Compassionate, Experienced Bird Grooming and Training
Helping you take care of your feathered friends and loved ones with professional bird grooming and bird training
Ins and Outs of grooming
What you need to know about grooming a bird
Grooming includes:
- Wing trimming to prevent full flight
- Nail manicuring
- Beak point removal and shaping
- Weight measurement
We Reserve the right to refuse grooming services to any bird that we feel in our soul discretion appears ill or appears to be suffering from an abnormality that we fell may become more severe as a result of grooming or may be suffering from a contagious disease
Facts you should know about grooming:
Grooming is a VERY stressful encroachment on a birds peace of mind. Birds have been known to have heart attacks and die from the stress, which is why it so important to be done professionally by an experienced groomer. Grooming is a necessary task if you are going to keep your bird housed in a domestic setting. Birds that are kept in an unnatural environment need to be cared for as they do not have the coping skills or the natural habitat to keep their nails groomed. Clipping their wings is for the benefit of the bird. If a domesticated bird fly's away, your beloved pet will most likely be taken advantage of by the wildlife that knows how to survive and the result would most likely not be favorable to your pet. Birds allowed to fly have also been known to be fatally injured by hitting ceiling fans and landing on hot stoves or flying into glass.
With that said, the techniques used to groom a bird are meant to reduce the stress to the bird and the owner as much as possible and protect the bird and the groomer.
1) When you bring your bird for grooming if you are bringing your bird outside your home to a different location, please make sure your pet is in a travel carrier. If your feathered friend has not been groomed for a while he/she may just take off on you. If there are other birds in the room they may begin to attack each other as well.
2) While your bird is being groomed, it is best if you let the groomer take the bird from the floor or the carrier and not from the owner's body. Many times, even the friendliest bird, will be afraid by the attempt to be taken from his/her owner, and the bird may bite the owner or the groomer.
3) Birds are wrapped in a towel for many reasons. Birds feel a sense of comfort by nature when wrapped in a towel, though some do freak out at the site of the towel and do not cooperate. The towel helps to keep the bird's wings close to its body so it can not use them to push away and cause harm to themselves or the groomer during the grooming process.
4) A bird that does not sit still during the grooming process will be most stressed. I monitor the birds breathing patterns and body language throughout the process and though most are breathing very hard which is natural during the process. If the bird continues to not cooperate, I will give him/her a break and let he/she out of the towel to catch it's breath. A bird that is wiggly and squirmy the entire time will take longer and when the bird is done he/she may even be a bit exhausted; panting a little with its tongue flickering back and forth. This is not uncommon and the bird just needs a moment to settle down, just as if we were to be wrapped in a towel, held down and tried to fight our way out for several minuets. We too would be panting and out of breath. We try to reduce this stress as much as possible by working as quickly as possible without injuring the bird and again sometimes letting the bird loose to give it a break before finishing. Overall, most birds are calm as they become more accustomed to being groomed and the process is smooth and quick.
5) Nails - The nails are groomed with either a rotary file or clippers just like a human's nails. It is dangerous to use a rotary file on small birds, as their toes are very small and delicate and the slightest movement of the bird could cause it to get seriously injured suffering from a broken toe or foot or laceration from the rotary tool. I like to use the clippers on small birds when possible to avoid any risk of injury to the bird, though sometimes the rotary tool can be used if the bird is very cooperative. Larger birds have much stronger toes and can handle the rotary tool better. Nails should have a little curve to them when done being groomed and should have a slight bit of roughness at the tip to them so that the bird can still be able to hold on to the perch or you, without falling off. Sometimes a nail will bleed as there is a vein that runs inside the nail of birds. This is very common and the bleeding is stopped with styptic.
6) Wings - A bird's wing feathers are cut at different lengths, depending on the size and weight of the bird. The flight feathers are the main concern when clipping a bird's wings. On large Macaws and Cockatoos, clipping 4-5 of the primary flight feathers will usually stop the bird from being able to fly. Smaller and lighter birds such as a Quaker or Conure are much more difficult to determine the amount of wing feathers to cut. It is key that a blood feather is not cut, due to the fact that feathers are like straws and if a blood feather is accidentally cut, a bird can very quickly bleed to death as they do not have much blood to begin with.
When cutting the wings of any bird, they should be cut short enough that the bird can not fly, but yet is able to glide a little so that if it does attempt to fly. A bird should be able to glide to the floor and land safely as opposed to just dropping to the floor because the wings were cut too short and smacking its breast bone on the floor causing injury or death.
It is not uncommon for a smaller bird to still be able to fly immediately after it is groomed. If your bird, such as a Conure or Cockatiel, attempts to fly, and it catches a slight bit of wind in its favor, it will help give the bird enough lift to take off. However, the bird will not be able to maintain consistent flight as some of its feathers are clipped and you should be able to recapture your bird if you keep a close eye on it.
7) Beak - The beak also has a vein in it. The beak should be kept from curling under the lower beak/mandible so that the bird does not injure itself and is able to eat properly. The beak and nails grow just like our nails.
There are a number of items you can put in your cage to help your bird groom him/herself, including gravel paper, Rough perches such as calcium perches. Birds will use these to file their nails and beak. Not all birds will take to them though. Wings are still needing clipped though if you are going to keep the bird from flying.
Typically your bird will need groomed every 6 - 8 weeks. In some rare instances birds will need groomed more often as they have quick growth of the nails and feathers. Others may only need groomed every 8-10 weeks as they are not producing excess nail and wing feather growth as rapidly as most.
I know you have options for your grooming needs and I want you to know that I personally have cared for over 100 birds at a time. Many of which have been acquired from re homing situations. I am very experienced in the grooming techniques of the different breeds of birds. I have been grooming my own flock for many years, as well as having other professionals help me including veterinarians who have helped teach proper techniques as I work closely with them to ensure the well being of all birds I encounter. I have cared for everything from the smallest of the avian species being canaries and finches to the largest of the species being the Hyacinth Macaw.
Your bird is receiving the best quality and most loving care possible from a very experienced and qualified groomer. I value you and your feathered friends the same way I do my own family and flock and thank you again for your loyalty.
GROOMING HOURS:
Appointment only
TO SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT PLEASE FILL OUT THE CONTACT FORM BELOW AND I WILL CONTACT YOU WITHIN 24 HOURS
Grooming Rates:
Large bird: (Macaw, Large Cockatoo) - $25 plus service fee*
Medium Bird: ( African Grey, Amazon...) - $20.00 plus service fee*
Small Birds: (Conure, Quacker.....) - $15.00 plus service fee*
If you have multiple birds there is only one service fee per visit NOT per bird
*IN HOME SERVICE FEE SCHEDULE:
Manatee County - $25 IN HOME SERVICE FEE PLUS GROOMING FEE
Sarasota - $30 IN HOME SERVICE FEE PLUS GROOMING FEE
St Pete - $50 IN HOME SERVICE FEE PLUS GROOMING FEE
- OTHER AREAS PLEASE CALL FOR RATES