Bald spot under the eye (updated with pics)

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Asahel
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Bald spot under the eye (updated with pics)

Post by Asahel »

Hello everyone, I'm a new user and old lurker of this forum, and the parront of an unknwon-age IRN named Kirin.

My fid was bought 10 months ago from a local pet store - wich was the only place thet selled ringnecks . The vendors told me he/she is 7 months old, so I generously added a few more months to that, because she didn't have a clue about the animals they were selling there. I bought a spacious cage for him (I'm still hoping for a ring although he's already old enough to show signs of it), food and toys, and started taming the beast.

But I have a few problems with him...

First of all, my baby is small. Puny. Even compared to the IRNs at the petshop. I feed him correctly, with pellets (HARI/Harrison's - the only ones I can find in my country, and only in one single shop), seeds (once in a while, and try to pick tmost of he sunflower seeds out of the mixes), fruit (a bit every day; he has his favourites) and veggies (he ignores most of it but i keep trying). For some months now i supplement his food with vitamins, but to no avail. Baby is still puny.

On top of that, he doesn't seem to grow out of his molt. He's ruffled, duck-butt, and he generally looks like a cat dragged him.

He is constantly shiverring when I talk to him, or touch him, or interact with him in any way, which might be because of stress. Kir is a shy bird even after all this time. I take him out every day, he sits on the finger and stopped biting, but he doesnt't show any attachement to me or anyone else.

And our biggest problem yet - he developped a bald spot under an eye. The skin looks clean, not flaked, and I can't take the poor bird to a vet because there aren't any avian vets around. I also don't trust the generalist vets in my town because of a series of misfortunate events that led to one of my cats death, 2 years ago. I saw all of them at work, and they simply don't care about the animals they're supposed to treat.

Please help me, any advice would be welcomed.
Last edited by Asahel on Sat Nov 10, 2007 7:41 am, edited 1 time in total.
julie
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Post by julie »

Hi, do you have any pics for us to get a better idea about the weight and bald spot?
Asahel
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pictures

Post by Asahel »

Yeah you're right. Here he is.

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julie
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Post by julie »

does she/he rub the beak and that particular area on the cage or anything else? it looks like it may have been rubbed off. Where are you located? It looks like your baby is moulting and if it is a big moult you may just find out if you have a boy or girl, if your baby was already 7 months and you have had for 10 months it would be coming up for a big moult :wink:
Asahel
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Post by Asahel »

He was definetly older than 7 months when I bought him (the lady at the shop either lied or didn't know)...they always tell clients a bird is "a baby" or 7 months old, even if it already has the ring :roll:

Maybe 10-12 months in reality. Added 10 months with me...he'd be aprox. 18 - 20 months. He was indeed moulting, which resulted in tail loss and beak flaking and generally bad looks, but he didn't improve at all, not even now after almost 4 months. I'm desperate. Do they have big moults at this age?

He does rub his beak often, on everything - perches, water bowl, mineral block..so I hope you are right :shock:

What do you think about his size/weight?...or age..

EDIT: I'm in Europe/Romania.
Last edited by Asahel on Sat Nov 10, 2007 9:50 am, edited 1 time in total.
nil
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Post by nil »

i agree with julie for the spot, but keep your attention with that.
do you know how many grams is your bird?

i think you feeding him correctly,its good to continue once a week to give him multivitamins,minerals and amino acids in water.
do you bath him?
Last edited by nil on Sat Nov 10, 2007 2:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
freaky
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Post by freaky »

sorry, but ive got to ask.

Is that cage big enough?
it looks like a budgie cage.
Asahel
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Post by Asahel »

Freaky: no way, the cage is BIG. what you see in pictures is the top of it (it is shaped like a pagoda).

