Second Buff Orpington Randomly Dead

[urbanMike]

I'm now concerned. So, about a little over a month ago, one of our Buff Orpingtons died randomly after she was out ranging with the flock and I had put them away back in their run and coop. She had always been a weird one. She was the last one to lay, and took longer than everyone else to mature, and had only started laying this year in 2021. She also always walked with a bit of a limp. And I kind of shrugged it off as she might have had a heart issue or something. Since she was so slow to mature compared to all the others that started laying eggs last fall. (We got all of our flock of 6 birds last March 2020)

Fast forward today, I peek out from my office window and see one of our beautiful friendly Buff's face planted in the coop.....

So I just found another one dead.... And now I'm concerned. I'm not sure what is going on here. I've read some of the articles about reasons why your chickens might just randomly die.... But there are just no visible indicators. They've got oyster shells, they've got fresh water every day, they've got great feed, they've all been laying consistently....

So I'm wondering if perhaps Buff Orpingtons are prone to heart issues.... ??? or if I need to investigate deeper. See there is one concern. We recently added a puppy to our household and I've been working with her to not bother the chickens. And they mostly stay separated, but she does like to sit in front of the run. Or follow them around the yard a bit. So I'm wondering if her presence could have stressed the Buffs.... but I just don't know. They usually seem to ignore the dog when they are in the run. Everything seemed fine today.

Also, I did look her over. Her vent is clear, she has no mites or signs of lice. She looked like a healthy bird. (Don't know if it's appropriate to post did bird photos, but I took some for my records)

So... where should I invesitgate? I'm not sure I want to cut my chicken open to see if she was backed up. But I'm thinking at the bare minimum, we'll clean the whole coop top to bottom. Dump all current food and replace with new feed. Dump the water, go get all new bedding, buy Poultry Shield. I don't know what else.

I mean we keep a clean coop. Just don't know what to do here, and one I could shrug off, but two?? Now I'm worried.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Her legs look really skinny. Have you felt her well, for muscle mass?

Buffs aren't more prone to heart issues.

How does their abdomen feel, squishy like a water bed, or hard like a mass?

What feed do you feed them?

Treats, & how often?

 

[urbanMike]

Kinda squishy actually.

I think that's just the camera on her legs. Otherwise, all my birds have skinny legs...

They get feed soy & corn-free Small Pet Select layer feed. The most common treats are these mealworms. Semi-often. Usually, though I throw a handful when they are free-ranging to encourage scratching behavior.

They do get table scraps. My daughters often don't finish their scrambled eggs. Those go to the chickens. Salad scraps and we like to buy them iceberg lettuce and hang it. They also seem to like romaine lettuce as well. But nothing today. This varies. A few times a week. Sometimes not at all.

And we have about a .20 acre fenced yard they roam pretty regularly. The rest of the time, or if the kids are playing or the dog is being a bother, they stay in the run and coop area.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Kinda squishy actually.

I think that's just the camera on her legs. Otherwise, all my birds have skinny legs...

They get feed soy & corn-free Small Pet Select layer feed. The most common treats are these mealworms.

They do get table scraps. My daughters often don't finish their scrambled eggs. Those go to the chickens. Salad scraps and we like to buy them iceberg lettuce and hang it. They also seem to like romaine lettuce as well.

And we have about a .20 acre fenced yard they roam pretty regularly. The rest of the time, or if the kids are playing or the dog is being a bother, they stay in the run and coop area.

So they get table scraps, & treats every day?

 

[urbanMike]

I clarified that not every day, a few times a week maybe. And usually once at that.

 

[MysteryChicken]

I clarified that not every day, a few times a week maybe. And usually once at that.

Okay, I didn't notice.
Weird.

 

[Weeg]

What has the temp been were you are? In the first pic, it almost looks like they're panting. Is that just the photo, or did you notice any panting from other birds/them before they died?
If it has been hot, do they have shade and protection from the heat?
Could they have gotten access to string, or anything sharp they could have swallowed? Sting tangles in their intestines, and sharp materials can puncture the insides.
Any chance they could have gotten to mold or other toxins?
@Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock
If you wanted to know for sure, you could send her in for a Necropsy at your state lab. @Eggcessive can give links. If you want to do that, keep the body cool but not frozen.
Sorry for the loss of your hens.

 

[MysteryChicken]

What has the temp been were you are? In the first pic, it almost looks like they're panting. Is that just the photo, or did you notice any panting from other birds/them before they died?
If it has been hot, do they have shade and protection from the heat?
Could they have gotten access to string, or anything sharp they could have swallowed? Sting tangles in their intestines, and sharp materials can puncture the insides.
Any chance they could have gotten to mold or other toxins?
@Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock
If you wanted to know for sure, you could send her in for a Necropsy at your state lab. @Eggcessive can give links. If you want to do that, keep the body cool but not frozen.
Sorry for the loss of your hens.

I had a hen poop out a whole string from a feed bag about 3 years ago, & she was fine.
Not sure how common string consumption is with chickens.

Yes, I agree with sharp objects being a possibility.

 

[urbanMike]

What has the temp been were you are? In the first pic, it almost looks like they're panting. Is that just the photo, or did you notice any panting from other birds/them before they died?
If it has been hot, do they have shade and protection from the heat?
Could they have gotten access to string, or anything sharp they could have swallowed? Sting tangles in their intestines, and sharp materials can puncture the insides.
Any chance they could have gotten to mold or other toxins?
@Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock
If you wanted to know for sure, you could send her in for a Necropsy at your state lab. @Eggcessive can give links. If you want to do that, keep the body cool but not frozen.
Sorry for the loss of your hens.

The first picture was of them the other day, it was 87, they probably were panting but that's the middle of the yard. They have a lot of access to shade on all the sides, are often in the bushes and we actually keep water outside the coop area as well as in it. Last year we actually ran a box fan in the coop. A section of it is shaded all day and they would get down in the dirt in front of the fan whenever they wanted to cool off.

Today was 76 and windy, very windy.

Maybe mold.. or toxins. I've wondered if there could be something in the yard. Or the coop.... but I don't know.

I had a busy schedule, so I didn't let them out today or take them a snack or anything.

The one odd coincidence is she is about literally 2ft to the left of where I found her companion that went before her. They both died with their heads facing the same direction too. Which made me wonder if they fell off the perch at the front of the coop.

 

[Weeg]

The one odd coincidence is she is about literally 2ft to the left of where I found her companion that went before her. They both died with their heads facing the same direction too. Which made me wonder if they fell off the perch at the front of the coop.

This is great info.
I recently found my older Buff dead with her dead shoved into the corner, wings spread out to the sides. There was nothing wrong with her before hand, and nothing that should have caused sudden death.
We have a very narrow, and poorly built coop, so I think she tried to jump to the high perches, missed and maybe crashed into the wall and broke her neck.
She was in a flailing position, but I didn't inspect or anything after I found her, which I probably should have done. Interesting. I definitely think that same place same position isn't a coincidence.