# woodpigeon-crooked beak



## solly (Jul 18, 2005)

hello-i've a young woodpigeon about 7 weeks old which i have been handfeeding for three and a half weeks.just been to vet who trimmed top part of beak cos it goes sideways but he does not think he will ever have straight beak-don't know if he will ever feed himself-just wondered if there is anyone in devon uk area who can offer support as i have him in spare bedroom(all areas well covered so no mess).he is starting to try to fly only goes downwards at the moment.i'm thinking of an aviary but nextdoor has cats and i have jack russell who hates birds-just wondering if anyone has any suggestions thanks solly


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Hello and welcome,

Thank you for your care of this needy pigeon. 

Yes, we do have some experts in the UK that would be happy to help you once they log on. I'm not sure if they are near your area, but I'm sure they will help out. 

They are experts with wood pigeons,(and more) and I'm sure they can see what can be done for the beak. While the bird may have a crooked beak, some are able to pick up seeds. with time and rehab this bird may be able to use both mandables for picking up and swallowing seed. Have you tried to allow the bird access to seeds? Have you tried to generate an interest?

Young pigeons also need to learn the art of picking up seeds and pulling the tongue back and swallowing. That requires muscles that have not been used, and may just need a little help. Who knows, maybe with good supportive care the pigeon can achieve alot!

Treesa


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## upcd (Mar 12, 2005)

*Welcome*

Thank you for caring for the bird. Is the beck over growing on the top? If this is it ,they call it Hawk becking. If the bird gets trimmed when young the beck will become normal looking. But may need to be trim from time to time. Maybe 1-2xs a year. Making a home sounds like a good ideas. Then he will be save to fly and learn how to eat. God Bless


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Hi Solly,

We have a member in Totnes who is a regular woodie rescuer, I will ask her to have a look at this thread, maybe she can help.

I have 2 woodpigeons in the aviary with my feral pigeons, as they were rescued as youngsters they have adapted to that environment.

Cynthia


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

BTW, the description sounds like a scissor beak...I have a pigeon with that problem, but it was caused by canker.

Do you know what happened to your woodie?

Cynthia


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## solly (Jul 18, 2005)

Thanks for all your replies i've been contacted by a nearby member which proves that this site is excellent.Anyway here's a little more history about "walter", the top part of the beak is going sideways from above the nostril and the vet has clipped the part which was hooking over.He thinks it was caused by trauma.I found walter late one night walking along a road,his left eye was infected and when the vet nurse removed the build up from his eye she said it looked like a deformed eyeball.luckily after having antibiotics and eye ointment applied twice a day for a week(which he was very well behaved about)he now has a perfect eyeball.It was funny because after about 3 days he looked quite surprised that he could see out of it.A wildlife lady who takes in baby birds in my area said i should have left him at the vets as it wouldn't be fair to keep him in captivity( mind you she also said he should be flying -with not many feathers i don't know how she got that idea )but as he was so young i think he will be okay as he is perfectly happy in my spare room.He tries to peck food up but doesn't get any.i am feeding him economy pigeon mix,but the majority of his diet is emp which i mix with a little water-he tries to peck this and i think he might get a little on his tongue as he licks a little.if the food is at the front of his beak he works hard and swallows it.anyway i will let you know how this all turns out.Walter is a very lovely pigeon and i will do my best to find him a brilliant home with friends.


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## upcd (Mar 12, 2005)

*Gald*

thing are going better for your little bird.


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

> A wildlife lady who takes in baby birds in my area said i should have left him at the vets as it wouldn't be fair to keep him in captivity


That is the general view among wildlife rescuers. It might well apply to adults and even to some youngsters, but not to all. As I said before, my two are happy and one of them is an adult now! I am certain yours will be happy too.

Cynthia


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## solly (Jul 18, 2005)

walter is still in my spare room but i'm happy to say he managed to pick up a few pieces of corn and some peas yesterday by putting his head in a sort of upside down position he has to work very hard to keep hold of them and get them to the back of his mouth.He seems to ignore the smaller food and will only attempt to pick up the large kernels etc.-will he get enough mix of nutrition out of these?i am still also handfeeding him but as he gets better at doing it himself i will wean him off.the photos are not too good as he would not pose!but i think you can see the shape of his beak.i'll post again when hopefully he gets an aviary and a friend!!!


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Hi Paula,

Most pigeons are picky about which seeds they eat, as long as he gets vitamin supplements and calcium (preferably from a good grit mixture) he should be okay.

