Non-emergency question.

[Jug]

A little while back i had a rescue friend reach out to me and offered me three chicks that she found IN A DUMPSTER. I do rescue work so i took them in. Sadly they were cold and not doing well. Two died, one survived. To my surprise it seems to be a little polish chick. The survivor has thrived but recently i noticed he/she has a VERY curved beak. Ive never seen this before. I've seen scissor beak before but never where the beak just curves on the top. Its completely straight and the bottom beak does not grow So heres my question: does this effect QoL or can i manage it by filing with a Dremel when it starts to curve? Following question if yes, do i file it the same as i would my dogs nails and just file to the quick of the beak?

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

That is what they call "parrot beak." It's a lot more rare than scissor (or cross) beak and I personally haven't seen a case in person yet. You can file it down every two weeks, just leave a little space on the quick so if she pecks something a little hard, it doesn't hit the quick. Giving it flat rocks and bricks around the feeding and watering stations will help keep the beak down as well.

I do highly recommend getting some other chickens similar to its age so it's not alone. Chickens are flock animals so they need flock members at all times. Also, if they go too long by themselves, when later introduced to others, they won't do well and either be at the bottom of the pecking order or become a bully.

 

[Jug]

That is what they call "parrot beak." It's a lot more rare than scissor (or cross) beak and I personally haven't seen a case in person yet. You can file it down every two weeks, just leave a little space on the quick so if she pecks something a little hard, it doesn't hit the quick. Giving it flat rocks and bricks around the feeding and watering stations will help keep the beak down as well.

I do highly recommend getting some other chickens similar to its age so it's not alone. Chickens are flock animals so they need flock members at all times. Also, if they go too long by themselves, when later introduced to others, they won't do well and either be at the bottom of the pecking order or become a bully.

i have 9 other chicks the same age This was just the only chick with a problem ty for the info!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Welcome To BYC

She's cute!

How nice that you've taken her in. If you find that she's struggling to eat and lagging behind, you may need to hand feed her in addition to her trying to eat on her own.

Some tube or syringe food into their birds, others Torpedo feed. Here's a tutorial on Torpedo feeding that you may find helpful. The Poster made a video that answers quite a few questions along with photos later on in the thread. Hope this helps.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...eeding-what-is-it-and-when-to-use-it.1532744/