How to feed a guinea with a broken beak

[SuiladMellon]

Hi everyone!

I have a flock of 25 15-week old guinea fowl, and this morning when I went up to change out the waterers/food in the coop, I saw that my smallest guinea, who I've nicknamed "Bob" because he (or she, I can't tell!) never grew any tail feathers and so has a bob-tail, had broken off the tip of his beak! He is bullied a lot by the other guineas and I think one of them might have caused it by chasing him into the wall of the coop or something. I did some reading up about it and everything said it should grow back with time, but I need some advice on how to go about feeding him in the meantime!

I separated him along with one of the gentler guineas for company in a different part of the coop with their own food and water. He drinks fine but struggles to eat the pellet food and the mealworm and millet treats I've offered him because the bottom of his beak is now longer than the top. I was thinking of trying egg whites since they are soft and easier to grab, but what other sorts of easy-to-eat foods can I give him, and what else can I do for the poor guy until his beak heals?

 

[sourland]

Try moistening the feed and see if that helps.

 

[R2elk]

Hi everyone!

I have a flock of 25 15-week old guinea fowl, and this morning when I went up to change out the waterers/food in the coop, I saw that my smallest guinea, who I've nicknamed "Bob" because he (or she, I can't tell!) never grew any tail feathers and so has a bob-tail, had broken off the tip of his beak! He is bullied a lot by the other guineas and I think one of them might have caused it by chasing him into the wall of the coop or something. I did some reading up about it and everything said it should grow back with time, but I need some advice on how to go about feeding him in the meantime!

I separated him along with one of the gentler guineas for company in a different part of the coop with their own food and water. He drinks fine but struggles to eat the pellet food and the mealworm and millet treats I've offered him because the bottom of his beak is now longer than the top. I was thinking of trying egg whites since they are soft and easier to grab, but what other sorts of easy-to-eat foods can I give him, and what else can I do for the poor guy until his beak heals?

For a guinea with a bad beak I suggest at least temporarily switching to crumbles. You can easily make crumbles from your pelleted feed by smashing it with a hammer.

You can also try moistening the feed but that requires that the feed always be kept fresh.

 

[SuiladMellon]

Thank you for the advice! I will smash up some pellets for him, and I'll try wetting it down as well and see if that helps him to eat it a little better. I've been hand-feeding him for a while from a separate feeder since the more aggressive guineas have been preventing him from coming down off the top of the perch to get food on his own, so I'll keep doing that with this new setup so I can make sure it stays fresh!

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Hi everyone!

I have a flock of 25 15-week old guinea fowl, and this morning when I went up to change out the waterers/food in the coop, I saw that my smallest guinea, who I've nicknamed "Bob" because he (or she, I can't tell!) never grew any tail feathers and so has a bob-tail, had broken off the tip of his beak! He is bullied a lot by the other guineas and I think one of them might have caused it by chasing him into the wall of the coop or something. I did some reading up about it and everything said it should grow back with time, but I need some advice on how to go about feeding him in the meantime!

I separated him along with one of the gentler guineas for company in a different part of the coop with their own food and water. He drinks fine but struggles to eat the pellet food and the mealworm and millet treats I've offered him because the bottom of his beak is now longer than the top. I was thinking of trying egg whites since they are soft and easier to grab, but what other sorts of easy-to-eat foods can I give him, and what else can I do for the poor guy until his beak heals?

One of my cocks has lost the tip of his beak several times over the last few years. He is able to feed himself if I provide a deeper bowl with crumbles. The beak tip grows back quickly and then he’s back to normal!

 

[SuiladMellon]

One of my cocks has lost the tip of his beak several times over the last few years. He is able to feed himself if I provide a deeper bowl with crumbles. The beak tip grows back quickly and then he’s back to normal!

I'm glad its not as dire as I initially thought haha, I was so horrified when I opened the coop and saw what had happened, but I feel a lot better knowing it grows back just like a fingernail!

The wet crumbles worked eventually, I had to turn them into practically soup before he figured out how to scoop it up but I feel much happier now that he's eaten something!

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

I'm glad its not as dire as I initially thought haha, I was so horrified when I opened the coop and saw what had happened, but I feel a lot better knowing it grows back just like a fingernail!

The wet crumbles worked eventually, I had to turn them into practically soup before he figured out how to scoop it up but I feel much happier now that he's eaten something!

Glad you found a way to get groceries into him!

 

[SuiladMellon]

Well, so far so good with Bob, he's really gotten the hang of eating the wet crumbles now! I've started sprinkling some mealworms in there and the wet crumbles seem to make them easier to grab, so he can actually eat them And a couple of the other more lower-ranking guineas have taken to hanging out with him on top of the perch for breakfast and dinner, as long as they are nice to him I let them eat with him.

But of course, nothing is ever simple when it comes to these guys! One of my guinea hens who started laying eggs last week has decided that right in the heaviest flow of traffic on the floor of the coop is a great place to plonk down her egg every day. Yesterday one got stepped on and broken before I spotted it, and I definitely don't want the other guineas getting in the habit of eating eggs, so I've just been removing them as I find them. She gets kind of upset when they disappear though, looking around trying to find them and I always feel so bad! Is there any way to convince her to lay in one of the quieter areas of the coop? If I put some sort of nesting box in there would she actually use it?

 

[R2elk]

Well, so far so good with Bob, he's really gotten the hang of eating the wet crumbles now! I've started sprinkling some mealworms in there and the wet crumbles seem to make them easier to grab, so he can actually eat them And a couple of the other more lower-ranking guineas have taken to hanging out with him on top of the perch for breakfast and dinner, as long as they are nice to him I let them eat with him.

But of course, nothing is ever simple when it comes to these guys! One of my guinea hens who started laying eggs last week has decided that right in the heaviest flow of traffic on the floor of the coop is a great place to plonk down her egg every day. Yesterday one got stepped on and broken before I spotted it, and I definitely don't want the other guineas getting in the habit of eating eggs, so I've just been removing them as I find them. She gets kind of upset when they disappear though, looking around trying to find them and I always feel so bad! Is there any way to convince her to lay in one of the quieter areas of the coop? If I put some sort of nesting box in there would she actually use it?

Make a nest and seed it with eggs or fake eggs. If you keep taking the eggs, she will find somewhere else to hide them.

 

[SuiladMellon]

Make a nest and seed it with eggs or fake eggs. If you keep taking the eggs, she will find somewhere else to hide them.

Okay! I have six or seven of her older eggs that I've collected that are just kind of sitting in my break room right now while I figure out what to do with them, so I will use those and try making a spot for her that is out of the way until I can find some dummy eggs to use Will fake chicken eggs work, or do they need to be specifically guinea-egg sized and shaped? I have clay somewhere I can use to make some custom ones, if need be.