Budgie wont trim beak

Question
Hi Amber,

About 4 months ago my budgie began to trim her beak less and less. I took her to have it trimmed about 3/4 weeks ago and its already so long she is having trouble eating.  She uses the cuttle bone occasionally, never the other mineral blocks, and only rubs the top of her beak on the sand paper stuff.  How can I get her to trim her beak more or can I learn to do it like the vet said? I've only been able to find very limited info on how to trim the beak myself.

Answer
Hello Carrie! Most of the time it is unessisary to have a birds beak trimed. (unless its REALLY long) But a long beak is caused by lack of chewing. What kind of toys do you have in the cage? Buy toys that budgies can chew like soft wood, they love hemp and paper like toys, nothing hard like solid wood or plastic. Here are some pictures of the toys that budgies LOVE to chew on. If you have trouble finding toys at the petstore then order this catalog (its free) and they have a hudge selection of perfect bird toys that you can order.I give my birds all these toys for they are wonderful for chewing

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=10185&N=2003+11374...

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=13321&N=2003+11374...

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=13300&N=2003+11312...

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=14412&N=2003+11312...

Also beak growth can be caused by an all seed diet. Feed your keet grass(they love grass) lettuce, parsely. With all this chewing her beak will slowly be under control. Also you mentioned that she rubs her beak on sandpaper. Im assuming the sandpaper is on the branches for a cover. Sandpaper can be very harmful for the parakeets feet. It can cause leg cramps, sores, and blisters. Take all the sand paper out and replace all the perches with real branches. Its free and your budgie's feet will be more happy. Almost any kind of branch is sutible for a budgie. Just go and chop em' all off and fit them to the cage! Find branches that are interesting looking, ones with wavy limbs, or different surfaces. She will even chew on the branches triming her beak even more. If you follow these steps, then your baby will no longer have a long beak! If you are worried about her beak NOW then take her to the vet for another trim. good luck!