How to trim chicken toenails, beaks and filing spurs. How to tell if your chicken needs them trimmed. Video demonstrating how to trim chicken toenails, beaks, and filing spurs. If your chicken is kept indoors alot

How to Tell if your Chicken Needs their nails, beaks or spurs trimmed

Toenails: If your chickens toenails are starting to curl they need to be trimmed. Most chickens who are kept outdoors and allowed to scratch around do not usually need their toenails trimmed because they will naturally file down while they are scratching but occasionally they may still need trimming or filing.  Toenails that are too long can cause infections and cause birds to limp.
Beak: If your chickens top beak is growing longer than the bottom beak or curling around the bottom you need to trim the beak. Beaks that are too long can prevent birds from eating properly..
Spurs: A roosters spurs will grow all throughout their lives. Trimming a roosters spurs prevents them from injuring hens during mating and the people who handle them. Spurs that grow too long can cause health problems such as, ingrown spurs,  problems walking and can lead to infection. If spurs are beginning to curl upwards, it is time to trim them.

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Featured Video: Trimming chicken nails, beaks, and filing spurs

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Why You Need to Trim Your Chickens Toenails, Beak, & Spurs

"The beak, nails, and spurs of the chicken are highly keratinized structures. If kept outside, the bird may have the opportunity to keep these structures worn down through the activities of scratching and pecking. If the bird is caged or kept on deep litter, these structures may become overgrown. The spurs will continue to grow throughout the bird's life and can become very long or even ingrown. This can cause the bird problems when walking and can also lead to infection" (Bradley, Francine A. PhD. 2018).

Basic Things You will need to Trim Your  Chickens Toenails, Beak & Spurs

Electric pet toenail clippers or sterilized wire cutters (recommended). Some people use a hack saw (NOT recommended).
Electric pet toenail filer or a large and small emery nail filing board

How I Trim my Chicken's Toenails

Many people use two people to give their birds a pedicure and this is the safest way to do it. One to hold the bird while the other does the trimming.
1. Bathe chicken
2. Condition beak, toenails and spurs with coconut oil (helps to soften them and makes them easier to cut)
3. Wait 20 minutes and wipe oil off with lint free cloth
4. I use new sterilized (put them in boiling water for 30 seconds) wire cutters. I cut the toenails making sure not to cut the quick (dark line in the center of the nail-easy to see on birds with light colored toenails not so easy to spot on birds with black or dark colored toenails). I keep flour on hand just in case I nick it. Flour will stop the bleeding.
5. I use a metal nail file to remove any dirt residue under the nail and around the cuticle.
6. I use emery boards to shape the nail. If my birds nails are already short I just file them instead of cutting.
7. Rinse the birds feet in warm water and blot dry.
8. Apply coconut oil, antifungal foot cream, or Vicks vapor rub depending on the condition of the birds feet.
9. I put the bird in a cage with a cage bottom for two hours to allow conditioning oil or cream to absorb.
10. Release the bird into the flock.

​References:
1. Bradley, Francine A. PhD. (2018). Animalsciencey.ucdavis.edu. Retrieved 17 May 2018, from http://animalsciencey.ucdavis.edu/phi/PHI/Care%20of%20Beak,%20Nails,%20Spurs.pdf
​2. Trimming chickens nails,beaks, and filing spurs. (2018). YouTube. Retrieved 17 May 2018, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZOnWHq8ogk