Nail overgrowth in BQ

[TheWeeBee]

I have a total of six BQ's--4 adults (about a year old) and two juveniles.

The 4 adults are not tame at all and drop feathers and poop when they're handled. So the only time I ever hold them is when I'm cleaning out their pen. A couple of weeks back I'd noticed that all of their nails were overgrown and twisted so I clipped them back as far as I was comfortable (black nails are always difficult to see the quick). I just checked on them and their nails were starting to get a bit long again. After trimming a bit off of each bird's nail, I'm trying to figure out what would cause the overgrowth. All of my quail have a base of pine shavings and some fresh-cut oak logs to hop around on. Should I change their bedding type? I'm sure in the wild they would be climbing over rocks and dirt all day which would keep their nails trimmed naturally.

I also noticed that the nails of my older male have turned white/clear, while the hens' have all remained black. Does this signal a nutritional deficiency? I know that nail color can vary in budgies.

 

[TwoCrows]

I have Bobwhites with long claws. They grow pretty long, twisting around, and get to a point where they look like they need trimming, but trimming the claws of a bobwhite is nearly impossible. You might have better luck with a BobCAT. LOL

So I just leave them be. My Bobs all have soft dirt to scratch in and hardened areas of the ground. I have noticed that the quail that dig around in hard dirt keep their claws short, while the ones that only scratch around in the soft dirt, the claws can grow quite long.

So the moral of the story is, and you mentioned about quail in the wild climbing over rocks and such, this is exactly what they need to keep them trimmed. Hard surfaces that the claws wear down on. If you are able to trim their claws, that is the best thing you can do for them. Some of by Bobs could use a trim, but I am not going to even try. LOL

 

[TheWeeBee]

LOL! Sounds like you'd need an extra pair of hands for that sort of job! (Hoping my little flock of Delawares never need their nails trimmed lol).

 

[jbobs]

lol reminds me of some dogs we get in clinic that need five people to hold them down just to get their nails clipped.

:
if you have a puppy get him used to nail clippers before he is 120 pounds and terrified of them!

:/rant:

I wouldn't worry too much about it unless it it impeding their ability to walk. the stress they go through isn't worth it.