macaw maintenance

[erik7181]

Hi, I don't currently have a macaw although I do have a deposit on a female B&G.I have a 2 year old sun conure. I was reading somewhere that this person got there birds beak polished once a year. Is this really necessary for beak flaking? My sun conures beak has peeling every so often and I was told you shouldn't have to get it trimmed or polished but I figured Id ask the experts here.

 

[Featheredsamurai]

As long as your bird has a proper diet and is healthy their beak should stay the right size. Some people unknowingly trim their birds beaks all the time when they get nails clipped but it's unnecessary unless your bird has something wrong with it. Only a qualified avian vet should trim your birds beak.

 

[cdog]

I have only had to trim Sully's beak once, right after I got him. It was a smidge long so the filed it down and he has t needed a trim since.
You shouldn't need a trim for just normal peeling(they take care of that themselves by rubbing their beaks on perches), if it gets bad you might need it to be filed down.

 

[erik7181]

Thanks that's what I thought

 

[JJones1719]

I would advise you to always have your bird checked by an Aviary Vet. Beaks are like finger nails, they grow and you have to be careful that the beak does not get over grown. If your Macaw is a chewer and most are, you should not have an issue but if your bird is not, you have to watch to make sure that the beak does not get to close to the crop, if you believe that you have an over grown beak, getting it trimmed is the correct thing to do. As far as polishing the beak, I have never heard of this. Like the previous member wrote, if the bird is in good health, polishing is not needed. If you want to make the beak shiney, you can always use 100% pure Aloe Vera just don't get it to close to the opening of the nose. Aloe is very safe for birds. I will sometimes use it on my birds after a shower or during the winter months, i use it on their feet. Both my boys seem to love it. Best of luck Joe