Image

Sorry for the bad quality pic, I took it with my cellphone cause the camera battery just died.

nil: I spray him with warm water quite often. I used to spray him every day in the summer, but now only once in 3 days or so. And he hates it :). About the weight...I don't know. Besides, from what I've read on this forum, some individuals are smaller than others. It would be ok for me to have a "mini" IRN, but what worries me if he's healty or not. Does he look undeweight? :(
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Post by freaky »

sorry Asahel, i was going on the bit i could see.
Asahel
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Post by Asahel »

Oh no worries, I understand your concern. I react the same when I see birds in cages too small. Some people don't have any common sense when it comes to that. :( And they claim they love their pets.

edit: he has a perch and most of his stuff in the upper side of the cage because he likes sitting there. Maybe it feels safer.
freaky
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Post by freaky »

mine does that same, his got a big, big, cage, and he sits at the top. only ever goes to the bottom half when he is trying to nick food off my plate.


inside measurements are, w 85cm, d 55cm, h 120cm. gives him room to jump, open his wings, and flap from side to side. spoilt little git really.
Asahel
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Post by Asahel »

Ha! From the words of his caretaker, it looks like he's not only spoilt, but also deserves it :)
Asahel
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Post by Asahel »

I found a few old pics of Kirin (2 or 3 months after i bought him). He looked so much better then..

Can someone estimate his age?

Image

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(also taken with the cellphone = bad quality)
julie
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Post by julie »

Have you tried giving Kirin some boiled eggs and nuts. Im thinking things with a slightly higher natural fat. Was he on seeds at the petshop? I know im probably going to be in trouble with some people for saying this but if he isnt doing too well on the pellets maybe he would do better on seeds and fresh fruit and veggies. And maybe try some rescue remedy if you are able to get your hands on some.
Asahel
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Post by Asahel »

Julie: I'm so glad you're suggesting me to feed him more nuts. I'm already doing this for a week now...about half per day. I knew they are fatty but he loves them. He holds the half nut with his foot and doesn't stop until it's empty, and pinning the whole time. I've tried boild eggs but he doesn't eat it, not even if i mix it with other stuff. So I'll continue with the nuts for a a while.

At the petstore they only feed parrots with sunflower seeds :? Even macaws and African Greys. One would think they should be more careful at least about the "expensive merchandise"....

I have 2 different multivitamin mixes for the water, but he doesn't drink it because he gets fruit daily - oranges, grapes, mellon and watermellon - high water content. I resorted to a 3rd supplement for the food. It's oily, with A, D3 and E and I sprinkle it on the fruit. Hope it will help the plumage and weight.

What is a rescue remedy? We don't have wildlife in this area. No specialists either - only business men :(

This is really frustrating, I'm trying my best with this fid and he still looks sick.

Anyway, thank you all for answering me so promptly, I apreciate every suggestion.
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Post by julie »

you can actually give him some sunflower seeds, you dont need to pick them out .its just not feeding them as a main diet. All my birds love nuts and corn on the cob and paw paw/papaya ect. paw paw/papaya is very high in vitamins and is very good for them. The rescue remedy comes in a little bottle and chemists/pharmacies stock it here(aus) check out this link about the rescue remedy http://www.martinandpleasance.com/click on the rescue remedy icon.
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Post by Donna »

I would have this little guy checked out by any vet! You could be looking at a bird that has Beak and Feather disease and if thats the case your other birds will get it to. It also could be mites. I wouldn't put off going to the vets ASAP. Don't try to medicate your bird with over the counter meds if your not sure whats going on. :(



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Asahel
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Post by Asahel »

Donna: I "arrested" Kir in a towel and checked him again. It cant't be mites, He doesn't have any bite marks or rashes, as described on this site.

http://medent.usyd.edu.au/fact/birdmite.html

About the PBFD...oh wow. I sure hope it's not the case, as I've read it's not curable. I don't have other birds, Kirin is in fact my first. I will have him checked by a vet - I am reluctant though. Bet they didn't even hear about PBFD.

Histopathology (microscopic examinations of biopsies) can confirm the diagnosis. Affected cells will have abnormalities in their nuclei, called "basophilic intranuclear inclusion bodies." The diagnosis may also be confirmed by a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test on whole blood or biopsy samples from the affected bird. The test detects the presence of the virus. This test may also be used on swabs of surfaces in the environment to detect contamination.


