Solitary chicken - need advice

[jjiande]

So it's been a long time coming, but we got our two new girls today. Gracie is a beautiful Bluebelle and Cecily is a lovely Speckledy. Lottie and Feathers (Goldline and blacktail) have been with us more than two years now, and I worry that Lottie may not be long for this world, so it made sense to go for two now rather than later. They are in an eglu classic and run I got at a bargain price on ebay, next to the WIR so we can take the introductions slowly.

 

We popped them straight into the eglu when we got them home mid afternoon and they haven't ventured out yet. They are cuddled up together at the back of the coop looking a bit shellshocked. However, we have noticed that Gracie's beak looks a bit odd. It is not scissored, but the top bit is a little shorter than the bottom. I wish I'd noticed at the breeder (who has a really good reputation) but I didn't. Gracie is obviously the younger of the pair, as her comb isn't very big at all, so might it just sort itself out as she grows? I don't want it to be a problem, and wonder if I should speak to the breeder, but the children are already getting fond of her (she is beautiful) so I don't want to take her back if it will probably all be fine... Any advice gratefully received.

 

I knew I would start the worrying again as soon as we got the new ones...

[Mars]

If she can eat she is fine. you can shorten the longer part if you prefer with something like dog nail trimmer. do it in small steps. if you draw blood it is painful.

[Cat tails]

If you don't draw blood it is stil painful! Bird beaks are very sensitive.

 

If she survived it past the first few weeks, it shouldn't hinder her eating (else she wouldn't have made if so far). Might be that she is less able to pick stuff off the ground. A deeper feeder might be nescessary.

[jjiande]

Thanks for the replies. I've come a long way with chicken keeping but I think beak clipping might be a step too far for me... She is a good size and looks healthy so she must be able to eat OK. I've seen her peck up some corn today without problems, and I'd hope the Grub will be deep enough. They will join the other two in free ranging once the introductions are over, so I guess I'll keep an eye on how things go. Knew I should have come on here first instead of Google!

[Mar1a]

My bluebelle's beak is very similar, with a barely noticeable crossover. It hasn't don't her any harm at all, so I figure if it's not causing her any trouble, I should leave it.

[Chickabee]

I had a with a strange beak. She lived (and laid) for ages

[gavclojak]

I did a rehoming recently and lost of the girls had misshapen beaks but they were all a good weight so I assume they are eating well...clever girls

[Alis girls]

I have a wonky beaked 5 yr old - doesnt stop her eating - shes a piggy. She looks a bit like that emu of Rod Hull's when its beak went wonky.

[jjiande]

Thank you all. The Rod Hull/emu comment really made me laugh. Have had a better look today. Her upper beak curves a little to the left but she can eat and drink fine. She has been pecking away at grass and corn on the ground too so all seems well. She's a sweet little thing.

[The Dogmother]

She may have been beak tipped at the hatchery; this is quite common to minimise pecking she should be able to feed fine, but keep an eye on the lower beak to make sure that it's not over-growing.

 

I once had a Wyandotte bantam with a crossed beak and she had no problems feeding, but I had to trim it every couple of months. Use very sharp plier type toenail clippers, and nip off a tiny bit at a time, being careful not to go too far as the quick is quite near the end. Have some Vet Wound Powder on hand in case you do get a bleed as this will staunch any blood flow. They don't much like having their head held to do it, but it is like having a toe or finger nail cut... not painful, just an inconvenience.

[Cat tails]

The painful part is higly debated DM. There are lots of studies that show at least a change in behaviour post trimming (blood drawn or not) indicating that either the bird is in pain or has sensory loss.

 

 

This is what http://Wikipedia has to say on it, with multiple links to studies.

The beak is a complex, functional organ with an extensive nervous supply including nociceptors that sense pain and noxious stimuli.[19][20] These would almost certainly be stimulated during beak trimming, indicating strongly that acute pain would be experienced. Behavioural evidence of pain after beak trimming in layer hen chicks has been based on the observed reduction in pecking behavior, reduced activity and social behavior, and increased sleep duration.[21][22][23][24] In Japanese quail, beak-trimming by cauterization caused lower body weights and feed intake in the period just after beak trimming.[16] Beak trimmed Muscovy ducks spent less time engaging in beak-related behaviours (preening, feeding, drinking, exploratory pecking) and more time resting than non-trimmed ducks in the days immediately post-trim. These differences disappeared by 1 week post-trim. At 1 week post-trim the trimmed ducks weighed less than non-trimmed ducks, but this difference disappeared by 2 weeks post-trim.[15] It is, however, unclear if the above changes in behaviour arise from pain or from a loss of sensitivity in the beak.[25] Pecking force has been found to decrease after beak trimming in adult hens[26] possibly indicating that hens are protecting a painful area from further stimulation. However, pecking force did not differ between chicks with or without minor beak-trims at 2 to 9 days of age, suggesting that chicks with minor beak-trims do not experience pain from the beak.[27]

[The Dogmother]

I think that depends on whether it is a minor 'beak tipping', or beak trimming, which can be more extensive... I have seen ex-batts (from when we used to volunteer on rescues) with the top beak cut right back - that is plain barbaric.

 

When I first did it on my cross-beaked hen, I asked my specialist poultry vet to teach me to do it properly; he assured me that tipping a beak is just cutting through the keratin, but any further back will, as you say, cause pain and distress. Besides it bleeds like mad!

 

If at all in doubt, I'd always recommend that a person takes the bird to an experienced vet to get it done properly.