Why do birds wipe their beaks?

[dexterdoglancashire]

This is something Ive always wanted to know. 've seen the wild birds in the garden wiping their beaks on the branches of the trees, but Ive seen my girls doing this today after tucking into their supper of mash with added pasta, current teacake and cous cous. First time I've ever seen chickens argue over cooked pasta!

[ginger ninger]

There wipeing the food off to help keep them self's clean...a bit like us washing our hand's when there dirty or our face's when we've been eating sticky food.

[Eco-Chic]

Don't you provide your chooks with napkins?

I think they do it to sharpen their beaks as well - all the better for digging for grubs etc.

[dexterdoglancashire]

Ah! I wondered if that was the case. I wondered if they had any scent glands of the like around their beaks and were scenting where they had been, a bit like a cat spraying.....you know where Im coming from dont you?

[Eco-Chic]

I know where you're coming from:-)

How long have you had your chooks Dexter?

I've not had mine 3 weeks yet.

[organic]

There's sometimes another explanation. Depends on the bird though. I think I saw it with a blackbird.

If you're luck enough to see it, it's pretty fascinating to watch.

Bird wiping it's face side to side in the grass, stops, looks down and wipes again repeated several times.

For a while I couldn't figure out what was going on, then it twigged.

It had caught a slug, was wiping off the slime, putting it down to see how it was looking and wiping again. Once it was happy that it was relatively mucus free - down the hatch it went. Flippin' clever that!

[Eco-Chic]

Lol

Mine haven't cottoned on that snails are food yet.

Unless they're waiting for me to take the shells off

[dexterdoglancashire]

I know where you're coming from:-)

How long have you had your chooks Dexter?

I've not had mine 3 weeks yet.

I collected my girls from lynda66 on Saturday. What kind have you got, how old are they and what names, if any have you chosen?

[dexterdoglancashire]

Organic that's a lovely story and have seen the blackbirds on my front lawn doing something similar but didn't know why. I'll keep a closer eye on them, with binos if necessary, to see if I can see anything in more detail.

[RichmondHens]

My theory is they need to keep their beaks clean in order to be able to preen properly. They don't want to be wiping food etc through their feathers.

I do find it a rather endearing little habit, and one of my tame cocks likes to sit on my lap, eat from my hand, and then wipe his beak on my trousers!!

[Eco-Chic]

Myrtle, Maud and Madge. Orpington Blue Bantams 17 weeks old.

I had a fourth Sweet Clarry Cluck, but my dogs murdered her last week

[dexterdoglancashire]

Myrtle, Maud and Madge. Orpington Blue Bantams 17 weeks old.

I had a fourth Sweet Clarry Cluck, but my dogs murdered her last week

OMG! how awful! I think I read your thread in the number of chooks bit. Dexter is only allowed in the back garden when the girls are secure in their pen, and Im in there. He's getting v fed up, but so be it. The girls and Dexter are getting more and more used to each other in small doses.

Have you posted any photos? They sound lovely, and their names are super. Have you had any egges yet?

[Snadger]

Bernie..............you don't have to feed your chooks a three course meal each day, you know!

Slugs or snails deffo get a beak wiping reaction with mine.

[dexterdoglancashire]

Poor girls, Im sort of testing them out, seeing what they will and wont eat.
Cooked pasta=1 Currant teacake=0

[Eco-Chic]

My dogs are now only allowed in the back garden when the chooks are in their coop/run. They are taking less notice of them as they get more used to them. I like them to run in the garden when the chooks are tucked up in case Mr. Fox decides to chance a visit.

There has been intensive re-education of the dangerous brothers and their mother this last week. If I tell them to 'go back in' they get off the patio and go into the kitchen so I can get through the gate to the garden.

Wonderful things spray bottles full of water