# Why does my cockatiel keep picking at his toe?



## Luti-Kriss (Dec 23, 2009)

I brought home my two new cockatiels yesterday. One of them seems to be having a problem...

He keeps picking at his toe. He'll put the whole thing in his mouth and nip at it a bit. Also the same toe he keeps putting in his mouth is all dark. It looks almost like the circulation is being cut off of it. But I know it's not because he can move the toe and he feels my finger when I touch it.

I asked the previous owner about this and he said that the breeder he bought them from said that both the bird and his father "suck" on their toes. And that he may be "sucking" his toe a lot more right now because of all the changes.

I dunno. Maybe that's the case but I just want to make sure it's nothing serious. It seems to be spreading up his toe a little but that might be because he's been "sucking" it a lot more today than yesterday. I'm hoping it isn't infected or anything. My worst nightmare right now is having to take him to the vet and they tell me his toe needs to be amputated x_X

Does anyone have any info on what this might be or if you've seen it before?


----------



## xxxSpikexxx (Jul 30, 2007)

Birds do preen their feet aswell, but it does sound like something is wrong. I would take him to an avian vet asap. Do you have a pic of his toe?


----------



## Luti-Kriss (Dec 23, 2009)

I talked to the breeder lady who raised the bird. She says she thinks it's just a "nervous tick" or something because the father does the same exact thing and also has the darkness on the toe. She said she took him to the vet and the vet didn't see anything wrong.

Also I observed it more myself. He only does this when I will start interacting with him or if something's going on that would make them scared/nervous. And I noticed he's not actually "picking" or "nipping" at it. He's just putting it in his mouth and leaving it in there. As for the darkness of the toe I noticed it only gets really dark when he does this for a while, and then when he stops it will clear up. So I just think this is something like what rodents do. They'll start grooming their faces when they get scared/nervous.

The link below is the only thing I could find of it online other than what the breeder told me. 
http://www.practical-pet-care.com/archive.php?2007070806100108


----------



## seaofdreams (Dec 29, 2009)

The darkened skin is a concern, it could be bruising or like you said, a lack of circulation. If you're able to, a vet visit would sort it out for sure before it got any worse (if it is a health problem) On the behavioural front, try helping to keep him in a secure and quiet area so make sure he feels safe and hopefully to lessen it if it a nervous habit. Providing him with loads of toys to challenge him and to keep his mind off him toe should help too, assuming that it's a behavioural problem and not a health problem. Good luck.


----------



## Luti-Kriss (Dec 23, 2009)

I actually do have a picture of him doing this. He's a little better at it now but he still does it almost constantly when he's outside the cage. The other one doesn't do it at all. He has no problem being out of the cage.

Here's what I'm talking about:










So nobody else has ever heard of this huh?


----------



## nickieiscute (Feb 9, 2010)

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA ITS A DISEASE TAKE HIM TO A VET.
j/k =] itmay be some natural behavior because my uncle´s does the same thing it is even funny.


----------



## Luti-Kriss (Dec 23, 2009)

I know it's just a behavior it's just that I've never seen it before, so it's kinda odd to me.


----------



## xxxSpikexxx (Jul 30, 2007)

I have never seen a tiel bite his toe like that before. Usually when Spike cleans his feet he will bring it up to his beak. Is he hurting his toe? I would take him in for a check up just to be safe.


----------



## Renae (Feb 9, 2008)

That's extremely weird. My 'tiels will pick at their feet/toes, but not continuously.

If he's picking at it until it goes dark and doing this all the time, I'd be a bit concerned. Have you had an x-ray done at all? had his blood tested and circulation tested? (I thought circulation at first, but not sure now).


----------



## Jenny10 (Feb 27, 2010)

Just a thought, can you get him on your hand, if so do his feet feel warm, if they are warm then I would say his circulation must be fine, or is that foot colder than the other one? I know my birds feet are always nice and warm.

He doesn’t need his nail clipped does he? could be annoying the way his toe rests

Jenny


----------



## Luti-Kriss (Dec 23, 2009)

No it's not circulation. What's making his toe get dark is the stuff that comes out of his throat when he takes it out of his mouth.... And if that's normal or not to have stuff come out of his throat when he takes his toe out I don't know. Is that supposed to happen? It's this wet stuff that I would think to be saliva, but idk if birds have saliva or not. It's also kinda milky in color... But yeah when he doesn't bite his toe for a long time the color goes away.

Yes his feet are warm and he can move both of them just fine. And no his nails were never clipped.

Solace: He doesn't do this all the time. It's only when he's out of the cage for a while. If he gets bored or nervous or something he will start doing that and not move at all. He doesn't do this while he's inside the cage. 

And apparently this is hereditary cuz his father does the same thing so says the breeder.


----------



## Luti-Kriss (Dec 23, 2009)

Here's a couple more pics about what I'm talking about.



















In these pics you can see the stuff I'm talking about that he gets from his throat... I don't think it's normal if you ask me.


