Poorly Amazon

amazon-george · Apr 21, 2008

hi guys, im new to the site but have been watching for a while. I need some help!
I have a twenty something blue fronted amazon called George.
He's been showing signs of a cold for a couple of days so took him to the vet for some antibiotics to be told he has a very bad chest and has lost a lot of weight.
My question to you all is.......how do i get his weight back up without over feeding him 'rubbish' and anyone know of any 'parrot vitamins' that could help I know about abidec, and will be down the chemist to get some more tomorrow, but just wondered if there was anything else.

all help is greatly appreciated xxx

Auggie's Dad · Apr 21, 2008

hmm, I'm surprised your vet didn't advise you on what to feed him to get him back up to weight. That would be my biggest piece of advice: go back to the vet and ask. If they are an avian vet they should have a number of appropriate supplements - all of which they will happily share for a pretty penny.

Other than that many brands of parrot foods have high potency formulas with lots of fat and calories for recovering from sickness.

What is it you are feeding him now? don't worry about some "rubbish" if by that you mean seeds, if he's underweight you want some of that in the diet; many high potency formulas have above average volumes of millet and sunflower seeds in their pellets. Additionally boiled eggs are a healthy nutrient dense food for him. Sweet potatoes are loaded with carbs and some vitamins (especially vit A).

Good luck and keep us posted.

TexDot33 · Apr 21, 2008

Good way to add "good" weight in birds is the same way to add "good weight" in humans ... lots of whole grains ... whole grain pasta, whole grain breads, sweet potato and hard boiled eggs are also great options ... also a good option are almonds and other nuts ... almonds are a great source of calcium as well ...

But I agree with AD ... get thee back to the vets and ask ....

amazon-george · Apr 22, 2008

thanks guys. alot of useful info i will def give a go

...forgive me, i'm a very nieve keeper.

He eats the normal run of the mill sunflower parrot mix. i've tried swapping him to a better supplimented diet but he has none of it..he's very stubborn or rather I let him get away with it !! There's a dedicated parrot shop in my town so will pop in tomorrow and get some suppliments and try weaning him onto a better diet.

As for the vet, my usual avian vet is off sick so i'm having to see a less informative normal vet

fitzy should be back tomorrow so shall hopefully get some better advise from him tomorrow.

He aint doing to bad, you can see he's got a bad chest but he's battling on.

thanks for the good advise, i will keep you posted how he gets on.

Auggie's Dad · Apr 22, 2008

Yes, definitely work on weening him onto a pelleted food. Pelleted diets certainly are not the only option, but they are the best for the average owner, especially naive ones. Good pellet makers work hard to balance all the nutrients properly so our birds get what they need so you don't have to worry about supplementing with much but some fresh fruits and veggies. Some good brands to check out (and talk to your vet about) are Zupreem, Harrisons, and RoudyBush - though there are certainly other quality foods out there.

By "bad chest" do you mean he is just underweight, or is he plucking? Feather plucking can be a sign of a nutritional deficiency, often related to a particular vitamin or mineral.

As crude as it sounds to serve bird to a bird a little cooked chicken can be good as well (cooked, with to no added fat/oil, baking works.) As anyone who has looked at vegetarian diets knows it is hard to balance all the needed nutrients without meat. Meat and eggs have protein, fat, and lots of vitamins and minerals.

*To nip the cannibalism question in the bud note that parrots are no closer related to chickens than humans are to cows.*

amazon-george · Apr 23, 2008

thanks Auggie, will def get down to the parrot shop later and persevere with weaning him onto a better diet.

George has a chest infection. He really is a poorly boy. His avian vets back from sick leave today so shooting down in a sec to see him. hopefully, he'll give me better support then the normal small animal vet.

TexDot33 · Apr 23, 2008

Scrambled eggs (with the shell mixed in) are a great for your birds. If you are truly dealing with a chest infection, you need to be talking to your ACV about anti-biotics and other necessary meds. Yes, a diet switch will help in the long run, but the important thing to focus on is getting your birdie healthy. Also, while recovering from a sickness is probably NOT the best time to go switching his diet on him. Let your BFA get better, THEN work on switching the diet. There is no need to add stress to a bird that is trying to get healthy.

amazon-george · Apr 23, 2008

hi guys. bit of bad news really. My boy has taken a turn for the worse. Took him back for another antibiotic injection and on they way home he turned funny, started acting as though he'd had a stroke. Got him home and he climbed onto his perch only to fall off seconds later and land on his back panting away with no effort to get back up again, it was horrible, he'd lost his fight, and my boy is a fighter!
Hopefully it was heat stroke cause it was quite warm in the car...so he's back at the vets and staying over night and he'll be bright and breezing and his usual stroppy self in the morning.

