It's worth a try Leigh. Kady never chewed on anything at all until I got bottlebrush. They really do love to gnaw on it. You may want to start out with some of bottlebrush spinners and toys. I have them in the cages and they really like those also.

I think I might give it a try. See, I was just complaining that I didnt want to spend any money on a few new clothing items for myself. But when it comes to the brats, Ill spend!

I read somewhere that wood perches of different widths and textures are very important for birds, and to provide only sandies for perching can be detrimental for their feet in the long run. What I do for my two birds that perch on my hands; I use an emery board (a sandpaper fingernail file) and almost every day, I swipe their claws with it. They only tolerate a few swipes at a time, but if you do it often, it really works to keep the edge off razor claws. I don't like using nail clippers and will only towel if absolutely necessary, so this is a good solution for us.

Also, if you bird flies; I periodically hold up a bottlebrush or tree branch perch and have my birds fly to it repeatedly. The act of grabbing the wood each time they land works to keep their claws from getting too sharp.

The thing about bottle brush - my two rescues that didn't have a clue what to do with themselves, their bottlebrush gyms are the very first thing they starting chewing. As a matter of fact, it's very hard to get them off, they are too comfortable with them. I am thinking of pulling up a table and putting their food on it so they will have to climb down and off the perches to eat.

Alex is a shark. The concept of filing his nails is stand up comedy to me. If I tried that, I wouldnt have a hand left to hold a file with! I had wood perches mixed in his cage but thats all he would go for. He has a manzanita stand, and other play toys and boings for foot exercise outside the cage. Trust me when I tell youithey are spoiled and have everything they need to be healthy.

Oh, I remember! Alex is your pink shark monster! No, definitely you can't file his claws with an emery board I do manage to files my Rosa's claws once in a while but with her, it's always a very quick swipe. Those little cockatoo beaks pack quite a wallop! But chewing on bottlebrush wood is also very useful for those nasty little beaks

Leigh, have you tried just using the sandy perches near his food bowl, and as the highest perch in the cage, or where he typically sleeps? Ollie just has the one sandy perch in front of her food bowl and I haven't had to do anything with her nails in 2 years. (She also has one as her main perch in her travel cage, so I think all the moving of her cage while she's perched on it really helps also). Just an idea.

Ollie loves her hanging bottlebrush gym, although right now it's in storage because I don't have room for it. Ah, the joys of living in a one bedroom apartment with a parrot!

Alex is a strange bird. He will find the thinnest thing he can stand on first. I had a mix of sandy, and wood perches, with his highest sleeper a sandy. He would plant himself on the wood triangle swing and not move. That was when we would take him to get his nails trimmed and a day later they would be razors again.That was when we took out the triangle swing and added sandies at food stations and got an even larger diameter sandy for his sleeper. Nail problem solved. We did get the kind that have lots of shape. Not the solid round diameter ones. But when he comes out to the big manzanita perch, he goes to the thinnest lowest branch and tries to blend it. He also has the hoopball, the hula ring and a big macaw sized boing. They all climb a ton and run on the floor. But maybe a bottlebrush spinner is a good option for Alex if he will chew it and file that nasty bottom mandible down. That thing is a weapon! Now I have to be even more careful. Today I took him out and he dipped his belly and rubbed it on my hand. I thought "oh no, not another admirer" So I was sitting here in the kitchen with him and he launched at my hand for no reason what so ever. Luckily he didnt get enough skin to grab. I better order bottlebrush soon or Ill be posting bloody finger pics again.