I am glad Walter is working out how to feed himself!

I have a pigeon with a scissor beak, what I have to watch out for is that the upper beak doesn't grow too long. You can trim the upper beak if it starts to hook like a parrot's...very little at a time because it can bleed, but don't ever trim the lower beak.

If a beak starts to bleed while you are trimming it then dipping the tip in cornflower helps control the bleeding.

Maybe John will post a photo of Piglet so that we can compare beaks! 

Cynthia


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## John_D (Jan 24, 2002)

*Piglet*

Indeed! This is Piglet when we first got him, couple of years back, and still a squeaker, and again more recently at beak trimming time (by then, the overhang had become very noticeable).

John


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Hi solly, 



Try and get them to eat from a small diameter ( at least one inch deep ) deep container of small Seeds and small bits of other things Wood Pigeons eat...

That way they can peck 'deep' even with a deformed Beak.

This is still a young Bird, barely an adult or impending adult.

Was this the result of an injury?


Phil
Las Vegas


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Hi, Solly,

You know, there are three different sections to this overall subject, two with the same subject title. I had to work backwards and forwards through all of them to get the clear picture. In the last post of the middle section...

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=11373

...I had given you a link to a website...

http://www.prettybird.com/research/beak.html

...that covered physical therapy for straightening these problems and I'll be monkey's uncle if I don't vaguely remember having some conversation about that with you. Did you ever review that site and try any of that? He looks like a prime candidate for a few sessions of pressure therapy a day as he's still young enough for it. I'm not trying to pressure you into that, I was just curious if you'd tried it because I've never had to deal with a scissor beak problem.

I went back and found the other thread that you originally posted about this:

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=11283

They all ought to be combined into one thread.

Pidgey


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## solly (Jul 18, 2005)

sorry i'm not very good at posting threads and don't know how to combine them-as i only can use the computer at my parents its always a bit of a rush-hope you didn't think i ignored your help!yes i read the site and now when i feed him i always get the food in from his left hand side so that any pressure i exert pushes his top beak across-i think if i had known this from day one then there would have been more success as obviously his beak was softer then.as for smaller seeds and deep dishes his "room"is full of these but he only makes the effort with large pieces-if i try to get him to peck out of a dish of small stuff he just trys to peck little pieces off the top.i did try to open his mouth gently and sort of put it into the seed but he just shakes it out again.i'm hoping that when he gets an aviary and a friend it will encourage him to copy!!i know its taking me a while to sort him a proper home but due to work and money its a slow process.Anyway he does seem very happy as hes got a whole room with things to perch on and a litter tray full of water which he bathes in.As an answer to the question about was his beak caused by an injury my vet did say it was probably caused through trauma due to the right hand nostril being sort of squashed and not formed correctly.I looked at the pictures of baby pigeons and i think he was only about 2-3weeks old when i got him.Would he have been thrown out of the nest by his mother if he was deformed at birth???????


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Some parents will pick one of the two to feed and just ignore the other one. Some will see a problem with one and give up on it. The only way to know is to have been there and seen the behavior.

Anyhow, can you with finger pressure actually straighten (I know it'll be "spring loaded") the beak so that it looks normal while you're holding it in place? Or will it just not give at all?

By the way, those pictures are taken with the bird in partial motion and too close for the camera to focus. As a helpful hint, it's often better to stand further back, take a picture with all the zoom you've got and then crop the picture to just what you want. 

Anyhow, I'd guess that he'd have a lot easier time eating bigger things like dried peas and popcorn than smaller seeds.

Pidgey


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## solly (Jul 18, 2005)

the beak can be sort of straightened but the right hand side from where it is attached to the head is sort of squashed and the nostril does not stand up and there is only a small hole for the nostril.yes the beak does spring right back to its former place and walter gets very stroppy obviously!i will try to get better photos so you can have a good idea about what i am talking about.thanks.


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## Whitefeather (Sep 2, 2002)

Hi Solly,
Scissor beaked pigeons can live a very normal life. 
Kim has two scissor beaked pijjies & they are doing wonderfully.

Jack was her first, who had a severe case of canker which appeared to have deformed his beak in addition to affecting his eye. 

Here is a link to one of her wonderful threads in which Jack has graduated into moving in with her other rescued pigeons. Zeke fell head over heels in love with Jack despite his handicap.  


http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=9423&highlight=Jack


Cindy


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