Squawking 4 Month Male (Maybe weanted too early)

[mhegedus]

Hi!

So I will try to keep this concise. I grew up with birds (Quakers and African Grey), but its been many years. I am new to the Eclectus breed. I was looking to adopt a bird here in UAE (Abu Dhabi, I'm an American expat), but couldn't find any and then I saw this adorable Ekkie in a pet souq and I fell in love.

The (shady) store man told me he was 4 months old. I have no idea what sub-species, when he was weaned, etc. They obviously weren't caring for him properly because he was on a SEED ONLY diet!!!!

I just had to rescue him. So I bought him. He's very sweet!!! No biting, has learned in a week to step up almost perfectly! He is bonding with me and LOVES being held.

I have greatly reduced the seed intake, but didnt want to stop cold turkey and shock him. I now offer a very small amount of seeds, and in a separate bowl a wide variety such as quinioa, beets, apples, carrots, pomegranate, broccoli, fresh coconut, peppers, etc. He's doing well eating fresh food, although he can be picky (beets, apples and pomegranate are his favorite!).

My concern comes in because he is constantly squawking! Its a sharp sound like a crow's CAW! Even when I'm holding him, he periodically just SCREAMS. Even when he seems fully content, he screams!

In UAE there are no avian vets (and limited regular vets who primarily just "fix" cats"), so I'm stuck to online research.

My guess is that he was weaned too early and not properly (judging from his conditions of the store, small cage, diet, etc).

My questions is.... WHAT DO I DO NOW?? What can I do if he was weaned too early?? Can I help in any way? I plan on phasing out seeds completely slowly over time. I give him lots of attention and bring him around the house with me as I clean, do laundry etc.

Any advice?! I'm posting an unlisted youtube video to show the kind of squawking i"m talking about.




THANKS

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohUBpTyEos4&feature=youtu.be"]Bento Squawking - YouTube[/ame]

 

[labell]

I have fed many eclectus and that baby scream is alarming if you don't know that they ALL do it. Yes at that age I do feel he was weaned too early but you can help this by offering some warm comfort foods (not hot). You can sit him on a solid surface and kinda of cradle him with one arm and feed off a spoon with the other. The baby screaming will stop but it may go on for a while longer just be understanding that the poor boy was weaned too quickly, a very sad occurrence that in my opinion happens way too often.

 

[Yorkiemum]

I saw your message and joined to answer you! I have a 7 mo Eclectus ,and I've also spent 14 years fostering and rescue of hookbills. I can't do it anymore, I pretty much burned out.

My Eclectus, Nickolas is a 7 mo old male. He just weaned at 6 months . He is from a couple who's babies had babies and they did not realize Eclectus can take much longer to wean.
So Nicolas too enjoyed all kinds of food, wanted our food,but would squak as tho he was unhappy.
So we got some parrot baby food, a spoon, some human baby jars of spring vegetables and warmed it all. He loved it. So be it. Three feeds a day. He seemed to enjoy the connection and it seemed to calm him. Reminded me of babies who don't want to give up breast feeding. He recently weaned, he seemed to find our food much better and less bland. He loves mashed potatoes,mixed vegetables , kale and sliced Apple. It's not unusual for these babies to want feeds and they seem to do better if they are allowed to have them. He is sweet, doesn't scream or squak, loves to sit at the table and sample what we have. I think you end up with calmer bird, and the feeds are great for bonding.

Sadly many breeders say babies are hand fed, but they may use a syringe or worse, tube them because they have so many babies and little time.
Babies get really no contact or bonding as they are fed in seconds, and dropped back to a cage. Not to mention tube feeding is dangerous .
I really would offer him some feeds and love him. They are very lovable .
Of corse, if it does not subside, I would see an vet.
,

 

[GaleriaGila]

Welcome to the Forums. Plenty of great advice and support. Many Ekkie owners, too!
Glad you found us.

 

[mhegedus]

Thanks to everyone so far! I'll try lukewarm soft food from a spoon today! Exciting event happened last night!!! Bento started mumbling for the first time!!! In front of the family! It was jibber jabber but had tones that definitely mimicked human speech!! So exciting!!!

 

[Anansi]

It's a beautiful thing when they start down that road of learning words, isn't it? Congratulations on the new addition to your household and welcome to the Parrot Forums family!

Nothing new to add, as Laura (labell) and Yorkiemum were right on point with their advice about feeding him warm comfort foods. Such comfort feeding will likely make a difference after a while.

Please keep us updated on his progress!

 

[Brittany741]

The baby squawk isn't just alarming, it's downright irritating! Oliver has finally stopped that stupid noise and he is 8 months. He weaned at 6 months, finally. He is just now garbling and trying to form words. Still no personality, something I am not accustomed to.

 

[MikeyTN]

Poor baby being weaned too early....

Some seeds in his diet isn't a bad thing. Just needed to be portion out in the right amount. I feed mine fresh fruits and veggies daily along with some seeds. Then we'll cook for them as well, hard boiled egg with shell, chicken breast, etc.

 

[mhegedus]

This is just an update, the squawking has almost stopped. Only now Bento squawks when he wants attention or to be held. He's eating great. I still kept some seeds in his diet because he just LOVES them, but offer tons and tons of fresh fruit and veg, and hes a great eater. He's definitely bonded with me. He's not speaking yet (I think hes around 6.5 months now?), but still mumbles incessantly at night before bed, and its adorable!!!

I just ordered him a "bird diaper" from Avian Fashions and I cant wait to try it out because holy moly his poops are HUGE and messy (compared to smaller birds I've had in the past). So hoping that will allow me to hold him more throughout the day when I'm not worried about getting pooped on. Anyone tried these??

Thanks for all the tips, he's adjusting so well and he is an amazing addition to our familjy!!