A simple physical exam won't be relevant, as Kir doesn't show the most obvious signs, such as hemorrhaging or abnormal feather growth, diarrhea, or beak deformities, which means what? Biopsy?:?

okay, now I'm really scared.
Asahel
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Post by Asahel »

Could it be giardiasis? Did anyone have this kind of problem with their fid? :shock:

I think I might have sounded irresponsable about the vets here, but I've known most of them, if not all. They either don't know what they're doing, or don't care about the animals they treat, or both. They also don't have the necessary logistics - you should see in what conditions they perform simple surgery - and I'm talking about operating on common animals such as dogs and cats. Normally I would have rushed Kirin to the doctor, as I did with all my pets when they were sick, but after all the bad experiences I have more trust in this forum.

I will give it a try though :?
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Post by Donna »

Asahel I know your concerned about your baby. I don't mean to scare you and it very well could be something as simple as food allergy or a bacteria infection. I would get in touch with the petshop that sold you the bird also to make them aware and they may have more sick birds their selling. Some of these major diseases will not show up until the bird is stressed by a new enviroment that's why if you have more then one bird we tell you to quarantine the new bird before introducing to the exicsting flock.
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Post by Asahel »

Good news - sort of. Both a friend (budgie owner) and the manager of the pet shop where I bought Kirin from recommended me a certain vet, specialized in birds. I visited him, explained the problems, and he told me to come back with the bird (as expected), but also with poo samples. This must be a good sign \o/ He really seemed to know what he was talking about, and a good person. Now I'm feeling more optimistic. I also hope to be proven wrong in my opinion about the animal doctors here.

I'll have Kir checked this evening or tomorrow, depending on my paycheck arrival.
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(last night i dreamed about different and non existing bird disease names...yes, I'm that scared)
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Post by Donna »

Please keep us posted My fingers and toes are crossed hoping that it's not serious.



((((((BIG HUGS YOUR WAY)))))))))


Donna :D
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Asahel
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Post by Asahel »

:D :D :D :D :D :D <-- YEAH!

Not scary PBFD! (I specifically asked about it, and doc said it would be very unusual for this country)

Not mites or any other parasites on the skin or inside the feathers

A small viral infection, he gave me treatement - antibiotics probably.

But.

Amazingly, Kir seems to be a plucker :shock: All his tail feather were ripped, same thing with the wing feathers (the very parts of him that he didn't let me touch properly; you can imagine the BLOODY MURDER!!!! screams at the vet ). Seems that when he started to moult, he didn't know how to get rid of the husks(?) of the new feathers, and he ripped the base of the feather.

I never saw him doing this...then again he is alone when I'm at work. The vet recommended to spray him with a bitter solution (No Pica), and a collar if the problem persists. I am also to remove the pellets from his diet and feed him seeds mix, veggies and fruit.

I really, really hope the diagnosis is accurate because even if it's a serious problem, it is curable \o/ . I'm so happy it should be illegal.

Thank you Donna for the encouragement and concern \o/ I'll let you all know of any changes.
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Post by Donna »

Asahel I share your concern because I also have a IRN that plucks :roll: I had every test run on him they could think of and they come back clean. What we finally put our fingers on is his diet which was good but I had to take him off of seed altogether because most of the seed mixes you buy have some kind of pepper in them and that is what he is alergic to. Like you it is very devastating to have a bird look like this and you can't do any thing about it. We also tried the collar and I would never put anything like that on my birds again, It made me cry when he would try to eat or even walk across the floor. They say they get use to it after awhile but I couldn't stand to watch him with it on. :cry: When I spray bath him I add pure Aloe juice to the water this helps soften the skin and releives the itchies. May I ask what brand of pellets were you feeding him? I don't feed the colored pellets to any of my birds. They eat the non colored on.

I'm so glad that you had him checked by someone that knew what they were doing now go give him a big hug and kiss for me you on the other hand could use a good stiff drink :lol:


Donna
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Post by Asahel »

It was you who recommended aloe juice in the bath water, a while ago on this forum? :D I remembered it, and I was thinking about it earlier today \o/ I have an overgrown aloe vera, time to put it to pay its rent :P

I'm really, really sorry to hear about your fid. How is he doing? If he's not recovered yet, I'm confident your care and perseverance will do the trick. Collars do seem torture instruments :? I hope that spray(the foul tasting one) will work and I won't have to collar Kir. Have you tried something lke that? It certainly sounds more humane.