Will find out in the morning how he's doing. God i'm not enjoying tonights wait

amazon-george · Apr 24, 2008

hi guys. George is back from the vets.

Its likely that he's got an adema around the lungs and high blood pressure from all the stress of the vets that brought on a mini stroke. he could possibly have a heart condition too cause of his age - he dont sound good really does he?!!?! - he's showed massive improvements from last night and has a good deal of strength back, just a bit wobbly on his feet.
hes got to go back on monday for a check up but hopefully he'll keep making improvements and recover quite quickly.

Fingers crossed

Auggie's Dad · Apr 24, 2008

Wow, sorry to hear that. Good luck in the recovery, keep us posted.

amazon-george · Apr 26, 2008

hi guys..well he's doing fantastically well. he's standing taller, more alert and omg i have never been so glad to hear him scream at me this morning

he's still a little wobbly on his tooties but making great progress.
Stroke 0 - George 1.

TexDot33 · Apr 26, 2008

I know I haven't been posting much here lately, but I have been keeping up with George ... I am so happy that he is recovering so quickly!

amazon-george · Apr 27, 2008

thanks Tex. vets tomorrow so will see how he thinks he's doing. He's just sleeping alot at the moment, more or less all the time actually, suppose you do after having a stroke!!
I'm worried about his purple feet - sort of looks like he's got bruised joints - the main pads, knuckles in his toes and his ankles - think he may have that heart condition the vet was talking about. vet said there's some heart tablets he can try him on, so hopefully they will make him feel much better.
Bless him, he just keeps crying at me as if to tell me he's feeling really rotton, but there's nothing I can do for him to make him feel better at the moment.
will let you know how the vets goes tomorrow x

Tracy842 · May 4, 2008

Great news about George!!! Hope to get more great updates on how he's doing.

amazon-george · May 6, 2008

hi, trac. George is doing well. He's having bad days and good days but he's more energetic then he was last week and he's climbing more - with caution. he keeps trying to have a good shake but then remembers he shook himself off the perch last time and stops himself lol
I've started giving him pulses which he aint keen on at all..plan to mash them to fool him into eating them

but got some high potency mash on order..he lapped up porridge so hoping mash will go down better then the pulses. I figure if I can get his weight back up, will put more strength into him to feel better.
he's been taking his heart tablet for nearly a week, not sure they are working but will continue them anyway just in case. His breathing getting better and his feet aren't as purple as they were so they might be doing something.

will post an update in a week and let you know how he's getting on xxx

Tracy842 · May 10, 2008

Can't wait for the update but he sure sounds like he's doing well!

amazon-george · May 13, 2008

well hello..me again.
whats the best fruit for constipation? (its not for me!!) Can Amazon' eat prunes?
thanks again

Auggie's Dad · May 13, 2008

Yes parrots can eat prunes. IF/when a bird is constipated also make sure he has lots of clean fresh water, and if possible encourage him to drink lots of fluids. Perhaps offer fruit juices.

Also be aware that bird constipation can be a sign of something more serious than it would be in a human. If it continues (and if you haven't already) be sure to let your vet know.

As far as the "best" fruit for it I don't know, but the MORE fruit and fluids the better, so whichever ones he will eat.

amazon-george · May 14, 2008

hi, thanks Auggie. I'm pretty sure its constipation, he shakes quite hard and holds onto the bars of the cage right before he goes and it sounds quite strained.

He's getting over a stroke and on tablets for a possible heart condition.
'Also be aware that bird constipation can be a sign of something more serious '
What other illnesses could this point toward or could it be because of the current problems he has.

Will try the prunes and fruit juices (that benefits me too

)

thanks Auggie x

Auggie's Dad · May 14, 2008

amazon-george said:
What other illnesses could this point toward or could it be because of the current problems he has.

I try to stay as well read as I can on anything related to medicine or biology (as it overlaps with my field.) However I am not a vet so I can't answer that question well. I've heard constipation in birds as a sign of various organ troubles (kidneys stand out in my memory.)

However it is quite likely that it is a side-effect/by-product of his other conditions, perhaps the heart medication.

In any case be sure to let your vet know. It's easy for us to want to patch them up and get them well, but you never know which signs or symptoms will be the important ones in helping your vet know exactly what's going on in the birds body.

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