[grinling]

Sorry to hear the news prod. Hopefully the autopsy will tell you what is wrong, though it might take a few weeks to get the results.
Are all the recent deaths from new chicken stock and from the same place?

[joyfull]

I had a similar problem a few years ago after buying from a person that was supposed to be a reputable breeder, I lost all the birds I got off him (and none of my others that I had bread or bought in from other people) but with the last I had an autopsy. The vet concluded that the illness they had and because of their young age they could have only got it from either a dirty incubator or from dirty eggs.

[Prod]

I have lost another two hens, again at POL  I spoke with the breeder whom I trust, she has contacted the people who bough the remaining Cuckoo Marans and Green legged Partridge Fowl  & they are all well & laying.    I wormed them all in November with the pellets that have Flubenvet in them.  The vet did an autopsy on the first GLPF and could find nothing wrong other than a bit of mucous in her lungs which the Baytril should have cleared.  This morning I found my little Buff Orpington hen in the same condition, eyes closed, droopy wings and standing still.  I gave her a shot of Baytril (the last I had, the vet is getting some ready for me to pick up) Maisie was born and brought up naturally under a broody and her & her mate Eli are kept in a completely separate pen.

The four I bought originally , 2 years ago, are fine (touch wood)

Other than dying, the only thing they have in common is their age  i.e. POL  and the fact that they feel underweight even though I know they are eating the pellets and the handful of corn I give them before bedtime. I clean the coops every other day and although we are a bit exposed up here in the hills the coops are well ventilated and dry.
 
I really don't think I can justify this 'hobby' anymore. My partner has been supportive  but we have lost literally £100's pounds worth of hens so I think I am going to have to give in.

As I was typing this the vet rang me, I am lucky in that our vet's surgery is both agricultural and domestic and one of them, Rosie, sort of specialises in chickens. She is going to give me some more baytril and she repeated that the autopsy showed no direct clue to death, the crop was full, no tumers   and she felt that, for it's age, the chicken had enough 'meat' on it and I am comparing to my 3 yr olds (as some of them would feed a family of 4 if they were a 'table' bird' )

I am not sure as to what else I can do........

[helens-hens]

Hi Prod

Very sorry to hear this is still happening to your flock, apart from the financial side it must be heartbreaking to see this happen to your birds 

How many hens do you have left?

[Prod]

Hi Prod

Very sorry to hear this is still happening to your flock, apart from the financial side it must be heartbreaking to see this happen to your birds 

How many hens do you have left?

Thanks for your comments. I have, counting the two little Nankin chicks which have just hatched and are safely out of the way, I have 11 hens and 4 cockerels  but the strange thin is that it dose not seem to affect the cockerels.

[joolz68]

Could it be an alitude problem? stressing themselves out wanting to lay and with  lower oxygen levels possibly prooved fatal for them?  2 of mine mine used run up down(at pol) when they are about to lay as  thou they have forgotton were they were roosting and were the nest boxes was situated,sorry for your losses,hope you solve the mystery x

[grinling]

Can you identify every plant within their eating boundry. Has any pesticides been used to your knowledge where  these hens have been. Have your original hens occupied this area before your latest lot arrived.
Can you name the plants as some like ragwort is poisonous to chooks.

[Prod]

I did mention altitude to the vet  but their are people/farms much further up than ours Plus I have four of the first chickens I ever bought, now coming up to 3 yrs old.  There is nothing new that I can see in terms of vegetation, in fact we used to have a bed with fruit bushes on  but we have moved those up to the garden. I cannot find any common link as the hens come from different pens/parts of the field so they don't share water or food.  I use grandpa's feeder or 'springer' feeders for food and water containers with nipples (which are stainless steel) which I clean regularly.  the hens that have died have all been roughly the same age and have been 'bought in' from different breeders and kept in quarantine.  Unfortunately I lost an other yesterday, a 6 mth old Buff Orpington, Maisie, but she was hatched and raised naturally under  a broody who sat on 6 eggs and 3 hatched. The other 2 were cockerels so I gave one away but kept the other as he is a lovely looking boy, Welsummer/French Copper Marans cross and I thought he could run with my mixed flock that I am not breeding from. I have 5 cockerels inc him  but it is the POL's that are dying.  Anyway I decided to take Maisie to the Vets today and have a full autopsy which I know will cost me about £80/90   but it has to be worth it if they can find a cause. I cant keep losing valuable birds so I either find the cause or call it a day.  Although I might not find homes for the remaining chickens at least I can recoup money from selling the coops etc.......

[grinling]

Hope the autopsy does.
Is there any foot prints around the outside of the runs. Sprinkling flour around might show any up, or snow if you have that.

[joyfull]

it really is a mystery, fingers crossed the autopsy shows something amiss.

[Sassy]

I really hope you are able to sort this out. all the very best

[grinling]

Did they feel soft around the abdomen ( the ones which died), or look bloated? Do the rest of the new stock feel like the old stock, possibly a bit boney due to age. A year old legbar here is more slender than the 2 year old bluebelle.
Also what position were they found in...on backs or sides & legs in air or on the ground, curled up?

[grinling]

just occured to me that you said there are people higher up than you with chooks. It might be worth chatting to them to see if they have had any deaths recently.

[Prod]

I live in a very remote are, apart from the small cluster of cottages around the Church the next 'neighbours' are miles away None of my immediate neighbours keep chickens so I cant ask them. The process is, if I find them alive, their eyes are closed and they stand very still with the wings down so they are very easy to pick up (instead of the usual panic when I try to catch a bird. They are not as stupid as some people make out, if I get my net out of the shed as soon as they see it they speed off!  Anyway back to the problem, when I pick them up they seem cold and underweight , although the Vet did not think that they were and perhaps I was comparing to my older birds some of which could feed a family of 4. Apart from being dead the vet says they look in fine condition, no mites/fleas exterior infection and full crops. When they die they are usually lay on their sides fully stretched out. Hopefully (although I am not really looking forward to it in case I have to cull them all) I should get a call today to hear what the Laboratory says.....

[joolz68]

Full crops you say? i dont know how long it takes for a crop to empty fully during roost time,you sure no one is poisoning them? stab in the dark i know! clutching at straws for you  :(x
I hope the autospy finds the answer for you,im sure there are also few here hoping for your peace of mind xx