Now i understand what you have been through :? same scare for a longer time.

It's a terrible thing to have a plucker, I remember reading about this stuff and it seemed so damn far. But it's a thousand times better than PBFD and such, don't you agree? At least it's curable, and we can do something about it.

About the pellets: Harrison's (HARI institute or something like that)..on the ingredients list they say the coloring is natural)..

I know there are better brands "out there" but they're not available in my country yet.

I agree with you about that drink :D but I'm so tired already, and tomorrow is a work day. Guess I'd have to postpone it.
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Post by Donna »

I have never tried the bitter spray maybe I should. It's funny Tango is the little bird in my avatar and that picture he just started getting his feathers back and was looking pretty again. We have a joke in our house to tell Tango he's blue he likes that color and when he starts plucking I blame someone in the house they told Tango he was green. My son thinks I'm crazy :D Tango sneaks to get to the other birds treat dishes and I can't denie the other birds their peppers they love them so much so Tango is put in his cage while the others is out getting their treats. :( It makes me sad to do this to him but I have no choice. I did give him a girl friend too hoping it would help so we may see little Tango's in the future. :wink:


Donna
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nil
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Post by nil »

is very difficult to stop plucking.
you can find useful informations how to make a foam collar :

http://qp-society.com/rappsupport/rappt ... ollar.html
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Post by Donna »

Thanks Nil That looks more comfortable then the one I bought from the vet.




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avril
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Post by avril »

Does he have enough to keep him stimulated, It looks like he doesn't have enough . Ringies love to chew and swing and as he is on his own while you're at work he might be bored hence the feather plucking. Get some large swing ropes and watch how he will entertain himself and chew it, they are non toxic also get him some other toys like a ball they love playing football with them.

Good luck.
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Post by julie »

avril wrote:Does he have enough to keep him stimulated, It looks like he doesn't have enough . Ringies love to chew and swing and as he is on his own while you're at work he might be bored hence the feather plucking. Get some large swing ropes and watch how he will entertain himself and chew it, they are non toxic also get him some other toys like a ball they love playing football with them.

Good luck.

He has more toys in his cage than indie has, plus he may have a play gym or another play area.
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Post by Ohana »

I just caught up to this post. Sorry you had to go through all of this. I am glad you are getting down to some possible ideas and how to go about fixing it.

I would see if you could add some more toys to his cage that he might like. Ya know like things he can shred and destroy, I go through so many of these toys it is unbelieveable. I even have to make up my own toys to keep the cost down.

I wish you luck and will do my best to follow this thread!
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Post by Asahel »

avril: yeah, he has enough toys, and sometimes the cage gets a little too crowded as julie noticed :) And an improvised playgim (wooden ladder) with more toys hanging. And foot toys, mostly balls of different materials, some partially destroyed and some left untouched. He only chews them, so I guess he likes football more like a spectator.

I raised him "by the manual" so I rotate his toys once a week.

nil: foam collars oh I like that better! Thanks for posting that link.

donna: for such intelligent little guys, they don't have an ounce of common sense. One should think they'd avoid the food that is bad for them, but nooo. Be strong and don't fall for his sentimental blackmail :evil:
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Post by Asahel »

Hi Ohana

Kir is destructive too. I didn't try to make myself toys yet, but I repaired once a toy he liked, before he destroyed it for good. He likes to rip off bells, and then he loses interest in the toy. So far i noticed his favs are chewable ones made of wood, and the ones with bells.

