When my previous B&G chewed her leg the vet put an acrylic bubble collar on her. She got it off. Next he put a acrylic Tube with a flange collar on her. She got past that one too. So long story short we made her one from a man's tube sock & strips of a hand towel. The downside is she couldn't eat with her feet, so I had to sort of hand feed her. We cracked nuts for her & made sure she could lean far enough to pick up food with her beak. She just couldn't hold any food in her feet to eat. I fed her veggies/fruits/etc off a fork. She managed quite well, as you will see in the pics I posted below. These are pics of JaJaBinks with her collars on:
She injured her leg on her pipe bell after a shower. She was kicking he bell & had wet skin, which got a slight cut. Then she chewed it. Later, due to pain, she ripped it open more, while wearing the collars the vet had used. Vet refused my request for pain meds.
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The 1st collar. The Bubble Collar. She managed to get the tape off & pulled it apart.
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The 2nd collar. I guess you can call it a "T" collar. It was screwed together. She was able to get to her leg with this collar on as well & tore the long piece of skin off her leg. Both these collars irritated the base of her neck due to rubbing.
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We tried to modify the 2nd collar by adding a wider acrylic disc. She got past that too!
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Both acrylic collars rubbed her neck & you could see they were causing irritation. SOOOOO....
I found this way to make a collar....it's a Sock & Towel Collar. Very comfy, no irritation, she could not get to her leg & she wore it for several weeks with no issues. As you can see it's thick & goes from jaw to base of neck.
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Her she is climbing into my freezer & drinking from the dogs water dish. The collar didn't stop her from doing things:
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I had taken her to a different vet, who said this was the most humane collar she'd ever seen on a parrot. She took x-rays, which the previous vet didn't & put her on pain meds. Here's how you make the Sock & Towel Collar:
You need a man's crew sock & a thick terry hand towel. I suggest white, just to prevent any issues with dyes. My husband is a size 9 shoe/sock, just for measure. Cut the top part of the crew sock off about 1.5 inches below where the elastic ends. It will measure roughly 5.5 inches total. The elastic part on mine is about 4 inches long. It measures 3.25 inches across the top edge. Next cut the towel. The strips I have measure 4 inches in width & 19 inches in length. You need 2 strips. This is the measurement for my previous female B&G macaw. I got the towel width measurement by using my hand, gripping her neck, then measuring my hand. It needs to be from under jaw to base of neck, wit neck stretched a bit. Now comes the fun part...putting it on:
I suggest a 2nd person to help. Wrap the towel strips one at a time, around the birds neck, overlapping the ends, but make sure the overlap is not in the front. Wrap it just so it lays well, but not too sung or tight. Pull the sock top over your hand, so it's now inside out. Then take a hold of the birds beak/head & pull it down over the towel strips. The cut end should be to the bottom. The top edge should be just above the towel strip. Tuck the bottom end up under, overlapping the edge of the towel strips. Take a pencil & reach down inside & push the feathers back in place. Now check to make sure you can easily slide your thumb under the front bottom, above the crop. If it slides in easy you are good to go. If not & the bird seems to have trouble swallowing then the towel strips are too tight & you need to start all over again & make them a little looser. The collar will slide down a tiny bit, but should be big enough to prevent the bird from bending its neck & getting to the incision. Of course no removing it or showers while wearing the collar. It should be left on until the incision is fully healed. As you can see in the pics my macaw did fine with hers on for several weeks. You may need to assist your bird eating, as this collar prevents them from bending the head & neck.
Here's her leg fully healed.
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I know it sounds like a lot, but trust me this collar will work & be very humane.
Best wishes.