Overgrown Beak on Parrot or Macaw?

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Overgrown Beak on Parrot or Macaw?

Published on November 12, 2024

What happens if a beak is overgrown on a macaw? An overgrown beak can make it difficult to eat, chew, preen, and play. Worse yet, an excessively overgrown upper beak can poke into the body. An overgrown lower beak can make it difficult to eat, drink, or shut the beak.

Normally, the beak on a parrot breaks down on its own from active chewing. Cracking nuts or playing with toys usually trims the beak down on its own. However, some pet parrots are inactive and do not chew enough to trim the beak on its own. What should you do if your parrot doesn't chew enough for the beak to stay the appropriate length?

First, try to encourage more active play with toys. More wood toys at the difficulty level that keeps your parrot engaged and chewing (even if they have to be very thin). Foraging toys like the Natural Foraging Box may help entice chewing:
https://ParrotWizard.com/Foraging_Box

If no amount of toys is helping, you may be able to file down some of the excess length on the upper beak on your own using a nail trimmer stone:
https://ParrotWizard.com/Nail_Trimmer

However, if the lower beak is too long or you can't get the upper beak to shorten, you may need the service of an avian veterinarian. Whatever you do, do not try to cut the beak yourself because there are nerve ending and it can bleed.

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