The cage is more or less crowded, but generally I want to leave him space to move around. Also, I only hang his stuff very high to avoid him soiling them >_>
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Post by Asahel »

Donna: Tango looks awesome in that pic, one would never guess he has such serious problems. You two did so well! \o/
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Post by nil »

its no so unusual the feather picking of ringnecks
when it starts it difficult to stop it.
you can try the follow:
1. give him at drinking water vitamins,amino acis and minerals 5 days a week and after that day by day for a month
2. give him toys preferable chewed and eatble sticks to spend his time with them , change them with new and change positions in the cage regurarly, use different types and shapes perches ( rope,wood,etc)
3. a lot of time , as you can,handle with him every day to reduse birds borring
4. Change his cage or move him in other place in the house
5. use a powder or spray for acarea and insects twice
6. regularly baths, better with salts (bio bad-orlux)
7. use a spray with bad taste for feathers plucking
8. let him enough time to a sunny place or if you cant use a bird lamp (5600 K,UVa,UVb- Arcadia or avian sun bird lamp )
9.when he stays alone in house, leave a radio or tv playing
10. wear him a collar,as much comfortable you can http://qp-society.com/rappsupport/rappt ... ollar.html
11 if you havent good results after all the above you can give him psychiatric medicines ( better by vet).
Haloperidol ( Aloperidin-Janssen cilag ) oral solution drops 2mg/ml and at dose: begining with 2 drops per 100 ml drinking water. if you dont see good results every 3 days add 1 drop more until no more than 5-6 drops/100ml. If you dont see good results even then, reduce day by twodays one drop untill stop. if you see good results stay there for a 10 days period and then reduce a drop every week until stop

good luck
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Post by Melika »

Don't feel bad about feeding Harrison's pellets. Here in the US they are touted as the best you can get- but I haven't seen results that back that up. Our birds are much better on veggies. ^_^

As for fruits, try giving brightly coloured ones. Fruits with very high water contents are usually providing less nutrients, and mostly water- such as watermelon.

Some good fruits: Apples, berries, kiwi, mango, cantaloupe, honeydew, pineapple, cherries (no pits, toxic), cranberries, banana, pears, peaches (no pit, toxic), oranges, pomegranate, tangerines, star fruit, papaya, plums and grapes (with seeds is fine)

But their diet should really have more veggies than fruits. Variety, with both veggies and fruits, is important.

Sunlight too. They (and we) use sunlight to produde vitamin D which is used in the absorption of calcium. I try to give my birdies at least fifteen minutes of direct sunlight a day. The partial shade of a tree counts as direct, but behind a window doesn't.

For some more information on supporting proper feather growth, I wrote a long message on this thread, includes mashes for picky birds:
http://www.indianringneck.com/board/vie ... ght=#38334

I don't like artificial vitamins, but that's personal. Having too much can cause an overdose, which could cause more harm than good. Vitamin D, in excess, causes the same problems as a defeciency. I like my birds to get what they need from veggies, fruits, beans, etc. Sweet potato is high in vitamin A, so if you can get him to eat it then you shouldn't need to supplement. Vitamin K is found in dark leafy greens. Fat soluble vitamins aren't needed in large amounts.
Fats from seeds are important! Vitamins A, D, E, and K are fat soluble and will store in the body (in the liver) if enough fat isn't present in the diet. They're eliminated slowly from the body, so the amount from food should be enough.

As with fruits, feed colourful veggies and in a variety. Broccoli is a hit and miss, it has a very strong flavour so I don't add it to mashes.

The only pale veggie I can think of that is strong in nutrients is culiflower.

The more I learn about avian diets and the more aviculture learns about what makes them thrive, I'm more and more convinced artificial supplements and diets aren't good as a staple diet; despite what the manufacturers want us to believe.
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Post by Darlene »

Pure Aloe Vera gel, found in health food stores is a very good herbal remedy for almost anything internal or external. It can be added to food or water and used directly on skin or feet to heal. It is a calming agent and is called the miracle plant. I used it on my Luna when she was chewing her toenails. And there is a bird bath spray called ( Molt Ease) that has aloe in it. Luna lost her tail completely on her first molt. She was loseing her baby feathers and her tail grew in really long after her first molt.
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Post by kyria »

Just caught up on this thread myself. Get little time to visit here now that I am workin full time, prefer to spend time with my fids, sorry guys but they come over ya'll :?

Some amazing advice already, but thats expected from this wonderful family. I too adore aloe, I am a firm believer in fruit and vegi's first and foremost, pellets/seeds secondary.

With the plucking, ask chamon about her sock idea she used with Datsun, seemed to work well and my thoughts are it would be easier and more comfortable than a collar.

