Never been a bird person, but rescued an extremely abused conure today. PLEASE HELP!

[elmobird]

Hi, I just today rescued an extremely abused and neglected mexican redheaded conure. I know absolutely nothing about birds, and have never been much of a bird person. I only became attached to this one, because he became attached to me, and once i found out he was being abused, I had to do everything in my power to get him out of where he was. After making a high enough offer, i am now a completely ignorant bird owner. I have never owned a bird of any kind.

A little about the bird: He has always been extremely mean to me, till recently when I honestly believe he could sense that I was protecting him, when I disapproved of something I saw and stood up for him. Immediately following the incident, he became loyal and sweet to me.

He has been mostly shut away in his cage with a blanket covering him for most of the day, because his owners didnt like his squawking. He was rarely held, and when he was it was forced on him. He does bite. I am terrified of being bitten. (not a good combo, I know.) He has been psychically abused by hands and objects.

His cage is about 2ft tall and a foot and a half wide. One wooden perch. He has been fed a diet of sunflower seeds only.

Most of the feathers on his chest and legs are grey or gone. He chews them and plucks them out.

I am not really sure where to go from here. Any tips or advice would be appreciated.

 

[Kiwibird]

O dear First, thank you for rescuing this guy. Second, do you have some photos of him? You see, there isn't such a bird as a "mexican red headed conure". There is a mexican redhead amazon and there are cherry headed conures (along with many other birds with red heads your bird may be). Knowing the species of bird would help us be able to better advise on cage size and diet.

The first and foremost thing will be to get him to an avian vet for a health checkup ASAP. Knowing if and what health issues he has will give you a starting point for providing better care. Hope you can provide some pics so we can start helping guide you. Stick around this forum long enough, and you'll learn all you need to know

 

[elmobird]

Hi Kiwibird, Thank you so much for responding. I wasnt able to get a particularly good shot, I wanted to show you his chest where the feathers are bare, but he wouldnt let me =x Here is what I was able to get.

 

[cateyes221981]

oh sorry i made a thread before this lol

 

[RavensGryf]

Hi, so I just read the post from cateyes221981, and you must be her friend she was referring to . That is so very sad, and I'm glad you were able to rescue the poor guy. They're very smart as you can see, he even sensed you trying to help him.

I agree with Kiwibird about taking him to the vet for a thorough exam. Are you planning on keeping the bird and getting a new cage and toys, or make sure he's doing better then find a good home for him? Looks like a Red Masked conure (also called cherry headed).

 

[cateyes221981]

I guessed mitrid conure? I thought harrisons high potency for six months would be good?

my friend is located in seattle and has no idea what a avian vet is, in america any idea how to find a decent one that would not be too pricy?

 

[RavensGryf]

I guessed mitrid conure? I thought harrisons high potency for six months would be good?

The Mitred usually has less solid red, but they're closely related. Harrsion's HP would be great if he'll eat it. All my birds and past birds have taken right to Harrsion's with no conversion needed, but not all birds switch that easily.

Here is a link to a page with tips on getting your bird to try new foods. Anything is better than a diet of sunflower seeds!
http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-...7-converting-parrots-healthier-diet-tips.html

Good luck

 

[Kiwibird]

He looks like a cherry headed conure to me, but I'm not too knowledgeable about all the conure species and subspecies. Poor little guy sounds like he had it pretty rough, and knows you saved him. You've made a friend for life with this guy! The really good news is even severely abused birds have a great capacity to forgive and love when they are shown respect and love.

First focus should be a vet visit, a better diet and a bigger cage. Again, I'm not too knowledgeable on conure-specific care, so I'm sure the "conure people" will chime in here soon on how to get this little sweetie setup properly

 

[cateyes221981]

is harrisons avialble in petco? or any pet stores in america? Here I have to order it online.

there is also totally organics, and roudybush not sure if they are available at petco in america? Hard to find those here also.

I found it really hard to get birds to eat totally organics though.

 

[RavensGryf]

As far as pellets go, the ones you've mentioned are the "good" ones nutritionally. I say especially Harrison's and I have about 15 years of bloodwork to prove it .

Harrison's is only available here at bird specialty stores (not pet stores) and through avian vets. Roudybush is sold at pet stores. I've only seen Tops at bird stores. Of course you can get anything online.

 

[cateyes221981]

any idea on the iron content of harrisons hP?

 

[elmobird]

Hey Raven, thanks for chiming in. and thank you kiwi for the info on his species. I would like to keep him as he seems to have taken to me, and I cant imagine being uncertain of his future or having him feel abandoned when he finally felt safe or found "his person". Though I dont know much about birds, I see the intelligence in this little guy, and given his past and his disposition, I find myself wanting to give him the world. I was hoping to maybe set up a few high perches for him, and allow him to be free from his cage during most of the day if possible. I work from home and would be able to work with him.

I would also like to buy him a huge cage, maybe 6ft? I am just unsure of what would be comforting or overwhelming for him.

I dont have a whole lot of money, but I am more than happy to invest in a good cage, quality food and vet care.

 

[RavensGryf]

Harrison's Bird Foods Here's the Harrison's company website. You can also contact them for specific questions about their product.

Not sure about iron... Might you be asking with your softbills in mind cateyes? I recall you had softbills.

