Green Rosie
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Dead chickenLast night when I went to shut the chook house door one chicken was missing. Later, just after the dogs had been out for their late night run, one dog was really wimpering to go out again. We let her out and she ran off but came back very quickly.
This morning I found the missing chicken, dead on a pile of builders sand near where the dog had run last night. There was not a mark on her and no feathers around but she appears to have bled a lot from her back-end. She was not egg bound.
Any ideas as to why she might have died?
Could a fox have been around and the chicken died of fright?
She was quite fat and I have heard of such birds just dying from a heart attack.
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Shan
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Pluck the rear and look for teeth marks.
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Green Rosie
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No marks at all and not a feather out of place. I think she just died but exactly why is a mystery.
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boisdevie1
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You need Hercule Poirot and his little grey cells.
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Shan
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As she was quite fat it could be a heart attack. Was her comb and wattles purplish in colour (leading up to her death)?
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Green Rosie
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To be honest I can't recall her comb now but if if was purpley it had always been that colour and I put that down to her being a grey chicken. Her comb never stood up though and always flopped over one eye. I do think it was a heart attack though as she was carrying so much sub-cutaneous fat.
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Mutton
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If you open her up, you may find a blood clot on her heart.
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Green Rosie
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Bit difficult now - she's several fel down 
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Lorrainelovesplants
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We aso have had our first death (not from old age). A Jan hatch bird I found dead in the hut this morning. Hugely fat! So have now been reducing their corn in the afternoon (and switched to mixed corn to just wheat).
Out of 100 birds currently on the place (and having hatched at least 300) I cant really complain.
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