Diary of a Crossbeak: Support for Special Needs Chickens and their Keepers

[artsyrobin]

sent a pm- it actually isn't too severe, do you have a pic of the bowl you are feeding in? play with consistency, some like it more wet, some more dry. You can add oatmeal, baby cereal, cornmeal, cat food, high protein feed also

 

[AlpineButterfly]

I feel like his beak needs to be trimmed very badly, I feel like that would help him but I am scared of cutting it too short, or otherwise making things harder for him.
Here are some pictures of his beak, I feel like his top is way too long it is starting to curl under and it's like it impedes his ability to eat? I need suggestions, this is my first time dealing with this! I just want this poor lil fella to have a happy healthy life and his beak is making it hard!

I know about feeling too scared to trim! What I ended up doing was taking my Violet to the vet for the first trim, and watching closely how they did it, and asking questions. I've been trimming her beak on my own since (she's almost 4.5 years old now).

Tools I use:
Towel to wrap her in,
Large nail clipper to do the first trim if it's been a while,
Pedipaw or similar dremel like tool for filing down and smoothing edges,
Blood stop powder on hand in case I trim a little too short.

Start slow, filing just a little bit. Both of you will need to get used to it! Once you get the hang of it, you will learn to recognize the lighter more translucent part of the beak you can trim before getting down to the quick where it will bleed.

Good luck!

 

[brittfish]

It is with a very heavy heart I report that Cinnamon our beloved crossbeak died unexpectedly on Thursday morning. I woke up to her making a gurgling sound on her roost which is right by my bed and checked her and it sounded like she had fluid she was trying to clear. I brought her in the bathroom and by the time I got there she was shaking her head with fluid coming out so I tipped her so her head was lower than her body and copious amounts of fluid came out and within a minute she was gone. We think she had a heart attack. She had been doing so well even did a 35-40 minute scratch in the dirt on Wednesday and was eating and behaving normally. She turned 3 last June.

I never could've imagined that we could create such a close relationship with a chicken. When her beak started to cross when she was 6 days old we didn't know what to expect but we did what we could to make sure she survived. She started living indoors after she injured her beak outdoors when she was 6 months old and our lives changed forever. She quite literally got me through the passing of my dog 2 years ago.. she would fly up onto my shoulder when I was sad. She was an equal being in our house and will be sorely missed. I hope that anyone reading this who is new to crossbeaks will consider letting them into their heart. Cinnamon (who also knew and responded to her nicknames of little bird and B) was an extraordinary creature and brought so much love and joy into our lives. She was so much more than "just a chicken"...

RIP Little Bird. We miss you and wish we could have had longer with you but we feel blessed and thankful to have had you in our lives for the time we did.

 

[artsyrobin]

I am so sorry!! They do steal our hearts and possibly she will have prepared you for a future crossbeak- i know with my experience with crossbeaks, there are sometimes more than one issue that we may not be aware of until they fail- i lost a little one overnight- they are very special little birds

 

[Likeychicky]

This is Bird's house at night. I keep her inside when it is cold so she doesn't waste calories staying warm.

I zip-tied an empty yogurt cup in there so she can have food whenever she wants even though she doesn't get much when she tries. I keep it topped off.

I've had good luck with 15% layer crumbles & mix with water & other left over. Now she's learned to eat it piled on the grass. Other pullers wouldn't let hen roam with them, now she does.

 

[Silkies for life]

I just got a coffee grinder to crush the food to a powder, you do not need to add water like you do with a blender... It seemed like a good idea so im trying it for my crossbeak.

 

[Kmh234]

Hi All,

I’ve read through 10 pages of this thread and will continue reading as I have time. It’s great reading about other people’s (and chickens’) experiences.

I have a 2 1/2 week old FBCM (of about 20) which I purchased from a local breeder at a day or so old who is developing cross beak. I feed fermented Scratch and Peck which I guess coincidentally works in Little Dude’s (seems to be its name so far, I seem to think it’s a roo but have no basis for that thought) favor since it’s basically a mash. Dude hops around and is plenty feisty, but I’m starting to notice his brooder mates growing bigger but he doesn’t seem to get picked on.

Tonight he was cheeping and cheeping after I topped off their feeder. So I took him out of brooder, gave him his own little deep bowl in case he wanted to eat in peace. He ate a bit but went back to cheeping in a high pitched stressed way. I held him against my chest and he quieted right down. We then took a nap in the hammock together and now he’s sitting on my shoulder under my hair. He seems to like to be covered up or cuddled. And every time I put him down he starts cheeping high pitched again. Has anyone experienced this? Is he wanting cuddles or is he maybe sensitive to light (I.e., crossed beak interfering with developing nervous system)? I’m not sure what I’m gonna do. I can handle special feeding to an extent but I work more than full time and can’t always be here to carry him around. Any ideas? (Brooder is warm, I keep the light at a height so chicks don’t huddle directly under it or too far away from it).

Also, for people who let birds in the house, how do you deal with the droppings? I’ve always kept the chickens in pasture so I’m not sure how to handle a bird that may potentially think it’s more of a dog than chicken (if he makes it to adulthood).

Thanks so much for any input!!

 

[artsyrobin]

How is the little ones crop? Is he warm enough? As far as droppings, this is my silkie in her diaper, yup a diaper lol I can get you info on who makes them if you decide that is what you want to do, i also have dog playpens for when she isn't diapered

 

[Kmh234]

[QUOTE"How is the little ones crop? Is he warm enough?”

Thanks for the info about the diaper. Not sure I want to go the house pet route yet. He’s doing a lot better. I think he was hungry, we’ve been experimenting with how to help him eat more and I think we’ve finally found a method that works for both of us. He seems to be more relaxed around the other chicks now and more interactive with them too. But he’s definitely decided I’m mommy and would follow me all over the place if I let him. I give him as much quality time as I can.

How soon can I start trimming his beak? He’ll be 3 weeks this Sun, but I can already see how taking a little off the end of his top beak might help him with “shoveling” when he pecks for food.

 

[artsyrobin]

i don't trim until they are older if it is interfering with eating, i lost a baby cutting too close- i have one crossbeak that loves both crumble and wet mash, another won't touch dry lol they are all individuals