# Graphic Warning - Necropsy Photos



## WeeLittleChicken (Aug 31, 2012)

This morning was incredibly sad. I woke up and went to let everyone out and found one of my Cornish boys dead on the ground - where he would normally wait for me to let him out. He was still warm. There was some white discharge coming out of his nose and mouth (but this was super new - he hadn't had any of that in life. I thought maybe he choked?) It was a real shock. He was in great weight and had no symptoms at all - besides his usual weirdness with his feet but he's been acting like there's duct tape on the bottom of his feet for well over a year now. His two brothers do the same.

Anyway.... cut him open. Not 100% sure what happened but I found a _really_ healthy liver and some impressive testicles. Then I found a few odd things here and there..

Liver/Gallbladder: 









The Family Jewels









The Intestines - These seemed to be unusually full of air and maybe a little discolored. I wasn't sure what to make of it. I also found two "dead ends" - pieces of intestines that led nowhere.










The dead ends at top:









The heart- Perhaps a bit big but firm and normally shaped. There was a bit of fat over it but I have seen much worse. Looked pretty normal from the front.










From the back you could see the top was filled with coagulated blood and had turned black. Had a really hard time figuring out if this was damage caused while alive or just the way the blood settled after death.










He also seemed to be super vascular... there were veins attaching EVERYTHING. Made getting his organs out a real mess. Tried to get a photo but I don't know if I did it justice.










Lastly I tried finding his lungs, and embarrassingly couldn't... Turns out I turned one into mince meat opening him up (oops) and the second one was completely deflated. I *think* this is his lung, I mean I don't know what else it would be but it was collapsed if that is what it is. Even more curious it's filled with the same white fluid and a cottage cheese like substance (I'm guessing puss)










So after this I am wondering if one of those pockets to nowhere didn't form on his lung (which also seemed badly misshapen.) An infection could occur easily in something like that and maybe it turned into an abscess, popped, and he drown in his own fluids?? Or was it a heart attack? Or something else... SIGH. I don't know. He was so healthy though, and only two years old. I'm going to miss him and I know my hens will too!


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## Cockadoodledoo (Jan 28, 2016)

He does seem to be very vascular. I agree, the intestines look very odd. Hmmm, curious to hear what the others have to say.


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

I had a Polish roo not two yrs. Old . He just flipped over and died. I thought he was harrassing a hen, but he was in the throws of death. I thought he was playing dead. He wasn't. No reason, no idea.

I heard that's common in Cornish. I think their heart gives out.


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## WeeLittleChicken (Aug 31, 2012)

Yeeeeah, my Cornish have had very odd problems... that's why despite being my favorite birds here I haven't bred them. They came to me in a shipment of fifty and they were so tiny and weak that I only got six to survive after setting up a chick ICU in my living room. They grew up beautiful - but the boys have some sort of nerve issue in their feet. Whenever it's cold they start goose stepping like there's duct tape on the bottom of their feet. I have caught them to look for bumbles, thorns, slivers, anything... and there's just nothing there. Whether or not this had anything to do with my findings I don't know. They also all started out socially reeeeally awkward. The other chickens did NOT take to them until they were the only roosters left and then everything went well from there. Now everyone gets along great and these roosters are such wonderful peace keepers, they make sure the up and coming roosters treat their hens with respect! I bought them to eat initially - they filled another job opening I didn't know I had! SIGH. RIP Darcy.


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

it's hard to eat something you raised up. I couldn't do it.


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## casportpony (Aug 22, 2015)




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## Cockadoodledoo (Jan 28, 2016)

That's such a great image. Maybe those two pieces of intestine that seemed to go no where we're the ceca?


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## WeeLittleChicken (Aug 31, 2012)

Guess so. I have to admit I normally take the intestines out but I have never had to inspect them further than the usual worm check because they always looked normal. I did take out the gizzard/proventriculus. Again very normal looking so I didn't bother to take a photo. I'm still wondering if he didn't just choke to death.


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

I know it took me a few necropsies to get better at it. It's hard to figure what's right and not right. It's hard to know what to look for.


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## Cockadoodledoo (Jan 28, 2016)

Haha....next time I'm going to want to lay them out just like in the picture....my husband will think I'm crazy....playing with intestines and testicles and such


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## casportpony (Aug 22, 2015)

I found some helpful info in this PDF:
http://vet.uga.edu/oldvpp/programs/afvet/attachments/how_to_necropsy_a_bird.pdf


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## WeeLittleChicken (Aug 31, 2012)

Wow, that's pretty extensive.... never gone so far as to take out the brain. Not even sure how you can do that... will read it more thoroughly, maybe it tells you.


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