Sudden hen death, no apparent cause, what do I look for in a necropsy?

[EmmaDonovan]

We found a 6.5 month old Bielefelder hen dead this afternoon. She was fine this morning, running around, eating and drinking and behaving totally normally. There was nothing unusual about her in the past few days or weeks. I saw her in the coop when I did coop chores this morning and also watched the flock for hours on the coop camera. The rest of the flock seems perfectly fine.

Whatever killed her happened in less than three hours. She had no wounds, her crop was normal, she wasn't egg bound. Her coloring was normal. I didn't see any signs of a fight or struggle. It looks like she just lay down and died.

I know about sudden death syndrome. If we do a necropsy, what specifically should we look for?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

We found a 6.5 month old Bielefelder hen dead this afternoon. She was fine this morning, running around, eating and drinking and behaving totally normally. There was nothing unusual about her in the past few days or weeks. I saw her in the coop when I did coop chores this morning and also watched the flock for hours on the coop camera. The rest of the flock seems perfectly fine.

Whatever killed her happened in less than three hours. She had no wounds, her crop was normal, she wasn't egg bound. Her coloring was normal. I didn't see any signs of a fight or struggle. It looks like she just lay down and died.

I know about sudden death syndrome. If we do a necropsy, what specifically should we look for?

I'm sorry to hear about your pullet.

I'd take a look at the major organs (heart, liver, etc.) and the reproductive system. Basically the internal cavity.

Take some photos if possible, we'll try to help you with what you see.

I've found this video to be helpful. Of course this a professional necropsy, but the organs are labeled and you can scroll to different sections to make some comparisons.

 

[EmmaDonovan]

Thank you, that video is very helpful. I haven't started on her yet. I spent a few hours reviewing the cam footage to see if there were any clues as to what happened.

At 1:30 she was walking around, scratching and pecking in the dirt. She drank water, preened a little, and pooped normally. At 1:35 she joined the other Bielefelders in the farthest corner of the coop, behind the feeders and waterers. They all hang out together so that was nothing unusual. She was moving normally, she was alert and energetic, wasn't in distress or pain.

The next time I could see anything of her I could barely make out one of her legs behind a waterer. That's a popular dust bathing spot so even if I had seen her leg there earlier I wouldn't have thought anything of it. She was in that same spot when I found her about two hours later.

I watched the cam footage to see if there was a fight or if she was bitten by something or anything else that might have happened but everything was as normal as could be. It really seems like she just lay down and died.

 

[Sally PB]

I'm sorry for your loss. Please let us know what, if anything, you learn.

Fly high and free, dear bird.

Hugs for you.

 

[NewcoopNewpoop]

Sounds like a gentle way to go. I often wonder about annuerysms, they happen in everything else... anyway, sorry for your loss.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Primarily you'll look for any anomalies in the organs. Either discoloration, enlarged or atrophied. Look at the heart, liver, kidneys, gizzard, lungs, intestines, etc. You can find pictures of normal and abnormal organs on google and maybe even a YouTube video of necropsy.

 

[Eggcessive]

I have learned a lot from opening the abdomen and looking at the abdominal contents, the liver, intestines, heart, crop and gizzard, even lungs up into the back. If you see any yellow fluid when you cut into the abdomen, that can be ascites/water belly. If there is a ton of yellow fat everywhere and a blood clot near the liver, that can be fatty liver hemorrhagic disease. Spots on organs can be cancer or infection. Tiny tumors may be seen along the intestines and organs. Chalky white deposits on organs can be gout. Look for any worms, and gizzard contents.

 

[EmmaDonovan]

I didn't do a necropsy on Hope (the hen who passed away). The old fridge where I was keeping her body until I had time to do the necropsy finally stopped working after some large temperature fluctuations all the up to 62F.

I don't know how well her body was being preserved at those temps or if the temperature changes might have affected her organs to the point where they wouldn't tell me anything useful about how she died, so I figured it was better to just let her go.

Unfortunately we lost another Bielefelder hen today. I watched the playback on the camera and it happened exactly the same as the first one: she just lay down and her head slowly sunk down and she died.

She behaved completely normally all morning, eating and drinking and pooping. She had no wounds anywhere and she was not egg bound. She didn't seem distressed in any way. Her feet, eyes, comb, everything looked fine. She was a big, gorgeous Bielefelder like her sisters.

I'm very concerned that this has happened again but I'm not going to do a necropsy. There's a lot going on and this has hit me hard and I'm just not up to it.

Rest in peace, Hope and Maria. Thank you for your eggs and your wonderful, sweet, friendly personalities. You were excellent hens.

 

[Eggcessive]

So sorry for your loss. Is there any way that you can have your state vet lab do a necropsy? You can call yours today, and ask how to ship the body overnight if you are too far to drive in. A cooler with ice would be a good way to keep the body cold instead of using a refrigerator. At least this would help if you lose another.

 

[Kiki]

I didn't do a necropsy on Hope (the hen who passed away). The old fridge where I was keeping her body until I had time to do the necropsy finally stopped working after some large temperature fluctuations all the up to 62F.

I don't know how well her body was being preserved at those temps or if the temperature changes might have affected her organs to the point where they wouldn't tell me anything useful about how she died, so I figured it was better to just let her go.

Unfortunately we lost another Bielefelder hen today. I watched the playback on the camera and it happened exactly the same as the first one: she just lay down and her head slowly sunk down and she died.

She behaved completely normally all morning, eating and drinking and pooping. She had no wounds anywhere and she was not egg bound. She didn't seem distressed in any way. Her feet, eyes, comb, everything looked fine. She was a big, gorgeous Bielefelder like her sisters.

I'm very concerned that this has happened again but I'm not going to do a necropsy. There's a lot going on and this has hit me hard and I'm just not up to it.

Rest in peace, Hope and Maria. Thank you for your eggs and your wonderful, sweet, friendly personalities. You were excellent hens.

It would be well worth it to send her to your state lab to find out the reason. There could be something that you can change/do to prevent more deaths.