How To Clip Your Cockatiel's Nails

Cockatiel Toenails

Many people arrive at this blog by using search terms involving cockatiel toenails, then I thought I'd discuss the topic of trimming your cockatiel's toenails.

Toenail maintenance is very important. If a bird'south nails grow as well long, they can impair the bird's ability to perch and can even create worn pads on the bird's foot, which left unattended cause sores and infections.

Conner'south toenails grow so fast that they demand to be clipped every 2 weeks.

When you lot prune the toenails, be very conservative in how much y'all clip. You don't want to clip so much that you hitting the claret vessels. Birds don't accept very much blood and their blood doesn't clot rapidly.

It helps when your bird has toenails like Conner's that are mostly clear. In Conner'due south toenails you tin see the blood vessel and cut accordingly. You only demand to cutting a few millimeters.

In this motion picture, I cut his toenails three days agone. Please excuse the mirror; Conner likes to lick it.

Audrey's toenails are a bit harder because some of his toenails are night. Too, he hates having his toenails clipped and then I merely do a couple at a fourth dimension to prevent him from becoming too stressed. When Audrey'south back toenails grow too long, he folds the toes when he perches. This makes his grip horrible. Since Audrey's grip is already too weak, I'm very vigilant about monitoring his toenails.

Here you lot can see that his nails are pretty long, but non and then long that they curl in. If he was doing the toe-folding thing, you'd be able to meet from this angle.

Also, when y'all prune the toenails, make certain to wrap the bird up in a towel; you want to minimize the bird's ability to struggle. As well, apply toenail clippers and not some electronic device. Electronic devices will scare the bird. For larger birds, a nail file helps to shape the boom, but isn't necessary for cockatiels. If y'all're unsure how to do this, ask your vet to show y'all. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment.