# Baby Cockatiel with a Crooked Beak



## birdFriend (Jul 1, 2015)

I recently put a down payment on a cute baby cinnamon cockatiel. The bird has a great personality and I think would be a great buddy for my current cockatiel. I visited the baby bird today and noticed something a little concerning. The baby bird's lower portion of the top half of the beak seems a little crooked. I have visited the bird before and never noticed it this issue. I could tell something was wrong before i even picked the bird up from the cage, so this has to be something new.

I would like to know if this maybe a permanent deformity or is it something the little bird can grow out of. Also are there any underlying health problems that could cause this?

I honestly don't like the idea of buying a bird that is showing health issues at such a young age, but at the same time i really do like the bird.


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## roxy culver (May 27, 2010)

These are questions best posed to a vet and the breeder. A crooked beak could be an injury or a nutrient deficiency.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Crooked beaks can sometimes be corrected, and with a baby it's best to deal with it ASAP while the chick is still growing. Here's some info on beak deformities and what to do about them: http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=15+1829&aid=2752

From the thread at http://www.talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=26485


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## crow (Sep 5, 2015)

Poor baby. I'd take it to a vet and make a plan to correct it asap. My Elvis is adult and had a serious misaligned beak, also with a way too long upper beak, when I got him. I trim it regularly but his jaw is permanently damaged by the long time he had a crooked beak before something was done about it.


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## adriano (Feb 26, 2016)

Personality trumps deformity in my book. One of my rescues has a split (70/30) down the lower beak. The 30% part grows all the time. Every 2-3 weeks I just trim it down with puppy nail clippers. She can drink fine and split sunflower seeds better then some other birds who can't seem to get it even with a perfect beak. Don't worry so much about physical issues they can adjust well and you can adjust too. If the personality is that great from the outset chances are they have pretty good genetics too so that's something to consider.


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## Bird-Mom (Feb 11, 2016)

It's possible it could be scissor beak. It's rare in cockatiels, but it can happen from hand feeding. From what I have read on beautyofbirds.com it can take years to correct and may take many vet trips to have the beak trimmed down so the bird can eat properly. Maybe you can look up some pictures on Google of cockatiels with scissor beak and see if the pictures match.


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