Leg bands.

[djkoe]

Our little gcc seems to have gotten some sort of irritation on her leg under her leg band. It seems a little pink there. Are these bands important at all? Can I cut it off?

 

[Piasa]

They can be removed. I'd suggest a stop at the vet's office so they can cut it for you (it can be tricky to do it without injury to the bird) and also they can put the band on file. This may be helpful in the future if you ever wanted info from the band, maybe other reasons too.

If they have the bird's DNA on file and also the band info, it may be helpful in proving the bird is yours if the need ever arises.

 

[OOwl]

My 14-year-old lovebird developed what we thought was arthritis in her leg that had her band. My vet removed it with a special little tool just for that purpose. She's never had another problem so I can only surmise that it was just rubbing her (maybe her legs got fatter as she got older).

 

[rosembers]

Leg bands cause so many problems! They can cut off circulation to a leg (which can lead to infection, pain, loss of limb, etc.) but they also can get caught on toys or cage wire and cause injury or fatality to birds. If at all possible, I would not band a bird. If you have an avian vet that you trust, I would get it removed but make sure they are a good vet because removing a band can cause leg damage if not done right (particularly for smaller birds but your GCC should be fine).

Yes, leg bands can "prove ownership" if you lose your bird **BUT** that will only help you if the person who found your bird actually REPORTS it. And in that case, having picture proof can be just as much of an identifier as a leg band number... It's something unique to the bird that you can use to prove ownership. Unfortunately legbands do not "locate" your bird, they just help prove ownership if someone finds your bird and honestly searches for the guardian. And if you came to that point, you could provide clear photos and personality information about the bird to prove you are the owner. IMHO it is way more of a risk to have a band than not.