Eye discharge and offset beak in 28 day old chick.

[lengel]

We are raising twelve chicks indoors. I went to put them in a larger enclosure today and noticed dried gunk on one of their eyes. It looked almost like wet mash had dried around the eye. I went to clean it a bit and she is able to open the eye but there are a lot of tears so I'm assuming that it was trauma of some sort. No discoloration. So I was thinking that it had to be recent and couldn't be too bad. But then I saw that her lower beak is offset toward that eye. I've never seen anything like this and I don't know if it's coincidence.

She is otherwise active (very) with no other discharge (nasally or otherwise). I left her in the original enclosure by herself after transferring everyone else.

Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[Muggsmagee]

Bump.

Hmmm...could she have gotten something in her eye to aggrevate it...and cause the gunk? Also, does she have a cross beak, or scissor beak? I have had one cross beak and didn't even notice the problem until she was a few weeks old. She also came from a reputable breeder...shows it can happen to anyone.

Can you take a picture of your bird?

 

[True Grit]

I think cross beak is genetic. Mine didn't develop one until 10 weeks old although she had been sick before then. I have no experience with the eye thing, sorry.

 

[lengel]

It's looks like a scissor beak to me. Kind of hard to see in the photo. She doesn't have her eye open in this pic too.

 

[Ms.FuzzyButts]

I don't know anything about the eye.. But I can tell you that the cross beak will most likely get worse as it grows. To the point that it may have trouble eating and drinking.. Some people have let them live on, and the chick is doing ok.. Do a search here and you will seem some adult chickens with it, still toodling along. I have trimmed the beaks on mine to slow it down and see if it helps.. But once it gets to a certain point on any that I have had, and I see it isn't going to stop getting worse..I will cull it. I have too many chickens to be taking care of one that can not eat on it's own. Just my opinion!!

 

[lengel]

Ms.FuzzyButts :

I don't know anything about the eye.. But I can tell you that the cross beak will most likely get worse as it grows. To the point that it may have trouble eating and drinking.. Some people have let them live on, and the chick is doing ok.. Do a search here and you will seem some adult chickens with it, still toodling along. I have trimmed the beaks on mine to slow it down and see if it helps.. But once it gets to a certain point on any that I have had, and I see it isn't going to stop getting worse..I will cull it. I have too many chickens to be taking care of one that can not eat on it's own. Just my opinion!!

Thank you all for your advice. It sounds like the two don't have anything to do with one another. MsFuzzyButts, I appreciate the heads up. I've never had a chick like this before so it's good to know where the situation could be headed.​

 

[True Grit]

This is Zippy, who is 7 months old and just started laying. Her hatchmates started 2 months ago. She can eat layer food out of the feeder as long as it is pretty full and drink water but I give the 5 chickens a bowl of scratch mixed with mealworms and sunflower hearts twice a day, a larger one in the morning and a small one at night. I sprinkle a little grit and oyster shell on it so she can pick it up because she can't peck it out of the little feeders I have. Since I started doing this she has gained weight and started laying. It is not extra work as I would give them the bowl of scratch etc in the winter anyway. Your little crossbeak will probably get worse so once she starts eating something other than her chick starter you will need to sprinkle grit on her treats.
VetRX can be put in chickens eyes but I believe that is for eyeworm. How is your chick today?

 

[BehrWilson]

Any updates on this chick? I just discovered one of our chicks with a very similar problem. Cross beak and some sort of eye problem. The local feed store were selling the left over chicks (about 3 weeks old) for 50 cents a piece and we bought about 20 of them because we felt so bad for them. They had them crammed into a low ceiling brooder box and the heat lamps were nearly touching the chicks, with no place for them to get away from it. Really a bad situation. One had a prolapsed rectum and had to be put down, one only has 1 eye but does very well, and then there is this poor chick...not sure what to do with her. Wondering how Lengrel's chick turned out.

Thanks!