Best perches to help with birds nails

Hi! So Lenny's nails are getting pretty long and is going to need to be cut soon. I'm thinking after that to get one of those perches that help sand down their nails. I was going to get one but someone told me that the sand can cause infections in their feet? Can anyone comment on that? If they are good, though what is the best brand?

There are better options than sandpaper-perches.
The ones that go all around the perch can irritate the feet - but the 'muricans here will direct you to the best brands (I have *no* clue).


I always just file the nails, not clipping for me (after a misclip accident that drew blood) and the birds have fun/ a training opportunity with the filing process anyway - so it is a win-win.
Cheap cardboard nailfiles for me and a few wear-and-tear-inducing perches of course.

Cement perches are a great option. I use the sanded perches. Skittles desk-perch playstand has a sanded perch. They work really well, at least for Skittles they do. But he is also pretty self-hygienic. He keeps up with his nails, beak and feathers. I think he has this twisted idea that he is like all that and more. lol.

I opt for the twisted concrete style perches. I used one in the cage that was by the door so it was the perch used to get in and out of the cage, that way I knew it was being used but not constantly so the little guy's feet wouldn't get sore

Here are my usual suggestions.

No quick solution, but...

I really recommend getting those nail-trimming perches... they can eliminate nail-trimming, which was always so stressful for me and the Rb. It took a few years, but I eventually established a pattern/rotation that keeps him trimmed. I haven't had to do his nails in 20-plus years. I keep a dowel as the main "highway" down the middle of the cage, but the special cement/trimmer/textured perches are all over.
A few brands... but there are many: Polly's Sand Walk... Pumice Perch... Trimmer Perch...
Be sure to introduce them gradually: they're abrasive to their tender feet at first. I LOVE them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
These are smooth on top and abrasive underneath. Very easy to install/clean, oo.
Sweet Feet and Beaks Pedicure Perch xsmall for parrots, Feather Fantasy
May take a while to get the right combinations/locations, but was worth it for me and the Rb.

Good luck!

I agree, the cement perches are awesome, they work really well to keep their toenails trim, and they cut down on having to clip them quite a bit.

Keep in-mind we're talking about the perches that are actually made out of cement/rough sand material, and NOT those cheap sandpaper covers that go over a perch. Those don't do anything at all except fall apart...

Yes Ellen good point, specifically these kinds which vary in diameter as they go so as to help rest feet when on them

Agreed with the pedi perches and cement perches, they really do help in keeping my bird's nails trim. Here's what I use in my cages....

Amazon

I have the same cement perch in Peanut's cage and she never goes on it, maybe because it's red. I also have one of those tutti frutti bee pollen perches that they can also chew on, but I never see her on that either. I get her nails filed at the bird store, the lady has been there for 40 years so I trust her with Peanuts wings and nails.

EllenD said:

I agree, the cement perches are awesome, they work really well to keep their toenails trim, and they cut down on having to clip them quite a bit.

Keep in-mind we're talking about the perches that are actually made out of cement/rough sand material, and NOT those cheap sandpaper covers that go over a perch. Those don't do anything at all except fall apart...

Click to expand...

Exactly, not to mention that they are likely to be chewed to pieces by conures, lol.

I love the idea of the sanded cement ones for the simple convenience. They are cost saving to say the least. Rather than having to take Skittles to a pet store to have a nail trim ever 4mo or so he only needs one annually which he gets at the vet. (And pet stores do a lousy and sometimes dangerous job while an avian vet does a proper job)

They also have added benefit for the beaks. Skittles wipes his on the perch which sands down the chaffes and saves me $18/yr for a beak polish. He had to have a beak trim this year, for the first time since I got him 7 years ago. I didn't even realize he needed one. lol. But the vet said it was a little too thick and it looked a LOT better after she trimmed it.

@Lord Triggs @itzjbean Those are great options. Parrots are supposed to have a large variety of perches available to them that vary in both texture, size, width and location. Skittles doesn't have any plastic perches though. All of his perches are either cement or wood but he has two different cement ones and his wooden ones are made of different kinds of wood and are naturally made to the sizes are all unique and vary in size and width.

Skittles made another great point about them filing their beaks on the cement perches as well. I see all of my guys doing this, especially my Senegal, he is constantly using the cement perch to wipe the food off of his beak, which incidentally keeps his beak from forming a point on the end that is like a needle, which with him is a necessity, since he uses his beak to climb onto my hand, shoulder, etc.

Pro-Tip #874: Make the cement perch the perch that your bird has to stand on to eat their food, especially their veggies/fruit, as then they will have to use it every day without choosing to use it, plus they'll use it to wipe the food off of their beaks too, so every day they'll be trimming both their toenails and their beak without even meaning to use the cement perch.

I don’t use cement perches, as I don’t want to risk irritating their feet. I know they probably would be fine, but what other real benefit do they provide other than trimming the nails? I don’t mind trimming their nails myself every 2 months or so. I just think the cement perches would be rather uncomfortable, and they would never choose to use them anyway when they have so many other perches. For foot health, I use a variety of wood perches in different sizes, shapes, and textures, as well as comfy rope perches. They seem to prefer the rope perches for sleeping since they’re so soft, and I would hate to replace them with something rough and gravelly.

Something I’ve noticed about Kermit’s nails, is that they never get pointy and sharp, but they do get long so they lift his toes off the ground. His nails also seem to be a lot thicker than my other birds’ nails, which I’ve noticed while clipping them. What I mean is, the tips of his nails are always blunt, but the length grows rapidly. With my other birds, I always just trim the pointy tip and they’re good to go, while Kermit’s nails always seem to be long, even after trimming. Any advice? Most of the green cheeks I’ve seen have pointy nails like my other birds.