beak trimming

[budgieboy05]

hello i have a male orange weaver finch and his beak is getting too long i have a cuttle bone placed in his cage but he does not pay it any mind so i was wonder if there was any i can do like a nail filer or something simmilar please help me i want him to be able to eat properly thankz in advance

[krazy4birds]

I wish I could help you here but I can't. I do file the end of Olivers beak
once in awhile but as for Finches I don't know if their little hearts could take it. Maybe someone who knows can give advice soon. Good luck

[Magnum]

Do you have Sandy Perches for your bird?

You might want to take him to your avian vet and see if they will show you how to properly file his beak. They will do it for you then, and maybe you could maintain it from then on.

[Amanda]

Magnum's suggestion of having sandy perches in the cage is a good one. My birds have them in their cage and I haven't had to file my birds beaks down. My brother has finches and I remember that he mentioned he trims their beaks. I'm not sure how he does it though because he lives in Dallas, TX so I haven't seen how he trims them.

[Jerica]

I used to have zebra finches and the first three I used to have had really long beaks (they were sick when I got them and hadn't used their cuttlebone) well I would try to get them out of the cage, I would see where they were sitting, turn the light off (at night), and reach in and grab them. Since they were so small I could hold them securely in my hand and cover their eyes with my fingers and just use a pair of small human nail clippers to clip the end off. They were able to eat everything just fine.

[krazy4birds]

I would be way to scared to trim any of my birds beaks. I file Olivers as I said earlier but if it came to clipping them back I think I would strongly urge a vet visit.

[Gems]

it's a simple procedure like Jerica mentioned, but often times an ovegrowing beak can be a sign of illness. You can also use an emery board or a dremel with a sanding attachment. I agree that the sand perches work well for helping a bird to maintain their beak, but it's probably not enough if they're already out of shape.
Might want to have that checked out.

[Snow]

OK yes sandy perches are an excellcent idea!!

A bird should have at least three perches in the cage with varying widths and size. One of these I would make a Sand Perch or sandy perch, this is a manzanita wood covered in sandstone, you want to make sure the nails do not wrap all the way around but have contact with perch other wise you are defeating its purpose to help keep the nails trimmed down.

DO NOT get a cement perch this can end up causing arthritis in the feet and legs.

You can even order these online from bird companies

This site below even gives you a few more facts about the differences between concrete and the sandy perch
http://www.healthybird.net/Sandy Perches.htm

Here are a few sites that have them
http://www.perchfactory.com/category.html?UCIDs=1140354
http://www.naturechest.com/sandyperches.html
http://nalanitoys.com/Sandyperch.htm
http://www.24parrot.com/sandy1.htm

Here are some thoughts for you to think about regarding your birds beak though.

As a bird plays and grinds, chews, sharpens the beak it can at times appear a bit more jagged and worn in places around the edges then the main part of the mandible (upper beak).

The Lower beak will also show signs like this on the upper edges of it, this is the area closer to where the two mandibles meet and come together at.

This site below shows you what a REAL bad overgrown beak is like and will give you an idea as to what you need to look out for. Keep in mind THESE are ADVANCED cases where the bird has just been left in some cases and not received the proper care it needs.
http://burgebirdservices.homestead.com/beaks.html

These next site will also help you to understand this better
http://www.birdsnways.com/wisdom/ww53eiv.htm

Usually birds will keep them trimmed through chewing on woods, cuttlebones, mineral stones/blocks something of this type.

A beak will grow like a finger nail as we have to file the finger nail so does the bird with again woods, cuttlebones, mineral stones/blocks.

You need to know also that now days there are flavored mineral stone/blocks out on the market once you start with one flavor you have to stick with the same flavor 9 out of 10 times cause the bird will not use any other flavor.

Yes a VET would have a Dremal in the office to use to trim the beak. Please ask however when you call in manner do the trim the beak it should be with a Nail File or the Dremal.

On small birds you can use clippers for the toe nails but not the beak.

DO NOT attempt to do this yourself, Birds have one main vein in their beak and if you hit this YOUR bird can Bleed to DEATH!!

With a beak being long like this you bird could have Liver Disease, you would need to have your bird be tested by the VET. Regular beak overgrowth with a bird that has plenty of toys to chew on may have Liver trouble. With a beak being long like this you bird could have Liver Disease, you would need to have your bird be tested by the VET.

Below are some facts on OVER GROWN BEAK AND CRACKS

This is a generally a sign of liver disease and the bird should be seen by a vet as to verify with testing if it is this. Usually birds will keep them trimmed through chewing on woods, cuttlebones, mineral stones/blocks something of this type
Regular beak overgrowth with a bird that has plenty of toys to chew on may have Liver trouble.
Most of the time this is caused from being on a poor diet of simply seed.
You will need to see a vet and have a CBC panel done (complete blood count) to establish if this is the case with your bird.

Here are a few sites to help you with this
http://www.birdsnways.com/wisdom/ww53eiv.htm
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Plains/5470/articles/Grooming-What Birds Need.html

What kind of diet is your bird on??
Diet can make a difference as to why the beak is this way and if the bird does have Liver Disease this may be part of the reason the bird has this. Most of the time this is caused from being on a poor diet of simply seed.

NEVER MED a bird yourself with over the counter drugs they are much weaker then what the VET will give out and do not do the proper job. Not only this what if you are giving the bird the completely wrong meds for this then you could be harming insted of helping.

If you asked some at a pet store for help on this as to what type of meds to use 9 times out of 10 they honestly do not know and they are no more a vet then you are.

PLEASE make sure you go to a BOARD CERTIFIED AVAIN VET as most vets are like a regular MD to us and do not really know birds that well. Kind a think like this if you get an eye check up you go to an eye Dr for this not a MD as they know eyes very very well right. Well the same thing really applies with birds also most vets do not know enough about birds so you need to find one that specializes in them that is BOARD CERTIFIED.

Here are some sites for you to locate a board certified avian vet in your area if you do not already have one you go to.
http://www.aav.org/vet-lookup/
http://www.aav.org/activemembers.html
http://www.birdsnways.com/articles/abvpvets.htm

DO NOT allow the VET to give your bird BAYTRIL/Cipro as this can either give your bird bad side effects (like respiratory system problems) or kill your bird ask for OTHER ALTERNATIVES. A vet that offers BAYTRIL/Cipro to me is not a VET worth going to. DO NOT be afraid to ask what the VET is doing and why!!

Although this drug is a wide spectrum antibiotic it is also one of the that I know that has killed and brought on many bad sign effects that birds will live with the rest of their lives after using this drug.

Stay away from meds that go in the water as 9 out of 10 times it will detour them from drinking the water they need cause the taste is awful. Things added to the water can be a bit on the bitter side and a big turn off for the birds to drink.

If it must go in the water you can try to mask it with a bit of Orange Tang this will help your gamble some that the bird will drink a bit more then before but it is a 50/50 chance unless your bird was brought up drinking things other then water.

I would measure the amount of comsuption of the water amount your bird may drink since this is added in, barring of course any bathing they may do out of the water dish.

Just like your doctor has a record of information on you the vet needs this on your bird.

Never wait til you bird is sick like this for the VET the bird should have a yearly check up no matter what!

If you go to this link and read post #9 you will my diet facts sheet that I hope may be helpful, I know you have a finch BUT finches can still eat sprout food and eat fresh fruits and veggies with out a problem.
http://forums.petlovers.com/vb/showthread.php?p=55865#post55865

Hope all this helps you to understand a bit more