Vampire chicken?! (not emergency)

[Magsy]

My chicken has these weird growths either side of her beak. I left them alone initially but now they’re growing bigger and I worry it’s impacting her ability to peck, groom and eat. Girl is looking like a vampire.

Should I trim/cut the side bits back? And how should I do this? This girl is particularly squirmy and I worry I won’t be able to keep her head still. I have this thought that if I hold on to her head too tight and she squirms the wrong way that she could break her neck - is that a thing???

 

[CoopBoots]

Personally, I would attempt a trim after enlisting help. She'd get gently tacoed/burritoed in a towel and I'd probably also try a gentle blindfold--I've used a cut up sock-neck to keep beak and nose free but gently cover vision and stay put on the head. I find that they move way less with limited vision.

Have your assistant hold her and gently support/restrain the head while you gently dremel or file. Just start really slow to figure out her tolerances and yes, be careful. Their necks are quite fragile but I've successfully dremelled an overgrown beak before with no injuries.

This is just what I would try! And I wouldn't stress getting it all at once. A couple of sessions might do better than a drastic trim at preventing any overtrimming or accidents.

Best of luck!

 

[RubelliteRose]

Are they thin enough that you could use toenail clippers (dog or human) to quickly snip it off?