Syringe Feeding Advice

[TwoCrows]

Try not wetting the feed so much. Just dampen it so it is soft and see if this won't allow it to stick to the beak.

Hold a damp sponge on the beak until until the food gets soft and then clean it off.

I think it is the oatmeal like consistency that is making it stick. So give the "dampened" feed a try.

 

[casportpony]

Contact @tmlpike , she went through this with her hen:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/848424/plese-help-chickens-beak-got-bit-off

-Kathy

 

[Crofters Quail]

Try not wetting the feed so much. Just dampen it so it is soft and see if this won't allow it to stick to the beak. 

Hold a damp sponge on the beak until until the food gets soft and then clean it off.  

I think it is the oatmeal like consistency that is making it stick. So give the "dampened" feed a try.

Many thanks TwoCrows,

Maybe now that he's able to self serve he might be able to manage the dampened feed. I'll just keep experimenting with consistency until I find the happy medium of edible and nonstick!

Will try the damp sponge treatment...I think his beak is still sore and the food is like cement on the beak so I expect it to take a considerable time to soften. I hope I won't stress him out too much trying to hold him still for a long time with a sponge on the sore place! I'm amazed at how rock hard the food has set on the beak. This time of year in Brisbane the weather is very hot. Wet washing dries stiff as a board in about 7 mins flat...so I am partly blaming the weather

Thanks again for suggesting great solutions to all the problems!

 

[Crofters Quail]

Contact @tmlpike
 , she went through this with her hen:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/848424/plese-help-chickens-beak-got-bit-off

-Kathy

Many thanks casportpony, for directing me to the above thread. It's making me count my blessings that my little guy only has about 3 or 4 mm off his upper beak plus the top layer taken off the upper beak. Otherwise he is in pretty good shape. I compared his weight last night to that of his brother and he is now only down 10g.

I look forward to contacting @tmlpike.

Many thanks once again for all the great support and advice.

Kirsty

 

[TwoCrows]

Yes, we have very arid climate here and I know how things that were once wet turn to cement quickly!!

You might just leave it alone for another day, but at some point you should get it off there.

And yes, play around with the consistency. Pretty soon the beak won't be all that sore and he should be able to handle some pecking with it. My chick that cracked her beak off seemed at the one week mark to do pretty well and didn't show much signs of pain.

Keep up the good work!!!

 

[TwoCrows]

Quote: How is he doing these days??

 

[Crofters Quail]

How is he doing these days??

Very many thanks for thinking of us, TwoCrows. He is doing just fine...enjoying his dampened feed and back to his usual weight. He is crowing away merrily . The feed does tend to stick to his beak a bit but I am just rinsing his beak under some lukewarm water once a day and drying it off. He doesn't seem to mind.

Mysteriously though, I found my white hen (quail) dead yesterday afternoon. No evidence of any illness...had been bright as a button not long before...I can only think a predator must have frightened her and maybe she flushed??? No evidence of any head injury though....a real mystery and very sad She was such a sweet little hen.

Thanks again for thinking of us.

 

[TwoCrows]

Quote: Great to hear the little guy with the broken beak is doing so well! I knew this would level out and he could get back to his normal life soon.

I am so sorry to hear about your white hen. :-( Sounds like a head boink from flushing. Try keeping some fake or real foliage in your pen. Enough to run and hide and hang out under. Quail would rather run for cover than fly. So if they have something to run under, if they get scared, they are less likely to flush up. Plus quail are ground dwellers and love to hang out under brush all day long. Keeps them calm and secure.

 

[Crofters Quail]

Great to hear the little guy with the broken beak is doing so well! I knew this would level out and he could get back to his normal life soon.

I am so sorry to hear about your white hen. :-( Sounds like a head boink from flushing. Try keeping some fake or real foliage in your pen. Enough to run and hide and hang out under. Quail would rather run for cover than fly. So if they have something to run under, if they get scared, they are less likely to flush up. Plus quail are ground dwellers and love to hang out under brush all day long. Keeps them calm and secure. 

Many thanks once again for your thoughts. Yes a head boink is my best guess. I used to cut some foliage from the garden, nice leafy grevillea branches, for their pens but a lot of rainbow lorikeets (Australian native birds) hang out in my grevillea and I began to worry about transmitting disease. I think I might try to grow something nice in their pens for them to relax under. I recently changed them all from wire floored set ups to the ground and feel it's a MUCH nicer environment for them.

In one set up, my hens have made a little nest out of some long grass growing in there. They lay their eggs in the little nest. It's just too cute Yes I think they would LOVE some foliage! Thanks again for the great suggestion.

 

[TwoCrows]

Yes, my hens love to make nests out of the grass I use as bedding. Nest can get pretty elaborate if they have the room and the materials!! One of my pairs build a teepee style nest that was about a foot and a half tall with a hole in the middle. They would jump up and into this deep nest. LOL

I use fake foliage in my areas. I was bringing in lots of leg scale mites from the wild birds in with these branches. So now I use fake Christmas trees and their boughs.