HELP! My boy need fattening up safely! Any tips?

My male eccie is going through a first moult and after his check up he is looking pretty skinny. I need him to gain about 25-30 grams.
Hes probably lost most because of the moult, and he is very very very active, zooming around all day....
So can i just give him as many sunflower seeds as he can eat? Or isthis dangerous? Ive never had to fatten a bird up before so any tips would be appreciated.

i wouldn't give him too many sunflower seeds with had a problem with mylah when she was young they said she was to hot from to many seeds, apparantly they eat more sunflower in winter than they do in summer. i always feed mylah more after a molt and give her a little bit of biscuit everyday for awhile after her molt hope this helps

Harrison have a "boost" higger fat pellets. I use it right now and Polly likes it

but fruit such as bananas have a high carb content, and probably a little egg white, nice protien content for new feathers be cheaper and something you might already have at hand, so you can start asap

Yup, eggs would be good, as would chicken, and cheese.

That reminds me - I have to go make breakfast.

It is safer to do it naturally and be patient. If it were an emergency you could add formula one lightly sprinkled on the food, but honestly every suggestion above should be your first recourse, and they are the safe effective ways to add a bit of weight to birds.

thanks a lot everyone. Ill just keep giving him lots of yummy treats then. I cant see him ever eating more than he does now with his huge appetitite so ill just up the yum factor and see how he goes!

ps and thanks oled thats great to know for my other birds! but unfortunately harrisons (actually any) pellets give my eccie boy a bad case of the toe taps so thats out =)

Also, most nuts would be good ... or peanut butter.

Auggie LOOOOVES peanut butter. If I take it out with out giving him his share he'll attack me and rip it right out of my hand. One time he even tried to open my mouth to steal it right out of my mouth.

A good (natural) peanut butter has lots of healthy fats and a lot of protein. It's a great way to put on healthy weight.

EDIT: and it's hilarious to see it all over their faces!

You should cook for your ekkie! Sweet potatoes, egg with shell, chicken, etc. Minimal seeds with just a few sunflower seeds as treats, mainly the smaller seeds like you would feed a parakeet! Along with fruits and veggies, he would gain all his weight in no time. And yes like you said, I stay away from pellets as well!!!

mrob said:

My male eccie is going through a first moult and after his check up he is looking pretty skinny. I need him to gain about 25-30 grams.
Hes probably lost most because of the moult, and he is very very very active, zooming around all day....
So can i just give him as many sunflower seeds as he can eat? Or isthis dangerous? Ive never had to fatten a bird up before so any tips would be appreciated.

Click to expand...

I would first weigh him to see if he is in the average range for his sub-species. That being between 388g to 524g. I wouldn't worry to much as he is very active & eats well. Unless your Vet has recommended him put on weight.

Raw Almonds would be a better choice. I would also offer a good quality small parrot seed mix. Along with the sprouted seed mix, fruit & vegg. If you have trouble with toe tapping er on caution with regards of what foods you give him. Go easy on the cheese, chicken & egg should only be offered once a week of 2 weeks.

Thanks everyone....He has REALLY enjoyed your suggestions!
Today hes had organic oatmeal mixed with a little cream and honey (I dont think i can feed him that again... It felt wrong!!!) Which he absolutely LOVED
Mashed sweet potato mixed with cokateil seed mix (minimal sunflower)
And organic salt free peanut butter mixed with chopped nuts soybeans and a little eggwhite
As well as his usual fruit and Veg
He is in absolute HEAVEN lol, especially with the peanut butter.....He was eating it smearing it all over his face and flicking it up the walls while going mmmmmmmmmmmyumyumyumyumyumyum gooooood boooyyyyyyy
hes going to be a bit upset once hes met the required weight!

This would be my ideal idea:
Harrison's High Potency Pellets (Puck eats them already)
spouted seeds
soaked or spouted raw nuts
nut butter (peanut, almond, cashew, etc), perhaps on toast, perhaps with jelly (Puck goes crazy for this and will get mad and bite me if I don't share!! LOL)
eggs (the yolk has good fat and nutrients for baby birds, white has protein)

Was he really saying "mmmmmmyumyumyum"?? LOL

yep it was the first thing he learnt to say! Because whenever i feed him i grin like an idiotand go mmmm look darling nummy nums num yum yum yum or something equally embarrassing......

No raw honey.

Everything else is fine in moderation and small amounts.

My vet gave me a recipe for putting on weight on the bird safely and it is so nutrious and good for ekkies you can make it a staple in their diet. It is organic spelt wheat, organic oat groats, and organic barley in equal portions all cooked like you would brown rice - all the ingredients are readily available at placed like Whole Foods. Or just try organic brown rice. As a general rule I never allow my ekkie to eat certain (actually many) foods, like cheese (WILL cause fatty liver disease over time), chicken, seeds of any kind (ESPECIALLY sunflower seeds, NEVER feed your ekkie that!!!). That lesson was learned pretty hard when I lost my baby of 25 years to complications from too rich of a diet. We had changed his diet 3 years earlier but it couldnt save him. The best food you can give him/her is all organic fresh fruits, berries, veggies(fresh swiss chard!) and that oat mash up. The occassional treat is fine but after realizing you can literally kill your bird with kindness I figure better safe than sorry.

Thanks Bobosmom....
I realise that eccies are prone to long term complications without the proper diet. My boy has been on the soft food mix you mentioned (or one very similar) for ever and he is still underweight, so the vet wants us to kick it up a notch with the treats just until the duration if his moult. He has been fully checked over and his liver is not enlarged at all, no infection or respitory problems.... The vet seems to think that at the moment his weight loss is more immmediately a problem than any long ter affect of a few weeks of fattening up. Next step will be formula feedings if this doesnt work...Its a preventative measure ...although he is healthy as can be, if he were to become ill he does not have any 'cushion' so to speak, of fat stored to help him through it.
I know you cant treat them as much as you can other birds (with the stuff like cheese and anything else high fat/protein etc) and he usually gets no seed, but he does get the very occasional sunflower for training. He has a vege, fruit, sprout and pulse diet usually high in Viatmin A and fibre, with a few nuts thrown in but hes gotten so skinny the breast/ab bone is protruding with no protective cover of fat at all.
Thanks for the advice and im sorry about your baby, tha must have been a devastating experience...and ill definitly keep that in mind in future.