Is her beak ok

[Phil2019]

Hi all thank you for the add new to parrot keeping been looking at Alexanderin beaks and mnowticed my birds is slightly different see pics attached is this normal or should I be changing her diet. She had mixed of seeds and plenty of fruits and veg

 

[clark_conure]

I AM NO EXPERT ON YOUR BREED.... but idk seems ok. If you want a strong healthy beak be sure to add calcium to your birds diet. I recommend those orange juices where they add calcium and vitamin D.

I know conures handle dairy ok, cheese and milk (never soft or fake cheeses) but others freak out about it and I cannot attest to any other species. I'd add some fortified OJ, after all it won't hurt.

Also see a CAV, get a full workup, and ask them what they recommend.

 

[Phil2019]

Thank you for the information

 

[clark_conure]

be sure to check back, I'm not an expert in this species, others are.....

 

[noodles123]

I AM NO EXPERT ON YOUR BREED.... but idk seems ok. If you want a strong healthy beak be sure to add calcium to your birds diet. I recommend those orange juices where they add calcium and vitamin D.

I know conures handle dairy ok, cheese and milk (never soft or fake cheeses) but others freak out about it and I cannot attest to any other species. I'd add some fortified OJ, after all it won't hurt.

Also see a CAV, get a full workup, and ask them what they recommend.

I wouldn't give orange juice (too much sugar and vitamin c). Citrus is discouraged (unless in extreme moderation) as it can cause iron storage disease.

 

[EllenD]

Noodles makes a very important point, NO CITRUS FRUIT/FRUIT JUICE OR TOMATOES!!! Citrus Fruit and Tomatoes are full of Vitamin C, and Vitamin C greatly enhances their body's absorption of Iron, and no birds of any species can handle much Iron at all. If they absorb excess-Iron they develop a life-threatening condition called "Iron Storage Syndrome/Disease", which causes sudden disorientation, vomiting, and death...

Your bird's beak looks okay, although it looks as though it may be either a bit over-grown or like he may have "chipped" the end of it slightly...It's not anything I'd worry about, as it will eventually grow-out...However, when a bird's beak starts to over-grow, it can be a sign of Liver Disease, specifically "Fatty Liver Disease", which is usually caused by a regular diet that is high in fat, namely a regular, daily diet with a "staple" of seeds or a seed-mix that contains fatty seeds, such as Sunflower Seeds, and possibly also any types of Nuts, and then also any dried Corn Kernels or Dried Cracked Corn. This is why it's suggested that you transition your parrots from a daily staple-diet of seeds/seed-mixes to a daily staple of a healthy, "Natural-Flavor" pellet diet.

You don't want to switch your bird onto a "Fruit-flavored" pellet, as they are full of added and natural sugars, and this sugar will simply be turned into fat and stored in their livers just like the fat from the seed-mix does...The same goes for pellets that are "Nut-flavored" (Zupreem has a "Nut" flavored pellet in addition to their Fruit pellets), and the Nut-flavored pellets contain a ton of fat too...So you always want to transition your bird onto a Natural pellet, such as Zupreem Natural, or even better are Harrison's pellets, or Tops pellets...

***While it will take time for your pellet to gradually transition from a daily staple-diet of seed-mix to Natural pellets, there is a big change that you can make immediately that will greatly improve your bird's diet, drastically lower is fat-intake, and start improving his liver health, and that is by immediately switching him over to a healthy, low-fat seed-mix that contains NO Sunflower Seeds of any kind, NO Nuts of any kind, and NO Dried Corn Kernels or Dried Cracked Corn...I don't know where you live in the world, but there are several commercial parrot seed-mixes available that you can probably order online that are actually very healthy, that birds generally love, and that will immediately put your bird on a healthy road...Then once you make the change to a healthy seed-mix staple along with fresh veggies and dark, leafy greens, then you can start slowly transitioning him over to a Natural-flavored pellet staple-diet.

There are several healthy, low-fat, varied seed-mixes out there that you can order online, the main things you are looking for again are NO Sunflower Seeds of any kind, NO Nuts of any kind (specifically NO Peanuts), and NO Dried Corn of any kind...That's what you're looking for, but that best ones that are sold commercially and easy to find online are #1) Tropimix, #2) Higgins Vita Seed "California Blend", and #3) Higgins "Safflower Gold"...I highly recommend either #1 or #2, and they are very similar and are a very low-fat, healthy mix of low-fat seeds, fresh grains, legumes, dried herbs, veggies, and a small amount of fruit...The #3 option, the Higgins Safflower Gold, is also a good choice as it contains no Nuts, Sunflower Seeds, or Dried Corn, but it is still a mix of mostly just seeds, so it's much better than most seed-mixes out there, but not as healthy as the Tropimix or the Higgins Callifornia Blend...And the Tropimix seed-mix also contains Tropican pellets in it as well, so if you start giving this to your bird and he gets to liking the Tropican pellets that are also in it, then you can make an easy switch to Tropican pellets...I'd work on finding a healthy seed-mix ASAP to get his daily fat intake down, it's usually the Sunflower Seeds (all types) that cause most of the Fatty Liver Disease in parrots, along with Peanuts and the Dried Corn...

****Also, you want to limit the amount of Fresh Fruit that you give your bird...He should not have Fresh Fruit every day, as it is also loaded with sugar; all fruits contain a ton of sugar, and even though it's "natural" sugar, it still gets turned into fat and is stored in their livers...Unfortunately a lot of people think that fresh veggies and fruits are the "same thing", that both are healthy for their birds, but it's simply not true, especially for captive/pet parrots who do not fly miles each day and get little exercise, and then eating the fruit along with the fatty seed-mixes is just asking for Fatty Liver Disease...So, you should start thinking of fresh Fruit as an occasional "Treat", just like nuts and people food. While you should give your bird a lot of fresh veggies and fresh dark, leafy greens every single day as a part of the regular, daily diets, you should only give him a small piece or two of fresh fruit 2-3 times a week, and in very small portions...The only captive/pet parrots that should be fed fruit every day are the species that depend on fresh veggies and fruits for ALL of their nutrition, such as Eclectus's and Lorikeets...