Beak growing?

[bridget503]

Our lovebird's beak seems to be growing. I looked at pictures of him and it does seem longer. I give them cuttlebones, and he loves to chew on stuff, but it's really getting long. Is there anything else we can do, something he can eat/chew to file it down?

 

[ann]

hard wooden toys to chew on can help, but a vet appointment is a good idea. A vet can tell you if he needs his beak trimmed. make sure that if his beak is trimmed, it is done by a professional, it can be risky. good luck

 

[MonicaMc]

The better question is, why is the beak overgrowing?

If it truly is, then he needs to go to an avian vet for blood work to make sure that the kidneys and liver are fine. Mites are also another possible reason for an overgrown beak.

 

[bridget503]

How can mites effect the beak growing? I'm curious about that. We do have a mite problem right now with the baby parakeets.

 

[MonicaMc]

I don't think red mites can, but scaly face mites (most well known name) can. Beaks can also become overgrown due to damage and the inability for parrots to properly grind down their beaks. If a bird gets a bad case of scaly face mites, this may also result in enough damage to cause the beak to grow abnormally.

The following website talks about parasite infestations and shows a picture of a budgie effected by scaly face mites.
Birds Online - Health and diseases - Parasite infestation

 

[crimson]

someone told me once a possible cause for an overgrown beak was lack of calcium....I thought to my self hmmmm....I have cuttlebone in the cage and it 'should be enough', no its not. Apparently cuttlebone is not enough for birds to get their daily intake of calcium.
I started scraping cuttlebone onto her food, guess what, no more long beak. problem solved. she is an older cockatiel. I also provide more of a balanced diet when it comes to vegetables, also adding F-Vite onto her food as well.
I'm not saying that will work for all birds, but it worked for mine.

 

[ruffledfeathers]

It may be something so simple, but i like the vet checkup idea too. I had a budgie that i thought was a little overgrown and he 'seemed' fine (i should know better!!)
Anyhow i let it go for a while before i finally decided it may be serious....and i waited too long.