Hey everyone one of little chicks that hatched a few weeks ago has a crooked beak.The bottom part of it goes out from under the top part. & they don't go together like they should.Is there any way of fixing this.The poor little guy has been eating & drinking fine for 2 weeks now but it seems to be getting more crooked.I figured it couldn't hurt to ask before I get rid of him.Thanks Mike
Yes I was told to cull before I got too attached but I decided to let it play out. There are a few folks that have had wonderful success but I think their's had the malformation at the top. My little chick had it on the bottom and the defect became too great he could no longer eat. His gullet was empty all the time, he peaked at the foo all the time, and acted as if he was starving. Then he began to sit listless lost weight and became weak I culled in a humane manner while crying like I lost a dear friend. I would do it again because the chick allowed me to value his life and the students at the preschool learned a lot from him as well. They still continue to ask about him. https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=145654 I am so silly I can't even write the post without crying
I got two from tractor supply that way but worse and with only one eye. I would try and keep it going till it seemed like it wasnt making it. Who knows it may live along life. Give it deep dishes to drink out of and vitamins in it's water.
I'm struggling with that issue right now as well. I have had two crossbeaks develop in the past week or two (my babies are about 5 weeks old). Here's the worst one: Both of them are doing fine now but I guess I'll have to watch them to see if they get worse and struggle to eat and drink.
I have a two year old wyandotte with a bad cross beak and she is doing well. She has to work a lot harder to eat and looks a little rougher than the other girls because of it. When my flock is free ranging she usually stays inside and eats more due to the lack of competition. I have to watch her to make sure her body condition is ok, I've had to pull her from the flock twice during the winter and put her with my 11 year old hen in my feed room so that she didn't have any competition. During the rest of the year she does great, its only when my birds are kept indoors and tend to fight more that she doesn't get enough to eat.
Quote:The link provided here is a good link. I was looking for another one where the poster had good luck with their cross beak, but couldn't find the thread I was looking for.
