Flock of 7-10 wk old chicks strange bleeding above the beak- identical on all 10 birds!

[Aeropennchick]

I've been considering driving five hours to the closest large hatchery, actually

 

[Amy S]

Yes, I have a 5,4 and 3 yr-old. Thy were probably feedingthm things through the hardware cloth. If only children were as easy to raise as chickens. Sigh.
About the flock, thanks! I did a lot ofresecg on breeds ahead of time. We have:
1 Ameruacana
1 buff Orpington
1 Cuckoo Maran
1 light Brahma
1 BLR Wyandotte
1 barred rock
2 Russian orloffs
2 RIRs
It's a huge range but they are getting on well together.

Well, they all look lovely!

Heh, kids and animals....I think mine is just used to having a 70 lb dog to man-handle, er, child-handle...lol....that dog will put up with anything.

 

[joannarashid]

To aeropenchick - there are a few hatcheries that will send you less than 25 chicks with a warming pack in the box. I think mypetchicken.com does this. The shipping is outrageous.

I went to a local feed store here in California that gets all the popular breeds for backyard flocks as well as some unusual ones. I'm fortunate to have a cool feed store that likes to carry lots of breeds. I believe they use a small hatchery here in California.

They birds were all great quality and well cared for at the store.

 

[Aeropennchick]

Yeah, I think we are going to plan a day trip to Ohio to get some from the Meyer hatchery...hopefully they will be healthy after a five hour drive rather than being shipped!

 

[Jakl]

In the top picture, I can see the brahama looking @ another chicks wound. Sometimes chicks are "monkey see monkey do", and when one pecks another somebody else sees this happen.... and then they are all pecking each other.

 

[CMV]

Are you using metal trough feeders? That is a common injury that was noted a few years back with certain types of feeders. Unfortunately it was noted because a few ducks got their top bill lopped off from the feeders. Check your feeders and waterers for sharp edges/burrs if you are using metal feeders.

 

[Amy S]

My duckling got an upper bill injury last week. We use a huge rubbermaid bin with the only two things they could injure themselves on are their food/water containers. We think he either got his bill stuck in the slotted end of the feed tray, or the water hole in the water container. The things these little guys will get into!

 

[joannarashid]

Thanks to Amy S and CMV. I'll check my feeders. They are metal!

I probably wouldn't have posted had I not woke up one morning to find all 10 of my birds with this fresh identical injury. Weird. It hasn't reoccurred yet, thankfully.

Great tip thanks.

 

[joan1708]

you might try plastic "hardware cloth" inside the run to protect the girls from the sharp edges. You probably would only need it 2 feet up. I put some in my coop to protect my chicks from the sharp edges of the hardware cloth and to keep bedding in. I secured it with zip ties.

 

[joannarashid]

yes, thanks!