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Birds--General/grinding down a rooster's beak

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Expert: Abi - 1/4/2009


Question

Prince Fredrick Edward
Oh i am so glad to have found you!
About 9 months ago i found a rooster in an intersection near my home. As I live in the country this is not too uncommon. He appeared to be healthy enough but perhaps a bit dazed.I honked my horn but he did not trot off the pathway as is the norm.  I shoo-ed him into the ditch and drove the short way home. For the next 3 days I saw this rooster in the same ditch and on the 3rd evening as I sat on the porch smoking, I heard the coyotes and thought to myself, "i know what they will be eating tonight."But then I was overcome with concern for this rooster and drove to the corner in hopes of bringing him home to safety. He was so dehydrated it actually wasn't as difficult as I had expected. I gave him a bit of water and he let me pick him up (I threw a towel over him as I wasn't sure what he had on him and I had never attempted to catch a chicken before.) "Edward" has become my pride and joy. He is a treasured and beloved part of our small family here.
My issue is, he has had his beak ground down, but only the top 1/2! The bottom beak is still long and with his beak in this condition, he has a very difficult time trying to grasp anything to eat! And to top it off, his bottom beak is slightly bent as if it has been broken. I have heard of owners doing this to stifle aggressive roosters so I assume that is what has happened to Edward although he is not aggressive except to growl at the cats now and then. I am thinking maybe if we were to have his bottom beak ground down some then he would again have some ability to grasp his food. I am very sure this beak grinding thing was a horrible process for Edward and I hate the idea that I would contribute to another round of torture, but wouldn't it be better to maybe have this bottom beak ground down a bit more? Or is grinding only the top beak usual practice in this sort of thing? I DO feed Edward ground up bread and crushed corn and bird peletts.I put them in a bowl and he is able to eat this down to the bottom couple inches. When he gets to a point where his bottom beak hits the bowl he stops because it hurts his beak.He spends his days pecking around our yard, but doesn't grasp much. And my biggest concern is that it is causing him pain.Should i look for a country chicken keeper to see if this can be fixed? Or is it best left as is?

Answer
Hello Elaine!

He's an absolutely stunning boy isn't he!! I would love one like him, but he is very game fowly and don't think he'd get on with my other chickens. He's got the most gorgeous plumage!

We rescued a couple more battery hens early last year who had had their beaks clipped, and had these awful looking messy beaks, and struggled to eat for a while. After a while however they did grow back, but the growing back is what you have to control. You don't need to bother with his bottom beak if he is still managing to eat his corn and bread. However, when the beaks grows back be careful that it doesn't grow in an odd way- one of our ex-battteries had a sheet of beak which had grown down the side of her bottom beak, making it hard for her to eat, so we had to clip it away.

If you want to get it shaped or anything to help him with eating then I would definately go to someone who keeps poultry so they can show you how to do it or do it for you. Don't do it by yourself as it is so easy to mess up!

Thanks for your question, I'd love to hear more about Edward and see more pictures, as I've fallen in love with him!!!  
    Questioner's Rating
    Rating(1-10)Knowledgeability = 10Clarity of Response = 10Politeness = 10
    CommentThank you so much for the fast and acurate response. your knowledge on the subject has saved my beloved rooster as well as myself, much pain and heartache to know nature may take it's course and repair his injury by itself. I will be referring all my game owning friends to you! many thanks Elaine and Edward


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Abi

Expertise

I CAN'T ANSWER QUESTIONS ON ANIMALS OTHER THAN CHICKENS/DUCKS/GEESE- I WILL TRY BUT THEY ARE NOT MY SPECIALIST SUBJECT- PLEASE DO NOT ASK ME QUESTIONS ABOUT BUDGIES, FINCHES, PARROTS, COCKATIELS OR OTHER 'EXOTIC' BIRDS. I can answer questions on pretty much all CHICKEN breeds, including fancy and bantam birds. I can give advice on how to get the best egg production, brightest yolk colours and darkest egg shell colours, breeding (using broody hens, not incubators), bird problems/illnesses. I can give advice on all aspects of basic chicken care but I breed chickens for my own pleasure only, I do not often show or sell my birds.

Experience

I own and breed a wide range of chickens, but I speciallise in cochins and crevecour bantams; crevecours have a large crest (an afro!) so I can answer questions on problems concerning them; cochins have feathered legs, which leads to no end of problems which I have experienced! I also own a large flock of domestic, rescued 'battery' hens, and a single maran hen, Hilda, who is the matriarch of her flock, so I can give advice on how to get the best colour of maran eggs!

Education/Credentials
n/a

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