Cross beak

[donjr]

I am going to try to help it, if I can.

 

[YYZ]

Is this condition fatal?

 

[donjr]

Yes, It can be. They have a hard time picking up feed when the beaks do not line up.

 

[YYZ]

Oh thats so cruel. Ive never seen that before.

 

[True Grit]

Good for you! She's not too bad. They can get worse and still make out fine with their food in a deep dish with grit sprinkled on top every few times.

 

[donjr]

The top beak is long and it curves down alot, it looks like it is pushing the bottom to the side. Is that what happens? Can I file the top one back a little and maybe help it?

 

[True Grit]

Yes you can file or gently clip a little at a time on both. I think it is actually a genetic condition. If you don't keep the top one clipped regularly it will curve down like a hawk's beak. In a strong light you can see where the blood supply starts so you avoid it.

 

[donjr]

Thank you, I will tend to it first thing in the morning.

 

[fried green eggs]

Quote:
Thanks for the info One of my 5 wk old EE is a cross beak. She is doing OK but is smaller than others her age and I will see if clipping her crooked beak will help her. If this helps - How often should I trim her beak? How fast do they grow?

 

[AinaWGSD]

I strongly recommend a dremmel with a grinding cone for trimming the beak back. Clipping it with clippers will run the risk of spliting or splintering the beak plus the dremmel will cauterize the bleeding if you accidentally get a little too far.

It's not that the top beak is causing the bottom beak to be misaligned. It's more that the whole facial structure is crooked.

This is my cross beak hen (right after a beak trim). You can see that her whole face is off-kilter, not just her beak. She gets along fine with deep feeders and I've seen her eating both the oyster shell and grit I have available in deep dishes. She just can't pick things up off the ground or tear at greens. And she does need her beak trimmed back about every 3 weeks. But she's one of my reliable layers. The other downside to her deformity is that her yolks are so pale compared to the others because she can't eat the greens that they get.