Plucking - Eating Disorder

[Peckkale]

Good morning,

Six days ago I was given a 3 yr old male caique. His owner could no longer deal with his constant scream, and feather plucking.

On sunday morning I drove 50 miles to go see this little guy. What I found was an extremely aggressive little guy with no feathers on his back, legs and stomach. He was plucking any new feather that was poking out of his skin and then scream I'm guessing from the pain.

I had done a bit of research on this breed of parrot before going to see him and as we all know, plucking is a food, anxiety, illness or depression issues.

I asked his owner to show me is 'cage' area. There were five bowls of food available for him... Four seed and one was pellet. From my studies before going to see him, I realized part of his issue was diet. His owner told me he only liked red raspberries, that was the only fruit he would eat. I could tell part of as his screeching was also because he was cold. The owner had taken him to the vet and he did have a clean bill of health. I agreed to take him.

When I got him home. I set him on the kitchen counter and got out the container of fresh fruits. This little guy dove into the bowl and grabbed a whole grape and tried to gulp it whole. We had a bit of a discussion about the fruit and finally he was given a bowl of cut up assort fruits. He ate the whole bowl in four hours.

Now here is the issue I am having and I am hoping someone can help. This little guy eats all day... and all NIGHT. In the six days I've had him, I've woken up to a 'down' bird because there wasn't enough fruit to last him all night. This morning I thought he was dead for sure. He gave a weak flutter of his wings so I spent an hour putting tiny pieces of grapes into him beak and pressing down. I was rewarded for my efforts and suddenly he struggled up to his feet. I sat him in front of his fruit bowl and he ate.. and ate... and ate...

I am not seeing the aggressive little **** I seen the day I pick him up from his owner. In fact he loves head scratches. He can be a bit loud at times and demanding.

I am giving him three warm Aloe baths a day and did put a small collar on him to stop the plucking. He has beautiful new feathers sprouting!!

Question::: Is this normal for him to eat all night as well as day?? Should I put him on a nectar pellet? Right now he is not eating pellets at all.

 

[jugoya]

Sounds to me like he was starving.

If he won't eat pellets, soak them in apple juice or bake them into bread?

Truthfully I don't often feed my birds pellets and very little seed as well, using fresh fruits and veggies to cover all dietary needs... that and Birdie muffins xP.

 

[thekarens]

I would also recommend trying to get him to eat more vegetables, whole grains and less fruit. As long as the food offered is healthy I wouldn't worry about him over eating. Let him eat as much as he wants.

 

[Featheredsamurai]

I agree, fruit has a lot of sugar. Veggies are generally healthier.

How does his keel look? Does it stick out like he's skinny? That's crazy he gets super depressed when food is gone.

When they took him to a vet what did they have tested?

 

[MikeyTN]

Did you remove the seeds all together?????

 

[Peckkale]

I took the veggies and fruits, put them in the food processor and chopped it up all together. He will eat the veggies that way.

What concerns me is this dead bird thing I faced down twice this week when he ran out of food in the middle of the night.

I do have other birds and have never seen this before. Something has got to be missing from his diet if he is eating more than my Cockatoo and dropping down near dead when the bowl is empty for two hours.

I did give him half a walnut this morning. He will not drink. He is sucking the juice from the fruits. But his behavior is 180 of what he displayed while with his last owner.

I will try and get a pic up of how beautiful his new feather are coming in. In just six days. That makes me so happy but I don't want to lose this sweet guy to a food issue.

What am I doing wrong?

 

[thekarens]

Sounds like a vet visit is in order. They will be able to run some blood tests.

 

[MikeyTN]

Your still not answering my question. Did you remove the seeds completely?

 

[Peckkale]

Sorry I did not answer all questions asked. His owner's vet did a complete blood panel work up on him. Gave him a completely clean bill of health and told them to seek out a bird psychologist. At the owner's insistence he was given an OCD med.. Which I took him off of. I read this drug caused anxiety as a side affect.. His aggression level fell right off.

I have not removed all seed from his diet. He gets two table spoons mixed in with his fruit-veggie bowl. Pellets he just refuses.

I am afraid of waking up to a dead bird if I oversleep... No kidding here.. His little parrot is eating more than my cockatoo! ... I have to put a full bowl of food in with him at bedtime and it was empty this morning and he was laying there almost dead.

 

[thekarens]

I'd get a second opinion from a certified avian vet.

 

[MikeyTN]

Don't mix the seeds with the fruit & veggies bowl. Feed it separately. Feed the fresh stuffs in the morning then feed the seeds in the evening. Have pellets there at all times. You should have a vet check on him just to make sure he's ok.

 

[Irishj9]

Some good advice given there. You are doing well so far.

keep on mixing up his diet and watching what he will ( and wont) eat. I would flood him with healthy food (veggies, apples, Rusks, birdie bread, baby birdie food etc)

He is sucking on his veggies ( all mine do this) because caiques love soft wet food.

I have 8 of these guys and they are piggies for food. During moulting they need EXTRA PROTEIN.

A small cube of cheese every day will sort out this need. ( or Scrambled egg, or even cooked chicken). Think about adding birdie vitamins to his soft food or drinking water.

Remember the most attractive food is WHAT YOU ARE EATING

Caiques are so full of energy and movement ( when healthy) that the risk from sunflower seed is greatly diminished.

My guys fly and climb about all day burning it off

Lets get him back on his feet and wings first, then we will take closer stock

 

[Irishj9]

Oh yes, be careful with the grapes. Use sparingly

Too much iron = kidney failure in a caique

 

[dragonlady2]

Just an FYI, when I first got my Australian King, she pigged out on fruit and in particular, grapes. I found her at the bottom of the cage, lethargic, hanging her head. The vet told me too much sugar and particularly grapes. I forget the med he gave me, but he also gave me oregano powder to assist with stabilizing her digestion, I think. Maybe, your bird is getting too much sugar? What about a little hand feeding formula before bed? Just a suggestion. I am sure your vet will advise you with what's best.

 

[Peckkale]

Again, No I have not removed all seed. He gets two table spoons mixed with his veggie-fruit mix.

I have also been giving him hard boiled eggs.

I'm not new to birds. I've just never had a plucker before nor one who sits on the bowls and eats.

That is his only activity. He's not playing yet. I am hoping if I can get his diet just right he will thrive.

Here is a pic of all the new feathers he has in just six days.

 

[Peckkale]

Don't mix the seeds with the fruit & veggies bowl. Feed it separately. Feed the fresh stuffs in the morning then feed the seeds in the evening. Have pellets there at all times. You should have a vet check on him just to make sure he's ok.

Thank you. I will start that today!

 

[Peckkale]

Cage Location: Research by the Purdue University into this widespread topic of abnormal behavior in parrots, including feather plucking: Research by Purdue University: Cage Location a Primary Factor in Emotional Feather Plucking... physical environment, including cage placement, was a key factor generating feather picking by the parrots used in the study ... The scientists found that parrots with cages that didn't allow a view of doors where people entered the room were less likely to engage in feather picking. "For parrot owners and breeders, one thing our research shows is that it might be worth putting a lot of thought into where the cage is positioned in the room," Garner said. "I think with a lot of care and a lot of forethought, these behaviors are manageable and preventable, especially considering our earlier work that demonstrated the positive effects of social housing and environmental enrichments, such as foraging and climbing devices. (Research by Purdue University: Cage Location a Primary Factor in Emotional Feather Plucking)

 

[dskidd]

Greetings: I was thinking about your little guy this morning and wondering how he's doing. Would love to hear an update!

Very best,
Derek