Leading Vet’s Investigation of Bone Deformities in Grey Parrots

In recent years an increasing number of deformed or malnourished hand-reared Grey Parrots are offered for sale in the UK. In many cases neither the breeder nor the purchaser is aware that there is anything wrong with the bird. That is not just sad but frightening – that inexperienced people are producing young parrots which might be crippled for life or have to be euthanised at an early age. Bird magazines have used several heart-rending stories of young parrots, most often Greys, with deformed beaks or broken legs yet there is no mention of the cause of the problem.