Cross Beak! How do you fix it?

[chikenzrok]

I just noticed my chick has cross beak. Some people say to file it down but i dont know how and is there a way to fix it since he is still young?? Please help he is a pet so i would really like to save him!

 

[hokankai]

How old is he? The younger they are the worse it is when it comes to cross beak. Mine made it to 10 weeks and then couldn't eat anymore

 

[chicks4fun]

I had the same issue with one that was so bad as he grew that I had to spoon feed him. I couldn't go outside without him flying up onto my shoulder but sadly he didn't make it after all our work.
My friend that is a vet told me to use a dremmel (sp?) tool. You have to be careful about doing this. I use to take the edges off on opposite sides. I needed help to do this. We wrapped the bird in a towel to keep him still.
Best of luck to you.

 

[chikenzrok]

about a month old

 

[hokankai]

Uh oh...

Well, I know that if it starts before 10 weeks old it's usually pretty bad. That's their biggest growth spurt, so the bones will get more misaligned.

You'll have to choose whether you want to fight and keep it alive as long as you can or see if it doesn't get worse, or if you want to prevent it from going through the process of slowly starving to death.

Do you have a pic of the chick so I can see what it looks like at this point?

 

[chikenzrok]

Uh oh...

Well, I know that if it starts before 10 weeks old it's usually pretty bad. That's their biggest growth spurt, so the bones will get more misaligned.

You'll have to choose whether you want to fight and keep it alive as long as you can or see if it doesn't get worse, or if you want to prevent it from going through the process of slowly starving to death.

Do you have a pic of the chick so I can see what it looks like at this point?

sorry this is the best picture i could get. he kept moving...

 

[nbchickfarming]

sorry to hear about your chick . i have one 5 wks same thing .. Very personal decision on what to do. maybe if you file before it gets too far along it wont be so bad. I

 

[hokankai]

Yeah, you'll just have to wait and see. Mine had a bone deformity where the cheek bones were uneven and it created a really bad scissor beak.

If you want to try filing, do it with a dremel and VERY carefully. Keep an eye on his face to see if it's growing strange, and feel his crop to make sure he's getting enough food. I knew my chick was ready to go when he stopped trying to eat and his crop wasn't full in the evening. Only time will tell what'll happen though