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I have a cross-beak hen. She has done pretty well for herself, but it is difficult for her to eat and very sad to watch her pecking around in the yard knowing that she can't pick anything up. In spite of being able to grow and even lay eggs pretty regularly, she just can't maintain weight. So, rather than watching her slowly starve to death surrounded by food, we have made the difficult choice to cull her this fall before winter hits and she really struggles with being able to get enough food to maintain herself. Many chicks with this deformity aren't so lucky as to be able to survive to maturity, or are unable to meet their body's needs once they start producing eggs and starve to death early in life. Please don't breed a chicken with this deformity and doom some of his chicks to this short life.