Beak Clipper
Beak clipper or debeaker
Name/Title
Beak ClipperEntry/Object ID
2025.1.227Description
Metal tool with a sliding blade, and a spring in the handle.Context
Debeaking or beak trimming is done with the welfare of the chicken in mind. Hens have a natural pecking order within a flock and if that is upset it can lead to feather pecking and unless stopped to more serious behaviour. Today the process is carried out by an infra-red beam and in the UK and only the very end of the beak is removed. The beak clipper was developed in the Ohio Agricultural Experiment Station in the !930s to deal with aggressive behaviour in intensive poultry farming. Various techniques have developed over the years and also legislation to protect the welfare of the chickens. Some countries ban debeaking completely.Category
Animal Husbandry