On 2014-02-20 2:25 PM, ChattyCathy wrote:

>> Chickens will eat just about anything that is not faster than their
>> peckers.
>
> Quite so; chickens are omnivores after all. However, our lot draw the line
> at carrots....
>
>> I don't remember if it was in this group or some other place where
>> someone was complaining about chicks having their beaks nipped off
>> shortly after hatching. The reason is that they will peck and hurt or
>> kill each other.
>
> All our chickens (both past and present) have their beaks intact - and
> they seem perfectly content that way.
>


Did you hatch them yourselves or did you get them from a hatchery? It is
almost standard operating procedure for hatcheries to debeak chicks for
shipping. When you get thousands of little chickens running around they
tend to get aggressive and cannibalistic.