This is my 4th thread about dubbing

[staceyj]

I am not a vet. I have never dubbed a chicken. But I delved into the world of YouTube to see what most people say about how they dub.

It does seem medically necessary for the poor fellow. My biggest concern is blood flow. Why did his comb grow so big? I don't know the answer to that but with it being so large I would be concerned with high blood volume.

In most of the videos I watched people used very sharp scissors. Where the comb is cut seems to be breed standard or personal preference. If it were me I would plan ahead. Even mark a line on his comb to give myself an idea of where I want to cut. Clean everything thoroughly. Be overly prepared for bleeding. In most videos people had flour on hand. I would have something to slow bleeding. Flour, corn starch, styptic powder. Have plenty of towels. A helper would be, well-- helpful, but if not you can do this. I'd wrap him up snug but not too tight and commit. Don't start and stop. Remember you are doing this for his health. You may need to keep pressure on the wound. I wouldn't pinch the comb itself but downward pressure on the cut.

I hate to say it but be prepared for the worst case scenario of him not making it. I think he has a good chance of surviving this but things do go wrong. At least you would know you tried and he wouldn't be suffocating slowly from his comb being in the way.

Good Luck! You can do it! Keep us posted.

I agree here as I’ve now watched many videos on dubbing and had to perform minor surgery on a hens comb this spring.
I would sincerely suggest the use of brand new scissors. Yes discard is a good and reliable brand. The kind meant for sewing or crafts, with a comfortable handle that fit my hand well and blades of generous length so as not to have to “snip-snip” but that could do the procedure entirely (or nearly so) with one smooth continuous squeeze. Sewing Scissors are catagorized with different type blades in fact.
Some are meant for very delicate or lightweight fabrics (silks etc) and others are meant for heavyweight fabrics (denim, Upolstery etc).

With scissors I see many advantages, first being leverage, and also very important is safety. Not only to the bird for a smooth and clean cut, but for the person doing the dubbing and anyone who would be assisting.

I respect those who choose to use a razor or scalpel blade but it does seem dangerous and seems to need several swipes to achieve the end result, especially with a bird with headgear the size of yours @Saaniya and @connectdave .

In my opinion, sharp scissors seem a more humane choice especially to someone inexperienced with a procedure of this magnitude.

When I stitched my hens comb I was struck how very tough and fibrous the flesh of a comb is and would suggest practicing cutting some kind of uncooked meat or fish with a pair of kitchen shears or other scissors (but not the actual pair you will use for the procedure, so as not to dull the blades)
This would help you to become accustomed with the feel of cutting through something tough because it will most certainly not feel the same as cutting fabric or paper.

 

[TwoCrows]

Fabulous advice!

 

[PouleChick]

Interesting reading!

I'm guessing a comb is not dissimilar to flesh that I have seen cut as a midwife and absolutely scissors are the way to go. Best of luck

 

[roosterhavoc]

Dubbing birds is nothing new. It has always been done with scissors. Of course there’s a few especially for shows that’s been trimmed with a razor blade but scissors are the only logical answer.
I’ve done 15 roosters in a row with the same pair of fiskars (heavy fabric) scissors without missing a beat.
There’s plenty of videos online to watch somebody do it. The comb is obviously very thick. You will have to pull up on the comb and keep the bird still and squeeze the scissors fairly hard but the fiskars will cut right through it no problem I guarantee it. Just keep your fingers out of the way. Lol

 

[laughingdog]

Just get some superglue ect to apply as cut along line of wattles, loves, then comb,using comb as handle until grab scruff temp to cut comb. It actually bleeds the more you leave attached, but you would stop as apply the bonding agent (was originally developed to close wounds in field preventing infection). Thicker kitchen shears like for cutting sinew grissle fat ect, will work better. Do not give feed and water day before if worried about bleeding, doing ideally in cold and dark before and hours after to keep bird calmer letting it heal and get used to the lost weight (they get extremely happy dancing around after and want to immediately eat mate and spar. Game chicken keepers cut up small and feed these pieces back adding in healing ect greatly.

 

[staceyj]

The only anesthetics safe for use on birds are all well over $100 dollars.

I think the risk of anesthetics or anesthesia medicines far outweighs the potential benefit.
The procedure itself should only take a moment.

 

[staceyj]

Lol ... I think I really need anti anxiety medicine for sureif anything going wrong while dubbing, I m surely going faint.

Dave! Don’t even joke about that!
You can faint AFTER you are all finished and the bird is well.

 

[Tesumph]

Just get some superglue ect to apply as cut along line of wattles, loves, then comb,using comb as handle until grab scruff temp to cut comb. It actually bleeds the more you leave attached, but you would stop as apply the bonding agent (was originally developed to close wounds in field preventing infection). Thicker kitchen shears like for cutting sinew grissle fat ect, will work better. Do not give feed and water day before if worried about bleeding, doing ideally in cold and dark before and hours after to keep bird calmer letting it heal and get used to the lost weight (they get extremely happy dancing around after and want to immediately eat mate and spar. Game chicken keepers cut up small and feed these pieces back adding in healing ect greatly.

I’m having a hard time understanding your comment, but I would highly recommend not using superglue. It can be used in a pinch for slices with clean edges that can be closed, and it’s still not recommended unless it’s an emergency. In this case the comb will be profusely bleeding from an unclosable cut and the glue will have nothing dry to stick to. OP already said they have some sort of quikstop powder which will work great.

Agreed, the risk of an anesthetic isn’t worth it. Ice the comb, sterilize everything, make one swift cut, apply the clotting powder, and put him in a dark place to calm down.
Don’t think too hard about it, I guarantee your rooster isn’t.

 

[BlackHackle]

@BlackHackle have you ever done this?

I've never dubbed crowns

 

[FlyingNunFarm]

Someone told me years ago that ice is bad for numbing. It does constrict blood flow and reduce pain but only temporarily. To get what would be considered good numbing and pain reduction you risk damaging the tissue. And once the affects wear off the pain and bleeding come back and quick.
I looked for research on the topic but didn't find any. I mention it because it makes sense to me and I'm not sure it's worth the risk.