Oregon bird vet? ...and tell me I have hope for this beak

[MOregonChicken]

My chicken really screwed up her beak, I'm trying not to freak out.

I'm with her a lot but my eyes aren't very good so I thought this was just mud for a while. The damage (the missing hard shell) continues into her mouth, and the area around it looks red. It's a little hard for me to see. I'm worried the tissue is dead and it's either going to be infected or cause blood poisoning... Because I'm a worrier. So basically I'm just here to ask: Has anyone seen this before so I know if she has any hope of just growing out? I'm currently trying to get in touch with the one good bird vet I know of in my small area, the problem is that they don't practice any more. Anyone know of a good bird vet close to, but outside of Central Oregon? I'm eye-balling one that isn't open today but, basically, I'd drive to Portland (or closer) it would just be comforting to hear that I'm going to one people had great experiences with.

She's 3, she's still laying almost every day, she's on that organic "scratch and peck" feed they make up in Washington, and she gets to eat a lot of grass, dandelions, turnip greens, pillbugs/cutworms/worms

I also noticed today they picked up lice. She doesn't have them really bad yet, but one of the others does, so I need to treat for that. I'm thinking of the trashbag-dusting method. Which is likely safer, Sevin or Pyrethrum? (Or poultry protector spray, I got that for the coop.) She's always seemed to have a sensitive respiratory system, I don't want to tax her even more. She also grooms incessantly, I'm worried about ingestion.

I would pay for the vet to administer ivermectin, but I hear that doesn't work against all lice (these are tan and they've deposited the gray-white eggs on the base of the feathers at their vents.)

 

[Eggcessive]

I would just sprinkle Sevin dust on the areas affected by lice on my chickens, and repeat it every 10 days until no eggs are seen. Coop and nest boxes must be cleaned out and sprayed with permethrin. Permethrin liquid or dust can also be used on the chickens. You might want to look for the BYC Oregon thread for advice on vets. Here is a good link about beak repair: http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2013/01/repairing-chickens-broken-beak.html

 

[MOregonChicken]

I had no idea there was an Oregon thread, thanks!

Thank you for the link, it's just, I'm actually just looking for hope. The other problem is that I worked with parrots and I'd never want to use super glue by a bird's nostrils. I can hear my old boss having a heart-felt melt-down when people said they did that with their macaws, etc. I'm sure it's fine most of the time, and I'm not knocking anyone who wants to take the small risk, especially when costs/options/time are of a more important concern... I'm just not willing to with this particular chicken if I don't absolutely have to, if it's not considered safe for a $7500 bird, I can't bring myself to use it on a bird that I love. That's why I'm looking for a knowledgeable vet with access to more bird-safe adhesives, plus, this would definitely need a filler paste because gluing this kind of gap together with a strip would just make a bacteria heaven by trapping more debris and moisture.

I had to come here for it. When I look, I can't seem to find pictures of something similar. It's always currently-bleeding beaks, or beaks that are already off, or beaks that are just deformed.... not ones that look like the blood supply between the bone and the horn-covering is dead but the bone is still there. I really want to hope that the bone isn't dead too and, at best, she's going to lose her lower mandible.. and worst it's an infected/dead bone that will just kill her. Even though I have some small history with more common pet birds, I've never seen this. I can't find anything on this particular kind of injury. The pictures either show way less serious damage, or way more serious. My google skills fail me. I just want to hear someone say they've seen this and that the covering still might be able to grow past the damaged part. T_T

I'm scrubbing everything today and moving their foraging location for a while, while I delouse their old one. Thanks

 

[Farmer Viola]

Not to worry! I have had this happen before, although not identical. I'm not a vet, but this is just my anecdotal experience. One of my roosters chipped the top tip of his beak off, revealing the quick underneath. Think of the beak like a fingernail. They actually have to actively sand it down by eating and pecking! so the outer edge part of the beak is dead and can be removed/sanded down painlessly (not that you should, just comparing to a fingernail).

Once you remove it further back, it reveals the live active beak underneath which has veins and nerves in it. most likely, that exposed area where the top layer is chipped off, feels painful to her. she may have put mud in it to cover up the exposed nerve feeling.. when I found my rooster's beak chipped it was still kind of fresh, and I cleaned it with neosporin antibiotic ointment. I think it was painful for him. he was also very careful with eating for a day or so, not wanting to take treats out of my hand since his was the tip.

if she is acting like it hurts her, not pecking hard in your hand at treats, you could put her on a soft diet until it appears to be less sensitive for her. you could soften her crumbles/pellets with water or yogurt. if she is eating fine/painlessly, probably no need to worry. it WILL grow back! it is just like a fingernail, the beak will never stop growing giving extra calcium supplements at this time might be useful to her (eggshells or oyster shell) regrowing bone..

this is just what I did but again I am no vet! Here is a vet in Oregon who can help you, I will be interested to know what she recommends. I don't think it looks too severe from your photo myself.

Dr Lynn Luna is a chicken vet at Banfield pet hospital in Eugene and the number there is: 541-242-5824
She is extremely helpful and may even be able to give you phone advice if you aren't in her area! and you can offer to email her photos.

 

[Farmer Viola]

this is my guy's beak. I dont know if you can see it, try to zoom in on it. just cause you said there were no photos of less severe non bleeding beak chips out there



using this link you can zoom in all the way : http://cdn.backyardchickens.com/c/ca/caa55c23_beak.jpeg

 

[SavageDestiny]

If she were mine, I would flush the wound with saline and spray Vetericyn 2/x a day to help keep dirt and infection at bay. Vetericyn is amazing stuff! It doesn't look too bad to me, my dogs have done worse breaking toenails. Funny enough, I used the same treatment regime, haha.

Failing that, there is a raptor vet close to Bend:

http://brokentopvet.com/

Dr. Little. Don't know if she'd be willing to work on a chicken, but for a beak situation it might be worth it.

 

[MOregonChicken]

This guy is really nice: http://www.highdesertwildlife.org/

Thanks guys! I really appreciate it! Sorry I didn't reply to you all sooner. I was taking care of this and then Two Bulls happened ;p I kind of got distracted.
Turns out she had a fracture in her beak and that a lot of the tissue was dead after all.
This was in dead stuff inside of her mouth before it was surgically cleaned out, but I had washed it out here. This isn't dirt
(the red on her upper beak is raspberry & there's some other food I was using to get her to look at the camera with her mouth open)



and then this is a kind of bad picture of how much is missing now, with the larger portion of the rotten stuff taken out. Basically she has a little bit of the underside of her beak left on that side.



A scab had formed, so there is still blood supply and live bone left in that spot. We've done some antibiotics and then gave her a shot of calcium. Yesterday a "bubble" formed under the keratin, but over the fracture site. Vet checked it out and told me it was her bone making a callous because the fracture finally wants to heal. I just have to cross my fingers, hope she doesn't injure it further, and pray that any dead tissue or dead bone that might have been left behind wont spread further.