A Tumor or Lump Has Just Appeared on My Pullet's Beak

[Brever]

My new leghorn pullet just had something that looks like a freaking tumor appear on the side of her beak over (I think) the past couple of days. I've included a close up photo. Very worried. Does anybody have any experience with something like this?

 

[Eggcessive]

Can you look inside her beak to see if she’ll has any yellowish patches in there, and check if she has a bad odor? It is located in an area where canker can occur. That said, it also could be a tumor or an abscess, but just have a look inside with a flashlight while someone is holding her. Has she been eating and drinking normally?

 

[Brever]

Can hou look inside her beak to see if she’ll has any yellowish patches in there, and check if she has a bad odor? It is located in an area where canker can occur. That said, it also could be a tumor or an abscess, but just have a look inside with a flashlight while someone is holding her. Has she been eating and drinking normally?

I just had a look and there is nothing inside her beak, it's all clear. Didn't have a smell though (forgot after the trauma of having to work out how to open a chickens beak), but she's definitely eating and drinking normally and it doesn't seem to be bugging her.

 

[Brever]

Are tumors fatal?

I found one post on here where somebody said:

"I have had a few chicks get that growth on their beak... grows quite large, then turns black and hard.. then eventually it just falls off. They only ever get one growth on the beak.. and its always at the top near their nostril... weird. Maybe some kind of mild dry pox? I don't worry now if one gets it... I know it will go and there will be no problem... I have had about 5 chicks get this over the years.. and only one got a bit of a deformed beak from it... but as it grew older the beak straightened out on its own."

 

[Eggcessive]

Since I am not a vet, I don’t know if it is a tumor or infection of some sort, but hopefully the latter. I would clean it with some disinfectant (chlorhexidene, betadine, or Vetericyn,) and apply a dab of antibiotic ointment. You could try lancing it to see if you can express any pus or watch it to see if it grows. Cancer can grow rapidly, and can be caused by some viruses, such as Mareks disease and leukosis, but there are probably other cancers. Benign cysts may be common as well.

Hopefully others will chime in and have a look. I will tag a few of the more experienced folks here such as @casportpony, @azygous, @Wyorp Rock, and @dawg53 .

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Since I am not a vet, I don’t know if it is a tumor or infection of some sort, but hopefully the latter. I would clean it with some disinfectant (chlorhexidene, betadine, or Vetericyn,) and apply a dab of antibiotic ointment. You could try lancing it to see if you can express any pus or watch it to see if it grows. Cancer can grow rapidly, and can be caused by some viruses, such as Mareks disease and leukosis, but there are probably other cancers. Benign cysts may be common as well.

Hopefully others will chime in and have a look. I will tag a few of the more experienced folks here such as @casportpony, @azygous, @Wyorp Rock, and @dawg53 .

I agree with every bit of this.

 

[Brever]

Since I am not a vet, I don’t know if it is a tumor or infection of some sort, but hopefully the latter. I would clean it with some disinfectant (chlorhexidene, betadine, or Vetericyn,) and apply a dab of antibiotic ointment. You could try lancing it to see if you can express any pus or watch it to see if it grows. Cancer can grow rapidly, and can be caused by some viruses, such as Mareks disease and leukosis, but there are probably other cancers. Benign cysts may be common as well.

Hopefully others will chime in and have a look. I will tag a few of the more experienced folks here such as @casportpony, @azygous, @Wyorp Rock, and @dawg53 .

Thank you, I really appreciate the assistance. I'm a little reluctant to try opening it, in case it is something more sinister. I'm really hoping it's the same thing as that guy above was talking about; where they just fall off and don't cause any harm. More worried really because my other chicken is a long term pet, so I'd hate for her to catch anything contagious. But also she usually hates other chickens and she's fully adopted this one, so I'd hate for anything to happen to her new baby. Ps. This is them in yesterdays storm. I'm not kidding, she usually won't let another chicken sleep anywhere near her.

 

[Eggcessive]

Usually, it is safe enough to lance a cyst and squeeze a little to try and express some pus, which may be solid like wax or cheese. If you only get some blood, then, it might be tumor. Peck wounds can result in abscesses. Watching it a day or two won’t hurt though.

 

[azygous]

I've read about beak necrosis caused by bacteria from feed that is too finely ground and it is hard for a chicken to keep the beak clean. I think what @Eggcessive advised makes very good sense. I believe you could help healing better by debriding the lesion. It does not look like a tumor to me.

 

[Brever]

I've read about beak necrosis caused by bacteria from feed that is too finely ground and it is hard for a chicken to keep the beak clean. I think what @Eggcessive advised makes very good sense. I believe you could help healing better by debriding the lesion. It does not look like a tumor to me.

I'm relieved nobody seems to think it's a tumor; I didn't think it would have been anything else. I just had a look at beak necrosis but I am only seeing blackened beaks; no cyst-like bumps. I really am not keen to try this debridement thing, but would considering taking her to a vet to have this done if it shows signs of worsening. Will continue to monitor and update this post with any changes...