Rehab Eckies: intro and sub species?

Welcome to the family Phoenix and Tucson!
Today I picked up my new feather babies. They have not been handled for aprox 10 years since Phoenix joined the family at 5-10 years old, when Tucson (then named Squacky) was 3 years old. They have had no toys. Tucson was splayed legged and still seems to have some serious leg issue. Here are some pics from their first few hours at home. Keep in mind they have been cage bound for at least a decade.

Also, Any help on the sub species? I'm very new to this. I tried to take pictures that would help.


Intro to my husband. They were not phased. Lots of beak grinding, and some sweet "Oooohh" sounds from Phoenix.


Phoenix





Tucson

I am going to say Red sided for the female Red sided or SI for the boy. I don't see anything that would indicate Vos and the eye ring is not as pronounced as it would be on SI for the girl, her tail also looks a little long for SI. It is a little harder to tell with the boy in these pictures I will take a better look at him as you get more pics up.

Really glad you got these two and I know that you will give them a good life. I know you said the previous owner loved her birds but seriously 10 yrs in a cage is no way to show it.

His feet do look bad, is he able to get around well? By the way I like the new name.

Welcome to your new home, Phoenix and Tucson!

Free of their cage after ten years, imagine what that must be like for them. Dani, bless you for taking them, I know this isn't a commitment you will take lightly. I'm looking forward to watching both of them thrive in your care and I know they will.

I hope something can be done for Tucson's leg. I wonder what kind of perches he's been offered in the past.

Enjoy your new family members.

Congratulations on the new additions to your flock!!!

It's wonderful that you are giving these two a new life. Ten years cage-bound must've been unbearably difficult.

I agree with Laura on the female being red-sided, and I'm betting the male is red-sided as well... judging by the ratio of wing length to tail.

So, going by their proximity to your sleeping husband in the provided pic, can I assume that they have both proven to be rather hand-tame? Or was husband the unwitting guinea pig and that photo the more child-friendly "before" pic? Lol!

And yes, I second Allee's query about Tucson's past perches in his former home.

Nice names! Although it is unbearably hot here so I am not the biggest fan of tucson right now.....

They seem so relieved to be out of their cage!! So precious. I look forward to updates.

Love the 'Arizona' matching names . I'm looking forward to seeing update pics as time goes by. I think they'll do great in your care Dani.

He gets around, but not "well" per se. When I pick him up, for the moment, I am gently scooping him up onto a towel (not into,but he is a bit hand shy right now, and seems to be unable to easily step up onto a perch). When he does make his way to a perch, I notice he seems to prefer to have one foot on the perch and the other on the cage bars. He was given pretty standard parrot perches for someone who hasn't done a lot of reading up, there was a pedi perch and a wooden dowel.

As for leaving the bird in the cage, when Phoenix came to live with the family, both Eclectus exhibited territorial behavior that the owner had not seen before, and she assumed it meant they wanted to be left alone with each other, especially when they stopped leaving the cage when she opened the door for them.

I will definitely get more pictures up, how about right now?

Tucson Stopped eating every time I pointed the camera at him


She went right for the first toy!


Took most of their things out and gave them a bath in the sun


The Plucking

After they were dry, they spent time on the tree stand Tucson on the rope boing which he seemed able to grip pretty well. They both took treats out of my fingers, and by treats I mean pellets for supper, since I dont want to abruptly cut all pellets out after it being their only food for a decade.

After play time I brought Phoenix in and set her on the bed. First she ran for Josh and I warned him to move his toes, then she lunged and the dog, and then she ran toward me. I offered my hand and she stepped right up! Her old owners had never been able to handle her, and she ran up to me less than 24 hrs in She was flustered and as a reward I took her back and allowed her to climb into her cage. I think I will have a new rule that even she, the mistress of the perch, will not be returned to her cage unless she is on a human hand.

I then scooped Tuscon up and brought him to the bed, where shuffled toward my chest and actually got an ALMOST hug! I was kneeling by the bed and he stopped a few inches away and allowed me to pet him with both hands. He then went over to my husband whom he seems to prefer for some more "almost cuddles" and ended up wedging himself between us.

I will try to find the pictures of those things tomorrow

That's great!! Keep updating

It's great to see how well and quickly they are adapting to their new surroundings.

One thing, and I'm sure Laura would be a better one to speak on this given her knowledge of breeding ekkies, but seeing as how most of the plucked feathers are from around the stomach region, I wonder if she's not plucking for nesting material?

Just a thought and I might be totally off base. But worth considering, I think.

Looking forward to more pics!

Anansi said:

It's great to see how well and quickly they are adapting to their new surroundings.

One thing, and I'm sure Laura would be a better one to speak on this given her knowledge of breeding ekkies, but seeing as how most of the plucked feathers are from around the stomach region, I wonder if she's not plucking for nesting material?

Just a thought and I might be totally off base. But worth considering, I think.

Looking forward to more pics!

Click to expand...

I would agree with that Stephen. The plucking looks chronic in that area though so they may have damaged feather follicles and won't get any re-growth or very little.

The skin seems to be smooth not bumpy like I would think you would feel on a bird who had feathers growing in.

The previous owner says she does lay a few eggs most years but they have never given her a box.

I'm somewhat doubting they are even still plucking, actually. These are my first plucked birds, but doesn't stress usually amplify plucking behaviors? I have not seen them so much as preen themselves, not even when they had a shower in the sun, and then sunbathed for a couple of hours. The previous owner said it was over preening, and that the female was the culprit for both birds but I'm just not seeing it. And neither has lost even the smallest feather here.

Dani, I love that you're sharing Phoenix and Tucson's ongoing success story. They actually look very good considering what they've been through. I think you'll be amazed at how much their feather condition improves with diet.

Any kind of stress often amplifies plucking. Once a bird has resorted to plucking for any reason they are likely to do it when stressed even if it's no longer a habit.

Dani,

Looks like they are both settling in well, and have found a great new home, these stories always make me feel good. Hope you keep up with the updates, looking forward to seeing more of Tucson & Phoenix.

Cheers,

Cameron