Beak trim and eye stuff AGAIN

[fanofthedog]

Hi all. I just don;t get why my Tyler always has the craggy overgrown beak! I feed him on cement. I give him cuddle bone and those banquet bars. He looks like Voldemort. It doesn't bother him <yet> but I need to get him trimmed.
My question: is there anyone in SoCal (I live SFV) with experience that would like to help me do it ? I spend a lot of money every time I go to the vet and thought maybe someone who happens to live near me and has experience could do it quicker and easier (without the sedation) and for less money. Just a thought. Otherwise I'll head to the vet again.

Also- the eye stuff. What do you use for them? I am 100% certain it is not a hydration issue. My guy drinks a LOT of water. I see him drink regularly- head underwater for 6-10 minutes at a time and I feed him hay wet down along with cactus and dandelions. What is the cloudiness from and is there something I can use?

Thanks for your feedback. I appreciate it. If you know of a vet tech or tort person near SFV that is up for helping with a beak trim Im at fanofthedog AT yahoo.com Im just so scared to do it myself ( I haven't ever used a dremel for anything) but I do believe my guy is a good candidate for tolerating it. He's 125lbs

 

[Sara G.]

Is the center of his beak broken? Looks like there's an issue in the center. Maybe this is the cause of the overgrowth on either side?

 

[Yvonne G]

The eye foam is due to his being too hot. They sometimes drool to cool off their faces, or sometimes foam from the eyes.

Maybe you shouldn't be feeding, but rather allow him to graze. Grazing and browsing is what keeps the beaks in shape.

 

[fanofthedog]

Sara- I dont know- I dont think its the middle. Every spring he overgrows this way. Let me see if I can post a closer look?
Yvonne- I dont "feed" him like mealtimes I meant I just lay his hay down on cement,etc. He does naturally graze all day and I have a large area for him. That is what I dont understand- why he never naturally wears his beak down like others.

Also his foam is ALWAYS. He does cry tears when he is hot but the foam seems like something else. Id heard people here in the past mention eye drops but I could be remembering it wrong. The foam doesn't seem to bother him but it attracts more gnats and that would bother my eyes!!!!

 

[fanofthedog]

Is the center of his beak broken? Looks like there's an issue in the center. Maybe this is the cause of the overgrowth on either side?

I honestly can't tell!! Its always been like this- and we go to the vet once every 8 months or so to trim it down but he HATES going. He hates the drive and the meds and he's cranky for 2-3 days after wwards!!

 

[Sara G.]

Maybe his bottom jaw isn't lined up properly?

When he eats does he actually eat on the cement? Or does he drag it off and then eat it?

 

[Yvonne G]

That is certainly NOT normal. Sulcatas normally have two points down in the middle and it looks vampirish. You can trim the side edges yourself. Take a toenail clipper and using the side only, snip out 'v' shaped cuts all along the edge of the side. Then when finished, you can take a nail file and smooth it all out. I sit my big tortoises on the top of a fence so their feet are hanging out in space and they get no traction. It may take two people, one to balance him on the fence and one to do the clipping. You can also use a Dremmel, but the clippers are quickly.

 

[fanofthedog]

Maybe his bottom jaw isn't lined up properly?

When he eats does he actually eat on the cement? Or does he drag it off and then eat it?

He eats weeds and stuff all day but I lay down some wet hay with some greens and feed him on the cement. Ive even tried to feed him on sandpaper! Maybe his jaw is wonky and thats why. Even when his beak gets a trim he still doesn't have the same shaped head as others seem to have so maybe he does have an unusual alignment!!!!

 

[fanofthedog]

That is certainly NOT normal. Sulcatas normally have two points down in the middle and it looks vampirish. You can trim the side edges yourself. Take a toenail clipper and using the side only, snip out 'v' shaped cuts all along the edge of the side. Then when finished, you can take a nail file and smooth it all out. I sit my big tortoises on the top of a fence so their feet are hanging out in space and they get no traction. It may take two people, one to balance him on the fence and one to do the clipping. You can also use a Dremmel, but the clippers are quickly.

Yvonne- do you think a dog nail trimmer would be better? I have tried once before but it wasn't a huge success. I can get him up on cinderblocks so he can't move his legs (he gets stuck trying to hump them all the time lol) Do you mean just sort of trim away little cuts until the overgrown part is gone? Does the middle part look normal to you though? Usually his overgrowth comes with a "cut line" which shows exactly where the beak overgrowth starts. I just hate when he gets mad but I am so tired of the $500 vet bill every time!! Thanks for your feedback. I need to "grow a pair" and learn to master this once and for all. When I first got him his beak was badly overgrown and it wasn't until I posted his picture at this forum that I learned he wasn't supposed to look like that!!!!

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

Can you get a picture that is more in focus? His bottom beak is confusing.

Has his top beak always been missing the centre bit? What has the vet been trimming off?

 

[fanofthedog]

Can you get a picture that is more in focus? His bottom beak is confusing.

Has his top beak always been missing the centre bit? What has the vet been trimming off?

Yes I think so??? I didn't realize it was missing!!! He always gets the sides that grow long. This is what his beak looked like when I first got him. I have taken his to get it trimmed once a year since. Can you tell if middle is missing?

 

[Sara G.]

We might need a more in focus picture. Looks like something is definitely off with the center of his beak but it's hard to see
Can you get up close and take a clear pic?

 

[Yvonne G]

What happened was because the sides flared out, the beak split up the middle. In order for it to heal together at the growth line, way up at the top or "quick," you have to keep the sides from flaring. Because when he puts pressure on those flared sides, it just causes the new beak growth to keep splitting. It is quite painful too. Maybe that's why his eyes are foaming. If this were a horse hoof you could put a band around it to keep it from spreading. But I don't know now you would keep that beak from spreading.

 

[Rue]

Not that I could do this, but I wonder if you trimmed the sides down as far as possible (in a natural shape) and then used fibreglass or something medical (acrylic?) along those lines to fill in the broken part...then kept up with the trimming while the new growth happened, if it eventually would be corrected?