Chickens rely upon their beaks as tools to accomplish tasks that hands would serve- if they had them. Chicken beaks they aid in eating, drinking, grasping, exploring, digging, transporting, grooming and communicating. Beak injuries are common and can result from colliding with an object, particularly when the bird is startled, fighting with predators or other chickens and getting the beak stuck in between hard objects such as hardware cloth fencing. The extent of an injury can range from a simple chip to a fracture to a partial or complete removal of the beak from its underlying structures. A significant beak injury can be devastating to a chicken, not only can it be incredibly painful, and the injury can prevent the chicken from eating and drinking normally, endangering its ability to survive.