New to group! I have a question about broken beaks...

[melba1012]

Hello. I am new to the group. I have been getting infor for a while now but love it and decided to join. We have now 20 chickens. 2 Barrett rocks, 3 Long Island reds, 2 golden sex links, 3 white leg horns, 1 white barter rock, 4 ameraucanas (one rooster) and 4 maybe golden sex links we just got this weekend at an auction. They are all my daughters chickens. All have names and live her to death! Even Ben the rooster

We went to the auction to maybe get some chicks. We saw a crate of 5 that looked young. We purchased them but now notice 3 out of the 5 have broken beaks. They are still small but not sure how young. We haven't got eggs from them but they are still scared. The next day my husband and I were thinking maybe we made a mistake getting them from there. If anything I feel as though we rescued them

Why would their beaks be broke and will it grow back? They seem healthy just small. Haven't stopped eating so hopefully they will fatten up. Any suggestions?

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Welcome to BYC! I'm glad you joined us!

 

[Pork Pie]

Hi and welcome to BYC. Whilst i have no experience with broken beaks in my flock, i have read (i think - rarely

) that they may grow back, but if they can eat and drink happily, then there should be no problem.

If you check out the Learning Centre, you'll find a whole host of resources on all things chicken.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/atype/1/Learning_Center

Your state thread is worth joining as you will get to know other BYC members in your area (https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/270925/find-your-states-thread). In fact, the search box should become your best friend

Lastly but by no means least, the members here are amazing - very friendly and helpful, so if you need an answer to a question or simply want some reassurance that what you are doing is ok, then post away - we all help each other out here at BYC.

All the best
CT

 

[QueenMisha]

Welcome to BYC. Congrats on your flock.

To start, I'll correct you on a few of your breed names - your "Barret" Rocks are most likely Barred Plymouth Rocks, your Reds probably hail from Rhode Island, not Long Island, and there's a very good chance your "Ameraucanas" (I'm actually impressed by your spelling - most people spell it wrong!) are actually Easter Eggers (commonly mislabeled Ameraucana crossbreeds). It helps to know the proper names for research and conversation purposes.

I would be REALLY cautious about your new birds. Have you put them in with your existing flock yet? Auction house or swap meet chickens can be very sketchy - there are a lot of infectious diseases to found among poultry, and birds from such places, especially those who look like they ought to be rescued or are otherwise small or poorly, are absolute hotspots for disease. This is why a mandatory 2-4 week quarantine period separate from your flock is not only recommended but necessary; poultry diseases are not so simple that if your flock becomes infected you can simply treat them and be done with it. Most are incurable and once contracted will stay within the flock and birds for life.

Can you post any photos of these birds?

If they were caged it's possible they simply knocked their beaks on the metal; I see beak injury in caged birds a lot more than ranged. Depending on where they came from its also possible they were debeaked for cannibalism control purposes. Frequent pecking or contact with hard surfaces can also cause chipping.

 

[drumstick diva]

Agree with Queen Misha, he is very knowledgeable. If they can eating, they should be fine. I don't believe beaks grow back.