Bakbuk
Howdy!
Thank you! This was very educational.So this isn't exactly an update on Amber, though it's about crossbeak. Tonight, I went into my coop, and picked up one of Amber's flock mates, a Whiting True Blue hen named Beatrix. As I held her, she started 'clicking' which is something she does. It never occurred to me until tonight why she was clicking, so I checked her out to see if I was correct on why she was doing that, and I was correct. Beatrix is also crossbeak; Amber is not the only crossbeak in the flock...
Now Beatrix is just turning 9 months old this week, and is a few weeks older than Amber. That being said, it might come across as strange of me to discover her beak so late. The reason is what type of crossbeak she has. Amber, has a bad to severe crossbeak, which is rare to common, but Beatrix has a Hairline Crossbeak, which is very common (so common that anyone who has raised chickens may have owned at least one, but may have never known it), and I've had several birds with it.
To be clear what is Hairline Crossbeak, I want to talk about it (I hope everyone doesn't mind). Hairline Crossbeak is when the bottom beak is off just a little, and sometimes won't even stick out past the top beak. Though a bird with Hairline Crossbeak can usually go unnoticed, often doesn't need trimming or other outside help, it is the most common crossbeak, and is the most dangerous. Because crossbeak is oftentimes genetic, a bird with Hairline Crossbeak is a huge problem in the breeding flocks. They go undiscovered, get in a breeding flock, then produce offspring that can have bad crossbeak like Amber. This, makes it the most dangerous.
Here is a picture of Beatrix below. Sorry the picture isn't very recent, and isn't up close showing her crossbeak. Because I didn't know she had crossbeak until tonight, I haven't been focusing much on her beak. As you can see in the picture, unlike Amber where her crossbeak has effected her whole skull and face, Beatrix's crossbeak hasn't effected her skull or face at all.
View attachment 3365563
Just in case nobody knows what I mean by Beatrix clicking, I'll explain here what I mean. 'Clicking' is when a chicken slides their beak side to side trying to hold it in place, but it keeps sliding back out of place. This makes a clicking sound (or sounds like someone trying to snap their fingers, but isn't doing it right). This is sometimes common with a chicken with a Hairline Crossbeak because they'll try to keep their beak straight, but can't. (The clicking is actually a good thing, because it helps with grind.)
Beatrix having crossbeak is a big disappointment to me, because I can't breed her. I can't take the risk that hers is genetic, and she'll produce offspring that has crossbeak as bad as Amber. The good thing though, is that she still is good as a layer, and her crossbeak will not effect her in any bad way, or slow her down like Amber's beak has slowed her down.
If you have read my whole post, thank you. I hope this post has raised the awareness of the Hairline Crossbeak, and if possible, might prevent the accidental breeding of a crossbeak. Please share if you like.
~Lacy Duckwing
. I'd like to see.
