I was hoping to never say this...

[j71]

but I have an emergency...in IMO anyways.....nice to meet you...im j71

Ill try to keep this short cuz it takes me tooo long to type.

yesterday approx 710am (light out but grey-overcast) after i just let my 5hens out (as i do almost daily..they have open woods we have 1.5ac they love to roam. A racoon started to chase them down.

I was on my way back to the house when my daughter called my cell scream'n...OMG! OMG!

30 secs later im home....circle house....signs of a fight/feathers around...

In a small miracle....all 5 birds are alive! So many details I want to share but it would take me 48hrs to type it.

Heres my dilema....Approx 1yr old Delaware....shes the boss of the other 4 RIR's and they all work together as a little team perfectly!

That FN COON did get the Delaware by its face at one point. I didnt see it happen but our neighbor looked out and SAW....I said SAW my beauty white delaware (Tillie) in its MOUTH. What??? And she escaped???

Ok, so her beak....not in good shape. My wife n I cleaned it yesterday 3x with diluted peroxide and then we used a antiseptic of some kind? My local feed store also sold me an antibiotic that goes in the h20. All good....BUT....her beak is soooo damaged I do not think she is eating. Cannot pickup food as the top beak part is gone. Do they grow back....completely? Also, i just want to say it appears to me she is not getting food. I had 3 boss on my hand and she peaked but didnt grab.

Hope someone can offer/suggest what to do? We do not have the resources to hand feed this bird forever, not sure thats even an option but...help???

TY.

 

[ranchhand]

Hi,

Sorry your first post is an emergency.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=130682

That's a link to a thread about a broken beak and the third post has more links. Hope it helps!

 

[AHappychick]

I dont know if it will grow back. If you really want to keep her alive I would say tube feed her for a few days. It sounds a lot harder than it is.

Make a thin slurry of starter feed, yogurt, warm water, hard boiled egg yolk, shredded apples and some poli-vi-sol liquid vitamins (the kind for infants with out the added iron) blend really well make sure it is warm not cold, and then suck into a big needless syringe. then attatch tucing (the stuff for fish equipment works well and is cheap) and measure from the tip of the beak to the crop (or about where you thing the crop is. Mark that distance with a sharpie on the tube so you know when you are in deep enough. then trim the tube so it is only about an inch longer than your sharpie mark. While someone else holds the bird you open its mouth, be very careful to go straight in and not straight down and in as the breathing hole is righ behind the tounge. you want to bypass that hole and continue down the troat until you read your mark. then dispence the liquid feed slowly, you will feel the crop fill up and then pull it out. I would say about 2 ounces of food should be plenty for a LF bird.

If you can get food in her she will strenghthen and then you can figure out if she is capable of healing or eating on her own. When they are in shock they often starve themselves so by getting food in her and giving her the energy she needs you might be able to determine how damaged she really is and if she is capable of healing.

Good Luck.

 

[faykokoWV]

I am not an emergency expert, but I hope someone responds to your post. If she is suffering greatly you may have to put her down. I have read some posts on here about feeding through a tube to get food into a chicken that's not eating. I'm sure you can get a feeding tube and syringe at a home medical supply or possibly your local pharmacy.

good luck

 

[j71]

TY all very much!

Heres more detail...


she is not suffering....she seems totally fine as do the others. No cuts or wounds...I kno amazing!

They even laid 5 eggs within a few hours after the racoon chase yesterday. I was surprised but they are very happy super friendly girls.

They want out of coop again too. They love to be let out....

I am going to try and get a pic if i can...may take me a few hours but again, ty!

 

[Terri O]

Good luck with your girl! I had one that had only a bit of upper beak left and she did just fine. We called her "Scoopie" because that is how she learned to eat by scooping with her lower beak. We did tube her at first like the OP said to give her strength..be really careful if you use the AQ tubing though...the edges can be really sharp. I feeding tube is a better idea and you can get them at any farm or feed store. They are just a buck or two. Hugs to you and your girl! Terri O

 

[arch_cpj]

wonder if you could somehow make her a prostetic beak put of acrilic or epoxy hmmmmmmm Im serious wonder how hard that would be I tend to think the hardest part would be settin it in place unless you gould get her knocked out???? Just a thought but that is a odd injury...

 

[j71]

I wanted to give an update as its been almost a full day...

Tille is def drinking from her waterer....i can tell she is getting water in and enjoying it..

But, I still do not think she is getting food in....she pecks, searches....grabs but is not getting it in.

I am thinking if I trim the lower beak back a lil it may help with her 'grabbing' food?

Hopefull my pics work here!

TY!

j71

 

[Dar]

can you post a pic of her beak so we can see exactly how damaged it is?..

 

[j71]

yea, im trying now...not sure what im doing wrong here...

work?