Angel has a problem with her beak--now should I trim the top

[lovemyfinch]

So they have a cuttle bone, as well as 2 pediperches (finch size), and Angel's beak is longer on the bottom than the top. Do I have to trim this? or will she end up filing it down on her own? She is eating well and seems to be thriving.

[L in Ontario]

Hi Janine, This is not uncommon. You can easily trim her beak with a pair of nail clippers. Often when I'm holding a bird and bring the clippers close to their beak - they will peck at it and 'poof' they trim their own beaks on the nail clippers! If not, gently clip off just the part extending beyond the top beak. Do it slowly and all will be well.

[nixity]

I would trim it... But if it were me, if it ends up growing back out like this, I wouldn't breed her

[HoangQuan]

You should trim it.
My hen had beak like this, too. She was kept in breeding cage inside the birdroom of one of my friend, he said I should trim it and keep an eye on her cuz it would grow back quickly.
But when I trimmed it and brought her to my home, the beak never grows back that long. The cage where I keep her and her mate in is heading to East and having sunlight almost 11 hours a day in the morning and noon. So, I think, maybe sunlight did play a part in keeping beak and nails of finches go right...does anybody notice the same thing (?)

[nixity]

My birds are in a basement.. and they have never had this problem.. so I can't reason it has anything to do with sunlight..

[Finch Fry]

My birds are in a basement.. and they have never had this problem.. so I can't reason it has anything to do with sunlight..

Ditto. Mine are on 100% artificial light, never had a beak issue in over 40 birds.

[cindy]

Janine,

One of my recent shaftail chicks that fledged about a month ago had a longer than normal top beak, it was just like a thin piece of the end was longer. I gave them cuttlebone and a flat shallow dish so that when he tapped in the dish to get seeds it trimmed it. I was watching to see if this worked (I read an article on the tapping on hard seed dishes objects help to trim their beaks, amongst other things that do). Finally after 2 weeks it was gone.

I am not sure if it occurred on it's own, as a result of tapping it against something or the cuttle bone but it is gone now.

[lovemyfinch]

Thanks everyone. Being as how I can't pull her out of the aviary immediately (parents are feeding 3 5 day old blue chicks ), I will try Cindy's idea in the meantime, and return to using my flat ceramic dishes to see if maybe she can correct it on her own. If not, as soon as the babies fledge, in another month or so , I will remove her and trim it.

Now the dumb question Do I have to try and trim in any special shape or just flat and she will worrk things out on her own

[Sally]

Janine, I have had to do this a couple of times, and it is very easy. As Liz said, just use nail clippers. I trimmed the beak so that the long one now matched the normal one--just one clip on each side did it.

[Domenic]

The giant at angel's side made me laugh. He dwarfs his own parents!

I've had this problem also with both of my gouldians, albeit much less serious looking than yours. The first had a longer bottom beak that I trimmed regularly, and the second had a top beak that wasn't much longer than the bottom but was twisted and didn't sit right. The second's corrected itself literally almost overnight. I have no idea how it happened, one day there, next day gone. I just consider it a miracle.

[lovemyfinch]

The giant at angel's side made me laugh. He dwarfs his own parents!

That would be Patience He is one of Angels siblings from the same clutch, he is constantly standing tall and singing away non-stop...He thinks he's the family stud.

[lovemyfinch]

So Sunday I was planning on trimming her beak, now that all the babies have fledged. She seems to have beaten me to it. Now do I have to trim the top, or is it possible that maaybe when it snapped off the bottom that it went to far back

The other baby in the pick is the fledgling that seems to be having a bad hair week

[L in Ontario]

The top mandible doesn't appear that much overgrown. I'd leave it for now. Do you have the PediPerch right beside the water dish?

I love the red-head. I just picked up a green hen like that too a couple of days ago! Beauties!

[cindy]

Janine, Her bottom beak looks much better. Has she been using a cuttle or mineral block? Did she tap it down?

I noticed sometimes that the RCCBs and owls tap on hard objects and even the cups and side of the seed hoppers.

The oldest shaftail from the first clutch had a little overgrowth, I gave them a flat ceramic seed dish and cuttlebone. It must have snapped off, but it never grew back.

[dfcauley]

I just did this for the first time this past weekend. One of my gouldians that had just finished coloring up had an overgorwn beak.(my first time) I was scared to death. I tried all day Saturday to get her to go into the trap cage and she never would
Of course every other bird went in.....

Then Misty came over here and we tried to catch her with our hands. She flew right into my hands.

Anway..... it was so very simple. It is much easier than trimming those nails when you have to.