Gigi, a long-tailed colourful macaw rescued from captivity, has received a 3D printed titanium beak thanks to a team of veterinarians and 3D printing experts from the Renato Archer Technology and Information Center in Brazil.
Due to the severe deformation of her beak, Gigi wasn’t able to crack oped seeds and nuts and therefore couldn’t feed herself. The team including a veterinary surgeon, a 3D designer and facial reconstruction specialist and a veterinary dentist, have had prior experience in helping animals using 3D printing technology to create a beak for a toucan and a shell for a tortoise. This time, however, they had to use metal instead of plastic, as the prosthetic beak needed to be rather strong and durable.
Based on photographs taken of the parrot’s existing deformed beak, a 3D model was created to then 3D print the custom titanium beak. Gigi is currently recovering at the Center for Research and Screening of Wild Animals at Unimonte University from the successful surgery that had taken place last week. As we can see in some videos released by the centre, she is adapting really well to her new beak.
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