Overgrown Nails

[fluffy_stitch]

hi,my sisters boyfriend just bought two blue-ish rosella parakeets today but they are not in very good shape,they have pretty scruffy looking feathers and very overgrown nails,some of them are almost completely curled around,and the male also has part of one side of his top beak missing,its the rounded part just next to the face(not the hooked part if you know what i mean???its a bit hard to describe)he seems to be able to eat ok though but i cant tell if its been broken or if its deformed,anyway my question is how to cut the nails for them,i know to cut just the very tip of the nails for normal nails but should i do the same for very overgrown nails or should i cut a bit more?thanks.

[Bonesy]

If i'm dealing with birds with neglected beaks or toes, I cut away very small peices with a mix of normal nail cutters for birds and guillotine clippers like used on dogs.

If you cut smaller peices away you can shape them easier and not risk hitting any venis.

Poor birds, hope they get better. As for the beak, take him to a vet after a quick tidy from you.

Or if you feel you don't want to, take them all to a vet together and let them do it :)

[fluffy_stitch]

thanks Bonesy,i hope they get better too,im sure he will look after them well,they are lovely birds,i suppose its all about the money for some people who sell animals!

[Bonesy]

Sadly so.

It pains me when I see a packed aviary full of expensive birds with bad nails, bent beaks, missing toes and balded feathers, and they still expect you to pay full price.

When i was shopping for my other budgie, Mikko, I made sure I visited as many breeders as I could, and then I settled on a Disabled guy who had a beautiful huge aviary and indoor cages, all beautifully kept, and walked away with a £5, 5 week old baby bird And I'ev never regretted it.

Beats paying £20 at the pet shop for a 9 month old bird with half his feathers torn out by his cage mates and toes that could screw into masonry not to mention how incredibly neurotic some of them become living like that.

I even offered them some of the branches from my garden to use as perches to wear down the nails and their answer was "They don't last as long as dowel!"

They aint supposed to! So much for Comfort over durability eh...?

[fluffy_stitch]

i know what you mean, he paid 250euro for them!!! and they arent even in good condition but i suppose they know they will get the prices they want because we only have two or three stores that sell birds here,i clipped the nails for them yesterday anyway so hopefully they will feel a little happier and recomended him to take the one with the damaged beak to the vet so the will hopefully be ok...and i bet they have never seen a vet before either!

[BiiRDiiELuV805]

I Bought Some Lovebirds Like That, The Beak On One Was Cracked And The Toe Nails Looked Like Cork Screws, The Feathers Were In The Worse Condition I Ever Saw, I Used The Blue Dawn Dish Soap (the Kind They Use To Get Oil Off Of Ducks And Other Marine Animals In Oil Spil Rescues) And That Worked Wonders On Their Feathers Just Make Sure You Get To The Skin Also. I Hope Those Poor Babies Get The Love And Attention They Should Of Gotten.

[Hedonism]

Get a Sand Perch.

Mine loves it

[terryl]

I noticed Ollie had the same problem- long sharp nails, Sand covers for the perches soon solved the problem, but I had to take them off one perch as they must have been hurting his feet- he was constantly hopping from one foot to the other.

[fluffy_stitch]

i will tell him to get one for them,thanks a lot for your advice,i am building him a bigger cage for them tomorrow so they should be a lot happier from now on!

[Bonesy]

Sand perches should only be on a single perch, never on both, they can blister and sore the feet of the bird. I lay two cuttlefish in a row on their sides so the birds walk over them and put a bit of treat or something above them, so they stand on tiptoes to reach and wear toes on the cuttlebone :)