How much beak flaking is normal?

[ravvlet]

Hey! Kirby is doing great but we’ve noticed he really likes to rub his beak against his cage bars and perches, and most recently last night tried to rub it against one of the screws holding a perch in place!

I redirected him immediately and snapped a pic - his beak is really flaky. Is there anything I could put on it to make it more comfortable? I can only assume it’s itchy. We have been putting a little coconut oil every couple of days on his feet because they are dry and calloused from sitting on tiny dowels (which we got rid of immediately, yay) - should I oil his beak too?

Does this warrant a call to the vet? When she saw him three weeks ago she didn’t say anything about it and I don’t think she typically recommends beak trimming (I was under the impression it’s not great but I could be wrong).

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Hi Ravvlet and Kirby.
Kirby is Beautiful. Kirby's beak like your fingernail is made of keratin. This can flake off as the beak grows.
I wonder what Kirbys diet is like?
The Amazon parrot I have now, (Rodney) loves his veggies but I have had trouble in the past getting a parrot who was used of a complete commercially prepared diet for many years , to get used to eating veggies, so I don't know if Kirby will eat veggies for you or not, but a good diet of veggies will help prevent beak flaking that might be caused by a deficiency of Vitamin A.
If Kirby is not a bird who will eat veggies for you then you can get a supplement for him. Talk to your vet about it and see what she says.
If you are at all concerned or worried about Kirby,'s health then don't delay talk to your Avian Vet, even if you have just seen her a couple of weeks ago.

 

[Joon]

Looking at your other posts about Kirby and his dry feet? I'd assume it was a vitamin A deficiency too.



I'd ask your vet about the possibility of a couple of vitamin injections to boost vitamin A immediately. Then work at getting Kirby to eat beta carotene rich foods, and maybe add palm oil (my vet recommends a sunflower seeds worth every couple of days for my amazons) I'd avoid an OTC supplement because it's possible to overdo vitamin A and not realize it.

 

[ravvlet]

Kirby was not with us until approximately 3 weeks ago and at his former home his diet was pretty bad - nuts and seeds mostly. We have gotten him to eat pellets but veggies seems to be a weird struggle - we offer them twice a day and sometimes he really goes to town on them and then other times, like this morning, he takes two bites and stops.

We do have an order from Christines chop shop coming in today that includes a bag of the mega A blend, and so far his fav method of veggie serving has been the “add hot water” variety they sell over freshly chopped or steamed, so we will see how that goes. Thanks for the info!

 

[ravvlet]

Looking at your other posts about Kirby and his dry feet? I'd assume it was a vitamin A deficiency too.



I'd ask your vet about the possibility of a couple of vitamin injections to boost vitamin A immediately. Then work at getting Kirby to eat beta carotene rich foods, and maybe add palm oil (my vet recommends a sunflower seeds worth every couple of days for my amazons) I'd avoid an OTC supplement because it's possible to overdo vitamin A and not realize it.

She did note that he might have a vit A deficiency (not sure if that is something they could determine looking at his bloodwork and cultures because she didn’t bring it up again) but didn’t offer to do shots, I think she’s hoping that we can make up for it with a diet change and not have to supplement or inject anything for the reason you stated.

 

[Joon]

It can usually be seen in the mouth as white plaques, or there's a slimy appearance, or mucus and, the papilla on the roof of the mouth is blunted. But also sneezing. wheezing, discharge from the nares, or eyes, lethargy, weight loss etc help to decide.

 

[SailBoat]

Full spectrum blood testing is where vitamin A deficiency is commonly seen. A skilled Certified Avian Vet commonly spots a vitamin A deficiency as part of a physical examination, but will not provide or prescribe without reviewing a blood test.

As state above, the beak chipping is fairly common when one's Parrot is working wood, nut shells, etc. Metal (cage) bars are not common in their natural range and can result in more chipping than what would be normal. Having plenty of wood /chew toys can help to limit their working on the bars.

Most CAV will want you to adjust diet and then monitor if the deficiency is minor. If more serious, they will provide a single shot. Far too many people provide OTC vitamins when they are not really needed or can be provided by minor diet adjustments.

Beak trimming IMHO is rarely required unless there is a physical issue that requires intervention. The beak contains a nerve mass that is sensitive to trimming and can result in your Parrot not eating. Unless your Avian Professional recommends it to address a physical issue avoid trimming.

