often I learn something from the process which helps me in the future or helps me to help someone else via this forum, so it can be a beneficial process if you can overcome the mental obstacle of doing a necropsy yourself.
Obviously, since this was not actually your hen, you would need to seek permission from your neighbour before going ahead with that. If you decide to do it and get the green light from next door, there are a few of us that have quite a bit of experience at this and would be happy to guide you through it.

Oh no worries, man! I didn't see it as insensitive at all! I know where you're coming from since I'm sure there are owners out there that would do their own autopsies. Heck, I remember trying to look up how to euthanize a fish (a betta of mine was on his way out), and was shocked at the things I found. I know it's a fish but...holy crap!

 

[NubbyRyuu]

Hello NubbyRyuu.
Welcome to BYC.
I'm sorry to read you've lost your friend Nubby.
As rebrascora mentions a necropsy may give you the reason your this hen died.
It is possible that in falling she cracked a bone and/or received some internal injury.
If she was eating, mobile (despite the foot/leg problems) and laying eggs then disease wouldn't be what I would have looked for first.

That's what I was thinking, she could've injured herself with the fall and we didn't see it. Despite that she was still doing fine, but lord knows if she happened to get infected or something.

 

[NubbyRyuu]

Here are some of the more recent photos I had of Nubs within the last couple days.