Flakey Beak

[RobEckie]

Hi Guys,
I have a question that I am hoping someone in this forum can help me with
Our male red sided eclectus is showing signs of some flakey bits on his beak. Is this normal? It appears as though there is a "flakey beak condition" that birds could obtain, so was wondering if there is anything that we can do to avoid this or fix him up.
It's only slightly flakey on the sides of his beak near his mouth. He has a diet consisting of majority fruit and veg, although we try to feed him 1 or 2 peanuts or almonds a day.
We may feed him a seed mix in between lunch and dinner sometimes maybe once a week. Should we feed him more seeds and pellets?

 

[LoveMyParrots]

Do you have a picture of him so I can see? A little flakey is fine, but if its a lot, then you should start thinking about talking to your avian vet or something like that.

His diet is pretty good, I would say feed him a little more pellet. I would think about feeding peanut though, I have heard some parrot got sick from eating peanut, and it's very high in fat. Almond are fine, in fact, almond are good for parrots just like its good for us, lots of minerals and vitamins. As long as you don't over feed nuts, it is good for parrots, and they enjoy them.

This is the diet I feed my alexandrine - I'm on the more natural side

25% pellet
50% fruit and veggies (include sprouts)
15% grains
And the rest 10% is bird safe table food and treats like dried fruit and seeds

 

[weco]

While I'd like to say you have a serious problem, I can't, so I'll be honest with you.....there's no problem.....

Parrot's beaks flake naturally.....when you see them rubbing their beak on cage bars, perches or other things, they're manicuring them.....

If you get one or two of the concrete perches that are rough on the sides & flat/smooth on top, they will keep their nails & beaks neatly trimmed.....no rough all over perches as they can injure their foot pads.....

 

[RobEckie]

Thank you for the response, I will try get a photo uploaded shortly.
It's not very flakey at all, just concerned because I've noticed 2 points on either side of his beak which looks like its peeling.
Thanks for the tips on feeding.. I've heard that Unsalted peanuts are fine in moderation. He seems to enjoy them but when we feed him an almond or a peanut, it is only ever 1 (not multiple peanuts/almonds).

 

[LoveMyParrots]

Thank you for the response, I will try get a photo uploaded shortly.
It's not very flakey at all, just concerned because I've noticed 2 points on either side of his beak which looks like its peeling.
Thanks for the tips on feeding.. I've heard that Unsalted peanuts are fine in moderation. He seems to enjoy them but when we feed him an almond or a peanut, it is only ever 1 (not multiple peanuts/almonds).

He should be fine, some parrots sometimes gets a bit flakey beak, but most of the time it's normal. So don't worry to much about it.

And yeah, if he is fine with the peanut, then go ahead.

I would love to see photos of your parrot!

 

[Joshuwaaa]

Hey,

Just to maybe ease your mind, Loki is a little flakey and can look like its peeling. It's just when he rubs food off his beak etc. I spoke to the vet about it on our trip not so long back and she said its perfectly healthy to have some flake away, it's natural.

If the vet thought it was okay, I trust that !

Hope your both okay, glad someone brought it up too.

 

[lpolliard]

Chico has some flaking in the same spots, lower edge on the upper beak sides. I believe he is also a Red Sided. It looks like the beak gets thin in this area as the material is translucent in spots. Small patches have fractured off leaving a nonuniform edge. To prevent this I Dremel this edge when trimming his beak.

 

[kc_y0]

My bird goes through phases of having a flakey beak as well. Lots of natural wood perches can help with the grooming, as well as a sandy perch.
An eccy's beak should be typically smooth and if you notice the problem getting worse or doesn't go away, its best to check with the vet to make sure his diet isn't lacking in anything.

 

[kc_y0]

And in regards to his diet, Eccy's have very different needs to any other birds and its best to limit the pellets and seeds as much as possible. They get most of their vitamin requirements from their fruit and veg, too much pellet added with this can cause an over-dose of vitamins and lead to problems such a toe tapping or wing flipping.

 

[Brodie]

And in regards to his diet, Eccy's have very different needs to any other birds and its best to limit the pellets and seeds as much as possible. They get most of their vitamin requirements from their fruit and veg, too much pellet added with this can cause an over-dose of vitamins and lead to problems such a toe tapping or wing flipping.

Agreed.
Also try sprouting some seeds and see if he likes them. My ekkie loves them!
Hot chillis aswell, loves them!
She doesn't eat much pellets or seeds, mainly because I don't allow it. And she doesn't need it. Not with all the other good stuff she gets, sprouted seeds and nuts, fruit and veggies, dried fruit ect, try soaking some almonds, alot of people don't realise nuts are just big seeds!
Seeds sprouted are much much better for your birds!! Instead of being fattening they are good for them!

 

[RobEckie]

Hi Guys,
Thanks for all the wonderful information. We do beleive we feed our little boy a great diet, full of wonderful fresh fruit and vegies with a nut or 2 every day for treats.
We had brought a bag of pellets when we first brought him home but its not often we feed him that. He doesnt seem to love them too much. We did buy the best pellets that were available so on the odd occasion it may be ok to feed him some. We steered clear from any coloured pellets.
We do have a seed mix that maybe once a week he will have some of that as well. I have taken some photos of his beak but can't find the USB cord that connects the camera to my laptop so as soon as I find it, will upload to show you guys what i mean about his flakey beak.
We'll be taking him for his first avian vet visit next weekend just to give him a good once over as well.

 

[erictheviking]

Mine too ...has flakey beak...