nail

Occasionally you will have to trim your Java's nails. Unfortunately they do not wear down enough in captivity as they do in the wild. If you are not confident enough to tackle trimming nails yourself, then take them to the vet or if you know a bird breeder who could show you how - or even trim them for you. It's not very difficult to do.

Java's have transparent nails so that you can see the quick - that is the area of the nail where the blood supply is located. Just trim the nail below the quick with nail cutters - make sure they are sharp or they will just shatter the nail instead of cutting it. In birds with dark nails you will just have to guess but anything longer than about 4mm is usually excess nail that can be cut off.

Sometimes with trimming nails accidents do happen. Like cutting the nail and severing the quick. If this should happen the bird will bleed and bleed if no action is taken. There is a remedy to suppress the bleeding. You could try a styptic pencil - this is what we men use when we cut ourselves shaving. It will work in some cases, but sometimes the bleeding will start again when the bird knocks the end of the nail on a perch and you may not be there to stop the bleeding. It does not take long for a Java or any small bird to lose enough blood to fall into shock and then die. A lot of bird keepers have returned to the bird room to find a dead bird having treated it with a blood stopper. There is one way to stop the bleeding for sure and that is to cauterize it. I use this method for my Java's if the need arises. You will not have a blood clot on the end of a nail as with a blood stop pencil and therefore no risk of a bird bleeding to death.

Cauterizing: To do this you can use a matchstick or, preferably, a lighter. In order not to burn the Java's toe, grasp the toe between your thumb and forefinger so that only the tip of the nail is exposed. Your fingers protect the bird's toe and foot. Light the matchstick, let it burn for a second, then blow it out and immediately press it firmly to the tip of the nail. Hold it there until the match cools. Any blood on the nail will generate some smoke. This is normal. If the match was too cool before you pressed it to the nail, or if the nail does not appear well cauterized, you will need to repeat the procedure with another match.

To use a lighter, simply hold the nail in the flame for about one second. Any blood on the nail will generate smoke and the nail should char nicely on the tip. For successful cauterization using either method, the tip of the nail should be well charred.