I think he is obese

Doris48

New member
Feb 15, 2012
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Kansas
Parrots
Twitter, 3yo greencheek conure..Paco 15yo Orangewing Amazon.
I was looking up the average weights for an Orange wing and it said 340 grams which is under a pound.Another site said 350-600 grams, which seems a bit more reasonable to me(but what do I know).
I swear Paco must be 2lbs easy.I need to build a little perch and weigh him...He is really heavy and rather pear shaped.I havent had the nerve to feel around on him yet..He flys okay, he can make it across our kitchen into the den but never really attains any height and I doubt he could fly much farther.
I ordered the Zupreem in the nasty colors(he is used to some kind of round colored pellet) and I ordered some Harrisons high potency as well.Ive never tried the Harrisons.I use Zupreem natural.I figure I just need him eating something reasonably healthy.He picks around at his veggies but does eat them well.
 

Safira

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Sep 27, 2011
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Aberdeen, Md
Parrots
Safira (B&G Macaw)~~ Gracie (CAG) ~ Lucy (CAG)
LoL, does he have chunky cheeks? I love chunky cheeks. I bought a scale for birds off amazon.com, it was like 50 dollars or less.. it has a T perch, and works really well.
 

andrea.faerie

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May 16, 2011
751
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North Carolina
Parrots
My lovely little Black Cap Conure, Lucy (in the sky with diamonds) <3
It's possible! Bleu is overweight... he's almost 300 grams... poor baby was fed cheese daily though... Zupreem isn't really a terrible diet, my vet had recommended roudybush (which he is on now) but says that a zupreem diet with plenty of veggies and fruits works well too. My vet said Bleu needs more "cardio" lol The only thing I imagine with that is his little feet pattering along on a mini treadmill, with a sweat band around his head! XD try playing games with Paco too, like the kind where he has to chase you and he gets a treat (healthy treat) when he catches you. Bleu likes to play tag! but only when he gets to be "It" lol
 

henpecked

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Dec 12, 2010
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Jake YNA 1970,Kia Panama amazon1975, both i removed from nest and left siblings, Forever Home to,Stacie (YN hen),Mickie (RLA male),Blinkie (YNA hen),Kong (Panama hen),Rescue Zons;Nitro,Echo,Rocky,Rub
I'd carry him to the avian vet and get a professional opinion.What a book says they should weigh is worthless.Most of my adult OWAs weigh 360-400 grams.None of them are over weight. Harrissons Hi Po is something i would feed a breeder bird or a free flighted pet.I would try and keep the crude fat under 5% and 4% would be better, stay away from 7%-9% stuff. IMO
 

roxynoodle

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Dec 1, 2011
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Actually...most amazons are obese! And yes, they are pear shaped. They seem to have kind of small heads and huge thighs like a chicken. Or they are shaped much different than conures, which you are used to, and I was as well. Pete's thighs and feet amazed me at first.

My vet said Pete has some little fat rolls and is mildly obese. He weighs 525gm. I highly doubt Paco is 2lbs, but he may very well be one pound or a little more. But, a bird his size sitting on your arm does feel much heavier than it actually is.

All you can do is what you're doing. Put him on a better diet, and give him a bigger cage, and try to encourage him to exercise. When I sing to Pete he will climb all over. He climbs a lot out of his cage, too. And his food and water dishes are in a place where he has to climb to get to them.
 
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Doris48

Doris48

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Feb 15, 2012
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Kansas
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Twitter, 3yo greencheek conure..Paco 15yo Orangewing Amazon.
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IDK he is really heavy.I know they fed him alot of cheese too.He had a half slice of American in his bowl when I brought him home.Ive got a really nice digital postal scale.He would go nowhere near it though.I tried putting a folded towel on top to make it less scary but he still wouldnt step on it..LOL
I promise I will get him to the vet but its not easy and make take a week or two to get accomplished, I dont have a carrier for him and its a long drive.
 

roxynoodle

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Dec 1, 2011
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Maybe build a little perch for him to sit on on top of the scale. Merlin won't get on a scale either and she is generally quite cooperative. But, if the scale doesn't zero out for the perch, you will have to subtract the weight of the perch.

Merlin is 487 gm and she feels like a load to me as well. I either have to switch arms frequently when I hold them, or sit down and let them cuddle against my shirt or sit on my lap. At the vet's today she got onto my upper arm. I finally said, "Merlin, I can't hold my arm out to the side forever, honey. You need to come down from there."
 

roxynoodle

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Dec 1, 2011
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Ok, curiosity got to me and I had to know how many grams 1lb was, lol! One pound is approximately 454 grams. So both my Grey and amazon weigh more than 1lb. That still puts my zon though at less than 1 1/4lbs.