 

[ravvlet]

He did have white plaque in his mouth & some slime which she showed me during the exam, which is when she indicated that she suspected a deficiency. I will continue to offer him things from the ILA thread that were listed as high in vitamin A & also see if I can’t get him to try the Mega A blend and the carrot brittle I ordered for him. Thanks all!

He does have wooden, cardboard and those weird papery natural texture piñatas that he likes to chew on! I will continue to offer him new wood foot toys etc and try to make sure he isn’t rubbing his beak on his cage. I imagine beak condition is just one of those things that will take a while to visibly improve, I just was worried maybe he was at risk of really damaging it.

 

[SailBoat]

Commonly that nerve mass saves them from over-doing it. And, if they do push a bit too far, that same nerve mass delivers a wake-up call.

I would not make a big deal of him rubbing his beak. I would recommend that you note what he is doing prior to rubbing as he maybe simply removing food.

At this point, work on relationship development and know that some of these things are just going to go away or become rare as time passes.

Enjoy!

 

[wrench13]

I can attest to beak sensitivity. Our YSA stopped playing with his toys, and wouldn't do any beak intesive tricks all of a sudden.When I took him to his vet,she noticed a small horizontal crack or delamination, right at the sharp tip of his upper beak. The trimming she did was almost too small to see, just the tinyest little snip,to get rid ofthe crack. That did the trick and he was his old self 2 days later.

Also I find beak chipping and scaling is more noticable on parrots with black or dark beaks.

 

[Laurasea]

Everyone covered it. Yes it looks on the bad side Don't beak trim , it will improve with his better diet. Hot red chilli peppers have a lot of vitamin A and parrots for the most part love them. I'd add encourage extra baths. And sunshine, I know it's cold where you are darn it.
My Penny had a terrible beak with her vitamin A and D deficiency, but it improved pretty quickly.
So glad you got this guy , and provide a better life!!

 

[ravvlet]

We have been going out on the patio with the bird cages when the sun warms it up enough to be comparable to the inside of the house! We made it outside twice this week, which was nice and gave me extra space to clean up since I roll the tiels cage outside (Kirby’s has a bum wheel at the moment so he goes out in his sleep cage). I’ve been offering peppers but to be honest I don’t think they’re hot pepper, just the colored bell pepper variety so I will definitely try to find some spicier ones.

We do baths twice a week! He doesn’t really like baths yet sadly, I got them a shower perch and both he and Cricket sort of just put up with it haha. Cricket used to love bath time on the patio in his travel cage but it’s too cold out to spray him down with the squirt bottle. I usually just run the shower till it’s humid then they take turns with the shower on and mostly squirt bottle (although I do put Kirby under the water stream a bit since he’s so much bigger than Cricket).

I would say he is “bath tolerant” but certainly not “bath enthusiastic”. Maybe that comes with time. He’s been really great about letting us pet him and has learned to step up on the dowel with no fuss. He still doesn’t step up onto my hand from inside the cage but he will everywhere else.

I don’t let him on my shoulder yet as I feel like we still don’t know each other well enough and he does get very excited and will sometimes displacement bite things and I’d rather it not be my face or ear. I haven’t tried putting him anywhere else - maybe a knee? His perching still isn’t great so I think his feet and vertebrae need time to heal before we get too handsy. I’m totally ok with him never being a cuddle bird, but I worry that I’m not giving him enough opportunities to do so. Before he bonded to the female BFA they had his last home said he was VERY cuddly.

 

[PickleMeDickles]

SassyByrd had flaky layers to her beak. We just took her to an avian vet last week. They don’t do beak trims routinely but she (the vet) thought it would be of benefit to the Sass. I thought beak trims were strictly for the sharp tip of the beak. Not so, they “sand down” the entire beak, or what they feel needs it. SassyByrd was VERY sore for 2 days, I’m not sure if it was from being restrained or from the actual sanding. The 2 things I learned or came away with during this experience is:

1. Nobody will take SassyByrd away into another area where I can’t be with her for treatment unless there is a good damn reason. I think it was psychologically much worse for her to be removed from my presence than if I were to have stayed with her.

2. Perhaps the beak trim was necessary, perhaps not. But it didn’t “feel” right and the sound of the dremmel almost drove me to rush the room where she was and rescue her. Next time I will ask enough questions to make an informed decision that I feel is best for her. For 2 long days I questioned the beak trim and worried Sass had been seriously hurt. She was fine and I probably overreacted, but still.