Leg ID Band???

[boabab95]

Now, my conure doesn't have an ID Band, and i know why it would be helpful, but i have a couple questions...

1.Where would I get one for him and how much are they
2.Are they really any useful if you are not letting them free fly outside, or let him outside for that matter the most I'd do is bring him out for 5 minutes, once or twice a week with a harness...

 

[apatrimo94]

Here's an interesting link i found on leg bands:
Winged Wisdom Pet Bird Magazine - The ABC's Of Leg Bands - Identifying Birds
Here's a place where you can get them:
http://www.lmbirdlegbands.com/

Hope that helps!

 

[Bobby34231]

Sorry to say its to late if your thinking about a closed band for your bird, those are placed on the birds leg within the first few days after hatching, you could I guess use an opened band, however they have thier drawbacks, such as occasionally snaging on things, not sure why you want to band your bird, the info contained on those bands are as a general rule breeder info, year of hatching and a number that has been assigned to the specific breeder of your bird, if your thinking of banding as a means of indentification you might look into micro-chipping,its not real exspensive and usually a better way of identifying lost birds than bands as the info on micro chips are kept in a national data bank, you didn't really state that was the reason for banding, just taking a guess here....Bob.

 

[boabab95]

I don't WANT him banded, just didn't know if i had to be done or anything... I didn't even know you could microchip birds...

it was more of those random thoughts I tend to have

 

[Bobby34231]

Not sure if its a requirement in Canada or not, on a national level here the only birds that HAVE to be banded are those that have been imported here from outside the US, many individual states here have their own regulations and requirements on whether breeders need to band domesticly raised birds, one of the main reasons breeders band thier birds is to make sure that their breeding stock stays diverse and they dont breed related birds with thier own,other reasons would include ID of lost or stolen birds,and the fact that most people are very leary of buying birds without bands.........Bob.

 

[HRH Di]

My Alexandrine isn't banded...our RFM is...my new CAG isn't whichi is odd since she's from the same breeder as our RFM. However it may have been taken off when she got constricted toes.

 

[Spiritbird]

Rosie had an open leg band on her at time of purchase. It was causing problems for her as it opened up some and the vet told me it should be removed. She also said they see alot of parrots with leg problems due to leg bands. Rosie is wing clipped so I do not expect her to get lost if outside. You may want to go with micro chipping.

 

[Aussie Ben]

My tiel isn't banded, but my Ekkie is. He actually had two bands, the breeder identification band and a family colour band (obviously to identify different breeding families) - one on each foot. It took him less than a few months to chew off the plastic family one. I'm glad he has the metal band as this will help in identification if he is ever found after flying off. Like Bobby said micro-chipping is an option (definitely more secure). I think if anyone is serious about putting identification on their bird (and it is a good idea) then save up and go all in with micro-chipping, save yourself a lot of trouble with open bands.

 

[apatrimo94]

Suppose if we do microchip, where do we get it? i don't see anything? And how would it work?

 

[Bobby34231]

I just recently, within the last two months, was adopted by two Rose Breasted Cockatoo's (Galahs), they came home with me a week apart, the first one Skittles did not have a band, the second,Dusty, did, both are clutch mates, the breeder from which they came also raises CAG's, she ran out of the bands that she usually uses for the RB2's so she was using bands intended for CAG's, only problem is that they are 2 sizes larger, so sometime between 3 days old and 8 weeks old the bird slipped its band, the breeder didn't even realize it till I pointed it out to her, so as we see there are many of us out here that have bandless birds, like I said before, if its not something Canada or your province requires, I wouldn't worry to much about it........
Bob.

 

[Aussie Ben]

Suppose if we do microchip, where do we get it? i don't see anything? And how would it work?

The microchips are about the size of a rice grain. They are used frequently on dogs and cats - at least they are here in Oz. I think in NSW it is required. Here in SA you get a discount on registration fees if you microchip. I'm not sure on the legislation in your part of the world. My dog is chipped and its good peace of mind to be honest. They are inserted not far under the surface of the skin, although I'm not sure where abouts on a bird. Basically they can be scanned an give a code, this code corresponds with your name in a database (name address phone etc) so the bird can be safely returned and identified as yours.

I'm not sure on all the details and what sizes of birds can be chipped, but if your interested in getting it done, you need to talk to an avian vet - they are the ones that will perform the procedure. It can be quite costly so you need to weigh up the pros and cons, to whether it is actually necessary.

