hi

[terip]

I had never thought of having a parrot as I'm a budgie lover, I have 3 old and 1 younger budgie in a large cage. I am strictly a pet owner not wanting to breed. My 16 yr old dusky ? hybrid conure was rescued by a friend in a mountain of poop in a smaller cage, barely using his feet and only was feed wild bird seed. She did the best she could and called me because my friend is a reliable breeder. My friend couldn't take him but would help me if I would. My life has not been the same since. He doesn't look act or seem to be the same bird that got here 6 months ago. He looks great, he gained weight, got his infected feet treated and eats the best of food. Yesterday was the first time he left the cage by his self and only briefly. We have come a long way. One day when i was feeding him he said Luv u so clear and I was hooked. There are still lots of obstacles to get around but were proceeding at his speed. Because of his deformed feet perches were a problem, I used rope and have added 1 wood as of late. He sits on his swing, that's something to see. I am trying to find ideas for a bird with deformed feet. He also doesn't want to leave his cage.

 

[94lt1]

Welcome to the forum. sounds like you have a special conure...glad you're making head way with it. Lots of people with good ideas here... all willing to help

 

[MonicaMc]

Budgies are parrots, too....

Welcome to Parrotforums! Glad you were able to help the little conure out! Have you ever looked into platform perches?

 

[Turquoise]

Welcome to the forum. That is so sweet of you to take in such a sweet bird in need. I have a macaw who cannot stand due to birth defects of his leg joints. He is very capable of using his feet to climb, so what I do for him might not apply for your darling. I add more natural wood perches criss crossed to give Angel more density to lay across & he does very well on this method.

I did once have a parakeet (budgie) that was born with twisted toes on both feet. She was given to me by a small pet shop owner who is my friend. For Lacy J (that was her name) I cut pieces of Mesquite bark in short lengths to make ramps. I draped one end over a low perch & fastened it. Lacy J learned pretty quick to waddle up the ramps to feel like she was perching with her cage mates. The reason I used Mesquite bark is, 1 I live where there is plenty of it, 2 I already had several pieces from a tree a neighbor cut down a year before, & 3 it had a nice ripple shape with good stiff bark that doesn't easily break off.

I know you probably can't use the same type of wood, but I thought it might give you an idea of something you might can try. Good luck with your darling & I will look forward to pics when you post some.

 

[antoinette]

Welcome
You are making progress, by being patient.... well done
Enjoy the forum

 

[CoCo1]

it always warms my heart to find people who see the value in rescuing a bird- it warms my heart even more when someone sees the perfection when others only see defects. I applaud your efforts with Dusky. I have an M2 that is as perfect as perfect gets- she may have a splayed leg, a broken wing that was never set and a broken keel that was never treated but she is perfect and I adore her. For Lola I did have to modify her cage- 90 degree angels from every perch and the smaller rope perches all sit as corner perches (so a deformed half circle). It took her a long time to have the courage to try her perches- but looking at her now you really could not tell that there was anything ever holding her back. Even her play stand is modified with 90 degree angles. She also has thick towels at the bottom of her cage as falling was an issue early on- and still happens occaisionally-I just don't take any chances- she has soft spot to land if she does fall. I also gave her a basket that is rigged to the front of the cage.I watched were Lola tried to go the most and made sure I posted her perches where she wanted to be. I also have lots of strong braided rope hanging from the sides as she uses her beak more than a non injured bird. I think making the modifications and taking the time with Lola really helped our relationship too she no longer tries to give me the horrible untrusting bites that I got early on. She has even started to do a mini version of a summersault from one of her playstand perches. It is a great victory when our special needs babies acoomplish a new task!

 

[riaria]

You can also get "chinchilla ledges" (in the rabbit/rodent section of your local pet shop), and there is an assortment of flat perches sold for parrots as well. All ours love them, even the ones with normal feet

 

[wenz2712]

Welcome to the forum