Last Updated on February 16, 2023 by Catherine Tobsing

Carol wrote:

Hi,

I have a parrotlet that had a cut on the inside of her front toe, being the longest toe at the front toe. She was vet checked but didn’t receive much help.

I was able to heal the cut myself which took quite a few months to heal the cut.  It left one of her underpads under her toe smaller than the rest of the ones on her toe. So when she walks around in her cage it bothers her.

She will then suck on the toe.

If she is out with me she is fine, and it doesn’t seem to bother her as it is softer on her toe.

If she is sitting on my finger or hand or on my lap.

She is active when she is out and loves to fly to the curtain and hangs from them and flies around the room. Will even fly to the bedroom where she soft lands on the bed.

I don’t know how to get that one under the pad of the toe on her left foot to heal so that it is the same length as the other pads on her toe. It is the second pad from her nail bed.

I tried wrapping some of her perches, perhaps not wrapped enough with cohesive self-adhesive dressing tape.

Would you have any suggestions? Do you think the skin on the underpad will heal? to be the same length as the other pads on her toe?

Someone suggested to me to use bag balm…..??

My parrotlet is tame, but she can also be very aggressive and will bite me for no apparent reason. 

She will bite the skin on my hand if she is sitting quietly for one minute and then the next will bite my hand.   So it is hard to know what to do for her, as she can draw blood with her bites.   I have her on Harrison’s pellets, and she does get some sprouted mung beans, she likes carrots and cilantro, and oat groats to eat.  Sometimes she gets some sprouted quinoa.

Thank you if you have any advice to give in helping with her toe!

I am at odds with knowing what to do!

Carol 

Dear Carol

We are sorry to hear about your bird’s injury. Good that you had it looked at by a vet.

It sounds like an injury that affected the tendon or tissue and due to scarring is likely to never return to what it was before.

Time will lessen the tenderness she is dealing with. If you find that her flying is enjoyable to her, let her do more of it. I will advocate for an anti-inflammatory product or medication from your vet to help with the pain while it heals more.  

Something that you can use in its water would be easier than grabbing the bird and dosing her daily.

Nekton Relax is a new product that might help her to chill a bit and mess with her toe as much. Give her time to heal.

Yes, parrotlets and lovebirds do tend to use their beak for everything and they also have a tendency to bite. 

Handling them daily helps to keep them tamer, but if she was never totally cuddly before the injury, she is not likely to get more cuddly due to more handling.

Lovebirds and parrotlets really need to be human-weaned (hand fed early) for a pet that is less likely to bite as much.

Consider rope perches to make her more comfortable or even a flat perch so she does not have to grip a round wood perch all the time.

Please let us know how she does.

Catherine