I dont place a great deal of importance on pellets, but this is just me, I believe in hulling seeds being a natural thing for parrots, therefore my birds get seed, but a good mix and again its secondary food.

My fids adore dried mellon seeds, and milk arrowroot biscuit soaked in water to soften it to a nice mush. Scrambled egg with the shell ground up into it once a week or other week and plenty of beans etc. while molting as its good for feather production. Garlic and hot chillie peppers are great natural wormers.

Chicken bones and left over chop bones are a favorite. They love to chew them to bits to get to the marrow inside, great stimulation.

IRN's like a challenge, so get some toys that tease and stimulate your fid to try and bust into them to get what is inside. They love to untie things too, so get some natural rope toys or make your own, tying knots in them for the fids to try to undo. Don't think you will frustrate your bird, they love a challenge and will spend hours on something, which is just what they need to kill boredome.

For chewing, I get cuttlebone (extra calcium) good chew material and wooden icypole (popcile) sticks (mine shred them, messy but they love it) . You can secure the icypole stick into shapes using natural short ties, the birds love to chew and try to destroy them.

Anyway, just a few ideas from my end of the world.

Cheers, great to see you take such an interest in your fid :D
Angie
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Datsun and Family
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Post by Datsun and Family »

With the plucking, ask chamon about her sock idea she used with Datsun, seemed to work well and my thoughts are it would be easier and more comfortable than a collar.


Haha just remembered the sock!! He almost had a love affair with that thing lol!! I am so glad Dats is happy and healthy enough not to need it now. I used a pink (before we knew he was a boy!!) baby sock and cut off the toe end to slip over Datsun for each night.. he plucked when he should have been sleeping and once he had his sock to preen he just gave it a good preen and went to sleep. Saved his chest from the worst of his plucking and I was always there to take it off in the morning and let him stretch his wings, though if it had been worse I probably would have made him wear it through the day too but we found giving him brain teasing toys like hiding his fruit and veges in a pinecone and rearranging his cage daily kept him busy enough. For me this worked a treat and as it was Datsun showing how upset he was with our moving house at the time it was only a temporary situation, thankfully.
-Chamon-

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Lauren
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Location: Melbourne, Australia.

Post by Lauren »

A sock! What a great solution to plucking! :lol: Excellent advice here.

Kirins size is a concern. I would get him weighed and tested as soon as possible.

Jibbys first moult was a long one too and he lost his all his tail feathers (which I still have kept after 6 years. :wink:) Now he is going through a very hard moult at the moment and lost alot of his facial feathers. He was looking alot like a little macaw with the pink cheeks.
I have been giving him egg and shell along with alot of raw vegies, Brocolli is a hit here. I also have a vitamin water additive, which the vet told me he should have only once a week as they should get most of their vitamins from fresh fruit, nuts, egg and shell, chicken and veg. The vitamin additives should only really be if the bird is not getting enough fresh food, as some people live on budgets and somedays we run out of fresh food.

With the cage, as long as Kirin gets enough out of cage time. Its fine. Yodas cage is too cluttered with toys in it too. They spend the whole day out of their cages anyway so they have most of their toys ontop of the cage. Cage time is sleep time here. :wink:

Keep us updated. Hope he gets through this soon. :wink:
"Jibby aka Gilbert" Indian Ringneck 13 years "Charlie" Rex Rabbit 1 year
Asahel
Posts: 18
Joined: Sat Nov 10, 2007 5:00 am

Post by Asahel »

Hello everyone^^ and thanks for taking interest in this thread. Kir gets a bit more sunflower seeds now, and thanks to them I aaaalmost tricked him into eating boiled egg (i mixed the egg&shell with seeds). I wouldn't call it a hit, but he ate a bit when trying to sample the seeds.

A sock would frighten him, but the knoted rope idea I will put to the test very soon \o/
After the visit to the vet, I watched him like a hawk, but I still didn't see him pluck. And no feathers or fluff on the bottom of the cage or anywhere else either. Only time when I saw feathers was few months ago when he started this damn moult.

I think the vet's theory is right, he didn't know how to get rid of the feather-husks and chewed the new feathers. :?
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