 

[elmobird]

I also wanted to ask if this bird looks skinny? Or are they normally this small... I should also mention that they mentioned in the past that he has/had? a broken foot.. I am guessing that he had a cage door slammed on it. He holds it up a lot, but it doesnt seem to bother him otherwise. Any clue how much a visit to a bird vet would cost considering his past, feathers, and his foot?

 

[RavensGryf]

Of course the cost varies depending on where in the country you live. The average avian vet here charges around $80 to get in the door. Maybe a bit less. Everything they do during the exam (blood work, fecal, etc) is itemized, and will be well over $100. Maybe even $200. That's just for bare basics. If you get recommended viral disease testing add another $100 or so.

I can't look at my past receipts right now to tell you more accurately. They're in where the birds are sleeping . It's expensive though, no doubt. It generally costs more than a dog or cat vet.

 

[elmobird]

OK. That is good to know as I will definitely need to budget for that. I think it would take me about 2 months. Do you think he would be OK a better environment and food till then, or should I be considering other options? I realize it's hard to judge without actually seeing the bird. He seems to be OK on the outside, but I would be willing to bet this bird has never even been to a vet.

 

[RavensGryf]

OK. That is good to know as I will definitely need to budget for that. I think it would take me about 2 months. Do you think he would be OK a better environment and food till then, or should I be considering other options? I realize it's hard to judge without actually seeing the bird. He seems to be OK on the outside, but I would be willing to bet this bird has never even been to a vet.

Well, he's lived this long already.... lol.
I think his life has already had improvement! Just talk to him and reassure him as he gets used to the new environment. I'd start by getting him some toys, but don't insist if he doesn't want them in his cage yet. If he's not used to playing with toys, he might be afraid of an unfamiliar object in there. You might have to 'play' with a toy and show him what it's for. See if he will try new foods using some of the methods from the link I posted, but don't be surprised if he at first won't eat anything unfamiliar (anything that doesn't look like a sunflower seed :31.

 

[Kiwibird]

I'm sure he will be fine until you can save up to get him a better cage. Now he gets to come out of the old one, he has someone who isn't going to hurt him, he'll be getting better food and love! The cage size is important but not as important as love and care (especially given the circumstances in which you took him in).

What you can do low-cost right now is to thoroughly clean his current cage. It won't make it bigger, but it will make it more pleasant for him to live in Once he's settled in, you can also give him a bath (be sure to crank up the heat until he dries!). Parrots need frequent baths, but many don't get one in years and years or ever. Replace the single wood dowel perch with a rope or natural perch (available at pet stores) and buy him a toy or 2 (given the limited room in the cage, it may need to be a small one or put the toy on top of the cage so he can play when he's out). He would need toys for small-medium birds. Budgie toys would probably be too small for him. Check out the DIY threads for toy ideas too. Toys are one of those big expenses with birds that you can save a lot of money on if you get creative My birds favorite toys are little baby rattles I pick up at garage sales and thrift stores for next to nothing Dollar store is also awesome for toy parts. Just keep in mind, anything made of metal you are not 110% sure is stainless steel, that has batteries, sharp edges, stuffed animals or painted wood is NOT safe. Plastic generally is. You can also start giving him your empty cardboard toilet paper and paper towel roll centers to shred up, as well as clean plain cardboard boxes. You can also cut an old, clean t-shirt up into small strips, tie them together and offer as a "preening" toy. I suspect a big factor in why he's chewing up his feathers is he has had nothing else to chew (which is a natural drive in parrots)! Here's some of my DIY toys for ideas:

http://www.parrotforums.com/do-your...turning-old-toys-into-something-fabulous.html
(second toy down is good for over preeners)

http://www.parrotforums.com/do-yourself/44904-made-some-awesome-new-toys-too.html

 

[cateyes221981]

on amazon i helped pick out some toys if you guys had some good idea on conure toys?

I thought maybe a mirror would be good?

Not sure if she already placed her order but here is what i picked out for her, yeah i mostly have toucans, mynahs, and even a corvid so they are a bit strange compared to hook bills, but i do have macaws and lori.

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Bird-Kabob-Chiquito-Chew-Toy/dp/B0051AV7DS/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1416125035&sr=8-7&keywords=conure+toys"]Amazon.com : Bird Kabob Chiquito Chew Toy : Pet Chew Toys : Pet Supplies[/ame]




[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Super-Bird-Creations-Peekaboo-6-5-Inch/dp/B000OB2I8M/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1416125136&sr=8-16&keywords=conure+toys"]Amazon.com : Super Bird Creations Peekaboo Perch Tent, 12 by 6.5-Inch, Medium Bird Toy : Pet Supplies[/ame]




[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Creative-Foraging-Systems-Sphere-Diameter/dp/B001MWZF7S/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1416125136&sr=8-9&keywords=conure+toys"]Amazon.com : Creative Foraging Systems Foraging Sphere 3-Inch Diameter : Pet Toys : Pet Supplies[/ame]

from this list
[ame="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=conure+toys&sprefix=conure+to%2Caps"]http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=conure%20toys&sprefix=conure+to%2Caps[/ame]

if you guys have better ideas let me know, only my lori uses the tent but i have seen a lot of conures love tents and bells? and those wood kabobs.

She is going to the bird store today so i told her a cement pearch since he has only had one horrible pearch his whole life. and maybe to get another extra perch to try and train him to hop on? He will bite her when he is on her shoulder and she trys to get him to come down. I notice my lori will do this also. I use a perch to get her then.

 

[Chelle]

Where are you located? I have an extra big cage if you are close enough.