Crooked beak? Cross beak? Neither?

[KrysMarie]

I just picked up a Rhode Island chick today about a week old. And I noticed her beak curves to the right while looking at her. But her bottom and top beak seem to be aligning just fine. Should I be worried?

 

[KrysMarie]

She also tends to close her right eye pretty often.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

She's a little cutie pie

I could be wrong, but more than likely she is suffering genetic/developmental disorder. I don't think there is much that can be done to correct it. See that she is eating her chick starter well. It won't hurt to offer poultry vitamins once a week.

 

[Wickedchicken6]

Hi! @Wyorp Rock is so right....she is a sweetie!

I had an Old English Game Bantam chick that hatched fine but developed the same thing your chick has as she aged, so a bit different. I did administer poultry vitamins and it did seem (at least to me) to help slow/arrest the curving. I agree with trying giving poultry vitamins.

I had a several cases of deficiency type cases and with those I gave a weaker vitamin solution...but over more days in the week.

I did find the top of her beak grew and didn't wear properly so it required a tiny trim every so often so it wouldn't cause issues.

 

[KrysMarie]

Well at least now I have some insight. After trying to google crooked beak all I would get is cross-beak which doesn't look like what I'm experiencing. She's a sweet chick, and my daughter thinks the beak gives her character. Is there any reason to believe she may not make it because if this? I've read somewhere that they have a hard time eating on their own....?

Thank you for responding. So far this is the most helpful information I've received.

 

[KrysMarie]

Also the right eye tends to be shut most of the time. The beak bends to the right could this be the cause?

 

[brucifer]

Also the right eye tends to be shut most of the time. The beak bends to the right could this be the cause?

She may be blind in her right eye, or going blind in that eye, so you may want to test it.

 

[KrysMarie]

Aw man. How do I test for blindness?

 

[brucifer]

Aw man. How do I test for blindness?

It's very easy to do. Just pass your hand past the side of her head where she is blinking, and see if she reacts to your hand movement. Another way is to hold a treat in your hand, a kind of treat with which she is familiar, and only show it to her on the side of her head where she blinks a lot. If she recognizes the treat, and turns her head towards it, then you know that she can see out of that eye.

 

[KrysMarie]

It's very easy to do. Just pass your hand past the side of her head where she is blinking, and see if she reacts to your hand movement. Another way is to hold a treat in your hand, a kind of treat with which she is familiar, and only show it to her on the side of her head where she blinks a lot. If she recognizes the treat, and turns her head towards it, then you know that she can see out of that eye.