But, this is the weight break down on my birds:

Rowdy: 139gm
Merlin: 487gm yesterday
Pete: 525gm

Your little Greenie is probably around 65gm, so less than half of what my Nanday weighs. An amazon would feel like a huge load compared to the little one. To me, Rowdy feels like hardly anything.
 

Clueless

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Feb 14, 2012
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Missouri
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Secret & MC, two blue front amazons
I purchased a kitchen weight scale that has a cover you can remove and put in the dishwasher ($30) and then had a local bird shop make a perch stand for it.

My orange wing amazon appears much larger than my other amazon. The orange wing (MC) weighs 352 - the blue front (Secret) amazon weighs 338.

A vet last week suggested that parrots should be weighed 3 times a week at about the same time. I thought that was a bit excessive - but I'm new at birds.

How much variance in weight should I expect to see out of weighing the birds (they are already going up and down in weight) and when do we need to get concerned?
 

henpecked

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Dec 12, 2010
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Jake YNA 1970,Kia Panama amazon1975, both i removed from nest and left siblings, Forever Home to,Stacie (YN hen),Mickie (RLA male),Blinkie (YNA hen),Kong (Panama hen),Rescue Zons;Nitro,Echo,Rocky,Rub
The best thing to do is weigh your bird first thing in the AM before he eats.If new bird 3 times a week is about right.10% changes are common but your looking for a trend,gaining weight,losing weight. 352 is about right for OWA but it depends on the bird,some are bigger,some smaller.Get your vet to gauge if he's over /under weight by feeling his breast.If your bird is clipped ,i'd keep to the lower crude fat pellets, not the Hi Pro.
 

roxynoodle

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Dec 1, 2011
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This would only apply to sexually mature parrots, but my vet told me they gain weight during their hormonal times due to their reproductive organs enlarging significantly. This applies to both male and female birds. I had noticed on Merlin's weight record from her previous owner that she has weighed anywhere from 448 to 498. She has also gone up significantly since I've gotten her. She actually showed me with her fingers how much larger their organs get, and let's just say I'm glad this doesn't happen to us! So yes, that 10% Henpecked mentioned seems to apply.
 
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Doris48

Doris48

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Feb 15, 2012
215
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Kansas
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Twitter, 3yo greencheek conure..Paco 15yo Orangewing Amazon.
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I was picking up stuff of equal weight to Paco trying to guestimate how much he weighs that way.Well he isnt 2lbs but he sure felt like it.
 

Sookiebird

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Dec 12, 2012
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Raleigh, NC
Parrots
Sookie-Meyers Parrot,
Cucumber-WB Caique
New to the forum and started a new thread. Then I found this one. Here it is:

Hi, I just recently took in a BF Zon (name is Del) as a foster and the poor girl is severely overweight! She came in at almost 1000 grams and got down to 800 grams in her first foster home. Backstory: an elderly woman was give the parrot when it was a year old. For the next 9 years Del was fed an all seed diet of wild bird food and kept in a too-small cage. Now she can hardly balance herself and her feet are a mess. Difficult for her to grip. Any ideas for safe weight loss for this poor thing?
 

tinks599

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Apr 28, 2013
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Conway, AR
Parrots
Mexican Green Cheek or Red-Crowned Amazon (not sure which is most common)
Where may I find a trusted resource for an expected weight/size? I don't need exacts, but the one place I found the average weight of an Red Crowned Parrot (Amazon / Green-cheeked aka Red-crowned Amazons, Mexican Red Headed Parrot, Mexican Red Headed Amazon) I saw 270 grams. I knew the bird I got was severely overweight, but he weighed 548 grams!
 

SandyBee

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Oct 5, 2012
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Coquitlam BC, Canada
Parrots
DYH Amazon-Rescue- Bosley (36),
African Brown head-Rescue- August(9)
275g-335g

I can't remember where I found it, but I had downloaded PDF from a vet who recorded
many species weights over a period of time. It's on my phone so I just looked it up for you. That is an average healthy weight.
 

tinks599

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Apr 28, 2013
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Conway, AR
Parrots
Mexican Green Cheek or Red-Crowned Amazon (not sure which is most common)
Thank you! I have an appointment with my vet next Tuesday for an exam and nutritional panel. At that time, I'll try to verify what a goal weight and weight loss should be. In the meantime, I'm just going to give him all the parrot food and water he wants, no junk food and of course any and all the time he wants out of the cage. I suspect just that much activity will be more than he is used to and the lack of junk food should be enough to help him shed the weight.
 

SandyBee

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Oct 5, 2012
1,455
1
Coquitlam BC, Canada
Parrots
DYH Amazon-Rescue- Bosley (36),
African Brown head-Rescue- August(9)
That's the PDF I have on my smart phone, thanks Wendy.
It's very handy to keep around.
 

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