Why did my RIR die???

[4BoyMama]

ok so we are new at this, we have a small flock of 7 girls and 1 Roo all just about 15 months old. About 2 weeks ago we started getting very very small brown eggs from one of our girls, we weren't sure which one. The eggs were "normal" just very small and had no yolk. We did not eat them. I think we got 4 in total over a 2 week period, overall the other days we got normal eggs as expected.
However today my hubby when out to water them and found one of our RIR still in a nesting box, panting, and very lethargic. This is very uncommon for her, she usually lays early morning and then runs around all day. And this evening I went to lock them up for the night and found her dead in a nesting box. So my assumption is she is the one who was laying the weird eggs.

What do we do? Is this a disease that will spread? Should we be looking for mites or something? Any help would be appreciated!
Thanks!!

 

[PatrickRoo]

Did she have dry, flaky skin? If so, it might have been mites or lice that killed her. Check your other chickens for dry, flaky legs.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

My guess would be a heart attack. If you have ever watched a hen lay it can be stressful on them. Is it hot where you are at? Generally those small eggs are glitches in the system. Usually they contain a small bit of tissue that the body processes as a regular egg. I see them now and again, and are generally nothing to worry about.