 

[Bobby34231]

Bens right, if your interested in microchipping, use a good avian Vet, the procedure for birds is much different than that for dogs and cats, in the furry critters its usually placed just under the skin between the shoulder blades, in birds it is injected or surgically implanted a bit deeper in the breast tissue, some vets like to lightly anesthesize the bird to keep them calm during the procedure, in any case most wont microchip birds smaller than say a medium to larger conure, I guess the reasoning being that the needle used for the microchip is a pretty large bored one, check with your vet, they may do smaller birds.
As for cost, at least here in Florida its not to bad, about $100 or so from my Vet, that includes the chip and the visit, if you belong to a bird club, you may want to see if they have a Vet that offers group or discounted rates.........
Bob.

 

[Aussie Ben]

some vets like to lightly anesthesize the bird to keep them calm during the procedure

Your right. I could imagine it might be fairly traumatic for some birds, so thats another thing to consider. I'd like to consider chipping my birds one day (particularly my Ekkie) as they are both fully flighted and although I'm super careful and train them well, there is always risk of them getting out, so chipping is just another way they could possibly find their way back (especially if you have to prove they're yours when they are found).

 

[Birdamor]

I would do more research about microchips before you make your decision because they are now finding that there is percentage of dogs and cats that develop cancerous tumors (fibro/liposarcoma) because of them (some even died from them) and a dog I adopted had to have it removed because it caused a huge infection so, personally, I would not use them on any of my animals.

 

[Mel]

I would do more research about microchips before you make your decision because they are now finding that there is percentage of dogs and cats that develop cancerous tumors (fibro/liposarcoma) because of them (some even died from them) and a dog I adopted had to have it removed because it caused a huge infection so, personally, I would not use them on any of my animals.

Microchipping has been a legal requirement for dogs & cats here for many, many years. I've never seen or heard of any adverse reaction in a dog or cat if inserted correctly into the subcutaneous tissue and using correct proceedures such as swabbing the site with alcohol or iodine before inserting. The issues discussed above are more than likely due to incorrect proceedures being followed when chipping the animal. It's fairly new in birds so it's too early to say if any issues develop.

The only problems we found - again with dogs and cats - is if people moved and didn't update thier details or the animal was kept by the finder and not bought into a clinic or to the pound as a stray. The other issue I can see is the lack of knowledge on where chips are inserted into a bird or to even vets thinking to scan it. Hopefully this would improve if the practice becomes more common.

I do agree though you need to discuss it with your AV on possible issues and since we didn't chip birds when I was working I don't know anything on whats involved except it's a bloody big needle!!

 

[apatrimo94]

suppose if birds get chipped, where would they be sticking it?

 

[Bobby34231]

suppose if birds get chipped, where would they be sticking it?

Birds skin is so paper thin chips can't be implanted subcutaneous like most other animals, instead they are implanted in the left side breast muscle about a quater to half inch deep, either by injection or by surgery.

 

[apatrimo94]

oh ok, I was just wondering. Thanks!

 

[Aussie Ben]

I would do more research about microchips before you make your decision because they are now finding that there is percentage of dogs and cats that develop cancerous tumors (fibro/liposarcoma) because of them (some even died from them) and a dog I adopted had to have it removed because it caused a huge infection so, personally, I would not use them on any of my animals.

Microchipping has been a legal requirement for dogs & cats here for many, many years. I've never seen or heard of any adverse reaction in a dog or cat if inserted correctly into the subcutaneous tissue and using correct proceedures such as swabbing the site with alcohol or iodine before inserting. The issues discussed above are more than likely due to incorrect proceedures being followed when chipping the animal. It's fairly new in birds so it's too early to say if any issues develop.

The only problems we found - again with dogs and cats - is if people moved and didn't update thier details or the animal was kept by the finder and not bought into a clinic or to the pound as a stray. The other issue I can see is the lack of knowledge on where chips are inserted into a bird or to even vets thinking to scan it. Hopefully this would improve if the practice becomes more common.

I do agree though you need to discuss it with your AV on possible issues and since we didn't chip birds when I was working I don't know anything on whats involved except it's a bloody big needle!!

Interesting, but I have to go with Mel on this one, I have never heard of such problems (at least not with cats and dogs). As Mel said, it is possible that problems could arise if the procedure was performed incorrectly, but that is the same with any procedure and not exclusive to micro chipping.

 

[Mel]

suppose if birds get chipped, where would they be sticking it?

Birds skin is so paper thin chips can't be implanted subcutaneous like most other animals, instead they are implanted in the left side breast muscle about a quater to half inch deep, either by injection or by surgery.

I would imagine that would be quite traumatic (and painful). I guess you just have to weigh up the pros and cons, it may be worthwhile if you have a flighted or rare bird. We had a case in Sydney last year where a free-flighted macaw (very expesive birds to buy here) was stolen. It showed up on the black market months later and the owner could prove it was his through the microchip