----------



## Jenny10 (Feb 27, 2010)

I don’t think it is normal either, he’s not regurgitating on his foot is he? maybe he wants to breed, maybe he’s got a fetish for feet, lol

If it was an illness I would imagine it wouldn’t matter where he was he would do it inside the cage too!!

I would have a look at the nail see if you could trim a bit of the end, just see if it is the way the foot is sitting on a surface that is bothering him.:blink:

As for the foot looking darker, I think that is because he as made it wet, they are a dusty bird so if the skin is wet it will appear a different colour until it dries.

good luck

Jenny


----------



## Luti-Kriss (Dec 23, 2009)

The color is because it's wet. I said that lol 

Yeah he does sometimes regurgitate his food but I know why he does. It's because I feed them pellets and for some reason he doesn't like breaking it into pieces, he'll just swallow the whole thing. Then he regurgitates it back up cuz he starts choking and then multiple pellets will start coming up with it :blink:

But yeah I know how to fix him regurgitating his food. I just need to either buy the parakeet sized pellets or continue to break them up into littler pieces for him. I dunno why he doesn't like breaking them up, he breaks his seeds apart just fine 

Yeah well I'm just thinking maybe there's a reason that goop is coming out of his mouth, like maybe it's naturally located inside the throat or something. I really don't think this is an illness either because he wouldn't just do it outside the cage or when he got nervous, he'd do it all the time.


----------



## Ezzie (Jan 19, 2010)

I would take the photos, and even some samples if you could get some and take him to a vet, that behaviour doesnt look normal at all and you bird could have an underlying health issue even if he has been to the vets, its always good to go when something abnormal comes up. You never know, it might just be a habit, or an actual health concern, its good to get this checked out either way.

Maybe others can tell you more about this, ive never seen anything like it.


----------



## Mythara (Apr 9, 2009)

He may have a yeast infection. He could be trying to clear out his throat/crop with his toe, rather than chewing on it. Yeast can look like a milky fluid when they cough it up, and some foods that are high in sugar, like corn (which is a main ingredient in most pellets) can cause flare ups, which could explain the problems he has when eating them. Definitely take him to the vet asap.


----------



## Luti-Kriss (Dec 23, 2009)

Mythara said:


> He may have a yeast infection. He could be trying to clear out his throat/crop with his toe, rather than chewing on it. Yeast can look like a milky fluid when they cough it up, and some foods that are high in sugar, like corn (which is a main ingredient in most pellets) can cause flare ups, which could explain the problems he has when eating them. Definitely take him to the vet asap.


He had that problem before I even started feeding them pellets lol. The guy who owned him before me only fed them seed. And like I said his father has the same thing so I really just think it's a nervous tick.


----------



## Mythara (Apr 9, 2009)

Avian gastric yeast is very easily spread from one bird to another. It's possible that the father had it and passed it on, especially if he fed the chicks at any point. The pellets won't have caused it, but they may make it worse, which explains why he has trouble eating them and reguritates them. It really would be worth getting swabs done and tested to make sure.


----------



## Luti-Kriss (Dec 23, 2009)

I believe what you're saying about the yeast. But the reason why he's having trouble eating the pellets is because he doesn't chew them up for some reason. He insists on swallowing the whole thing, and then he chokes on them.

I will do some research on this subject though and I will see if I can take him to a vet if I get concerned about it. Thanks for your input.


----------



## Renae (Feb 9, 2008)

Crumble the pellets up a bit so he isn't able to swallow them whole - he won't be able to choke on them then.


----------



## Raven2322 (Mar 1, 2008)

Luti-Kriss said:


> Here's a couple more pics about what I'm talking about.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Ok, so I after I read and saw this I would say take him to the vet. I say this because my Aladdin was chewing on his ankle and regurgitating on it like that. It started with some irritation(I don't know what) and then it became a metal thing. Except the problem was he kept doing it, getting it inflamed, it would bug him, and cause him to do it more. If nothing else I would get some soother plus or something and rub it on his foot to cut down on any irritation he may be feeling. I've also had another bird regurgitate on his foot when it was bothering him because he had bumble foot. Does he have too many of the same surfaces in his cage, either hard or soft can cause bumble foot. If you notice that he regurgitates and then waits for it to dry up and then does it again that could be a clue to the issue. 

My bird did this on and off for a while too. I think the trick to stopping it is to apply something to the area so that it feels less agitated and then he will pick at it less. I would also highly suggest a vet visit.


----------



## Luti-Kriss (Dec 23, 2009)

Solace. said:


> Crumble the pellets up a bit so he isn't able to swallow them whole - he won't be able to choke on them then.


That's what I've been saying on here that I'm gunna do from now on. Lol.


----------



## xxxSpikexxx (Jul 30, 2007)

I don't like the look of that stuff coming out of his beak. I would take him to an avian vet for a check up to be safe.


----------



## nickieiscute (Feb 9, 2010)

tack him to the vet!!!


----------



## Luti-Kriss (Dec 23, 2009)

Working on it.


----------

