i have a budgie that needs his beak trim and normally i take my birds to a normal vet who has treat alot of budgies but this time i thought i would go to my closest avian vet. they told me to trim a budgies beak they have to put them asleep, is that true or are they just trying to make a simple procedure more expensive.

There was a post recently about the rescued baby bird who had the really long beek caused by the mites etc. I think it was called "student budgie"

 

The vets trimmed his beak without sedation in that story. Your vets might be trying to add some $$$$ to your bill, but everyone does things differently so its hard to say.

i remember that post that is why i cannot understand why the avian vet said that they had to sedated my budgie,he quote me $146 to do it.

Edited February 21, 200817 yr by deb

OUCH!!!!!

I hope you find an answer

i remember that post that is why i cannot understand why the avian vet said that they had to sedated my budgie,he quote me $146 to do it.

Maybe your vet feared being bitten by a budgie

is it something you can do yourself or should you really take them to a vet.

do you have a picture???

I see Robin (Phoebe) is on this post so she will answer because I know she had her foster budgie's beak trimmed, that is a line of well you know.

That's me, here's Sky when I got him, abandoned with his buddy Pickle in a house under construction. Here's him when I got them from the construction worker who rescued him. and after his beak was clipped. Thank goodness he is a good little fellow and my avian vet showed me how to clip his beak, which I do, every 2 to 3 weeks with a stipec pencil and cornstarch beside me. I do it very modestly;he has 3 varieties of cuttlebones in his cage but he thinks they are toys and chats with them or bangs them, doesn't chew them.

Sly's is the bottom beak that is too long but she manages to keep it trim by scratching it on the branches in the aviary and with the cuttle bone but it still is longer than it should be because it is effecting the growth of her top beak. i have posted her picture but not sure if you can see what i am talking about.her top beak is blunt because of the bottom beak but that has only recently change.she has not problem eating.what is a stipec pencil.

 

:ygbudgie: Stipec pencils are also used by men that use the old fashioned blades to shave by should they bleed. Cannot imagine why anyone would want to use them but the guys that do, swear that they get a neat, close shave. Which they do, at the risk of slicing themselves!!! Guess they know what they are doing!!! You can also buy products in jar for birds that will assist should bleeding occur. As long as you are shown properly by a vet, there is no reason you cannot do it by yourself. Good luck!!!

thanks Phoebe, i might ring around the local vets and find one who can show me how to do it.

Sly's is the bottom beak that is too long but she manages to keep it trim by scratching it on the branches in the aviary and with the cuttle bone but it still is longer than it should be because it is effecting the growth of her top beak. i have posted her picture but not sure if you can see what i am talking about.her top beak is blunt because of the bottom beak but that has only recently change.she has not problem eating.what is a stipec pencil.

 

 

She looks good, so it cant be stoping her from eating etc.

Maybe she might need sedation because its the bottom part rather than the top....??? not sure????

she is a decent size, she has never let it get between her and her food.When i rang the vet i did not tell them what part of her beak needed trimming but just asked for a price for a beak trim and nearly fell off my chair when they told me.

:ygbudgie: All I have to do is the top, I can imagine the bottom would be much more difficult.

The bottom beak is the easiest to trim. It develops like that when food gets stuck in the top beak while a chick in the nest. The food in the top beak builds up heat and stops it growing so the bottom beak grows out over the top beak. These birds need constant trimming sometimes as much as every fortnight. I have one in the aviary I catch up and trim every fortnight. Its easy because there is almost always a line you can see where the new growth is compared to where it should be. I use sharp scissors or nail clippers. Watch out for the tongue sticking out...commonly they will poke the tongue out as you clip. By all means get shown how to do it, but after that its an easy task to maintain yourself. If you lived closer I would show you how.

Edited February 21, 200817 yr by KAZ

thanks Kaz, when i look at her beak the end is lighter than the reat of the beak so is it the light part that needs to be trimmed back.she was one i bred and it is a shame i did not know that food could get caught in their beaks.is it possibly to breed with her, could she feed babies.

:ygbudgie: I don't like it to do it but I am getting more confident in doing it It bothers me that Sky will never have a "normal" beak, but can eat properly and he and his buddy Pickle are happy guys and the "singiest" of all the 6 budgies! I still get somebody in to do wings/nails for those that need it 3 times a year as my eyesight is so very poor and it is MUCH cheaper than taking them to the vet and she is so very good.

thanks Kaz, when i look at her beak the end is lighter than the reat of the beak so is it the light part that needs to be trimmed back.she was one i bred and it is a shame i did not know that food could get caught in their beaks.is it possibly to breed with her, could she feed babies.

If she can eat by herself Deb, she will be able to feed babies. My boy in the aviary is over 2 years old and copes very well. He is in love or lust with various budgie ladies all the time and manages to "feed" them so I think yours will be fine. Constant trims are needed or the overgrown part breaks unevenly and splinters into sharp projections. The lighter part you can see is where the cut line is. Easy to do. Better to take of a little less than you think than too much and have it bleed.

she has no problems with eating, my husband loves the yellow face type 2's and would like to breed with her and keep the babies.My two budgies in the house i clip their wings and trim their nails myself and i only do little bits at a time so i have never had a bleed at all.

What a cutie! I'm sure if you trim wings and nails, the beak would be no problem for you. Good Luck!

i got some great advice of Kaz and she is trimmed now and it did not upset her at all.

Great stuff good on you... What are you going to spend your $146 on?

i have four kids, 2 cats, 12 budgies and 5 fish and a husband so it will get spent on food and more food.

i have four kids, 2 cats, 12 budgies and 5 fish and a husband so it will get spent on food and more food.

 

 

Better spent on feeding your huge family than in a vet's massive pockets!!!