Is it normal for budgie to have flakey beak and claws?

Question

Is this some kind of a disease? My budgie beaks and claws has been growing flakey substance on it. Is it normal? Can i acutally clip it's nails? It's too long for him to stand normally.

Answer 1

if the beaks are flakey and look like its peeling off in layers, then thats normal,

it has the same concept of human nails growing, they're just restoring it's beak

but if it looks sever, you should see a vet

If you are going to clip his nails, take it to a professional,

but i have to warn you...if the use clippers, it could stress out the bird and give it a possible heart attack or hit a nerve. nowadays, they use like...an electric nail file i guess i can say, it's way safer to do it that way

Answer 2

No, it's not normal. Sounds as if your bird has scaley face mites. This is a common problem but can become a BIG problem as these buggers are hard to get rid of.  You can get treatments (ScaleX is one, SCATT is another) but the best and 100% sure treatment to rid your bird of these little blood sucking insects is a medicine called Ivermectin.  You have to dilute it (only 1cc to 16 oz of water using the 1% Injectionable Solution.  Shake the water and Ivermectin well and give it to your bird as drinking water (where you removed his water the night before).  Leave it there until that night then take it out and give him regular drinking water.  Repeat in 2 wks.  Here is a site that gives full directions:   http://www.avianweb.com/airsackmites.htm...

Answer 3

While some flaking is normal, excessive amounts can be a sign of disease, specifically scaly face mites.  To diagnose and treat this, make sure you see an avian certified vet.  Home remedies do not work and the mites do not go away on their own.  If left too long, the mites cause pain and severe beak deformity.

Answer 4

First how old is your bird???

As these symptoms can also be Old Age.

If not then your bird has Scaly face and you need to get it to a vet.

Do you know of a breeder who will clip your birds claws as it seems you have very little experience in bird keeping they will also be able to tell you if it has Scaly face.

Sorry to be so blunt.

Answer 5

It could be a variety of problems, from mites, burrowing mites, various skin conditions, or even infection. It sounds more like a form of mites (also known as Scaly Face - Mycosis) though. I know it's spendy to take them to a vet, but honestly that is your best bet. This can be a serious problem, and if it has spread to it's feet, chances are it's a bad case. But there is no real way to determine what the problem is for sure yourself, unless you're very experienced with birds, and their health issues. It could be something easily treated or a serious problem. Only an Avian Certified Vet could tell you and treat it.  

As far as trimming it's nails, that is something that needs to be done on a regular basis, or the nails can get so long that the bird can't perch properly.  If you haven't done this before, it's best to have an Avian Certified Vet do it (you can ask them to show you how so that you can do it as needed at home).

So, try not to wait. Get your Parakeet to an Avian Certified Vet as soon as you can.  Experience has taught me not to mess around when it comes to birds health. They could be suffering worse than you realize, as birds naturally mask illness.

Good luck!

PS Here are some good sites on Parakeets with all of the "need to know" info, such as cage size and diet (they don't just eat seed) ... that may be of help in the future.

http://www.lisashea.com/petinfo/budgie.h...

http://www.parrotparrot.com/articles/aa0...

http://budgiemania.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budgerigar

Also, I recommend joining an online Parakeet group. They can be a lot of help and a good source for advice. Here are a couple to choose from...

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/-All4...

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ThePa...

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/Budgi...

Answer 6

it is called scaly face and is a very bad illness i would take it to a vet but usually if their is something wrong with it it is usually to late with small animals

good luck

Answer 7

yes it is I have a budgie and his was flaking and I thought the same thing so we whent to the vet he says it is normal and all birds do that

Answer 8

It is molting. Every bird will go through molting season a few times a year. So don't worry.

If its nails gets too long, you can just hold it and cut it, but make sure it dosen't touch the blood vessels.

Answer 9

It will be mites causing the birds beak and feet to become itchy and crusty and brown

it can be easily treated with ivermectin

if left untreated, it will get serious!