I never knew! :eek:

Dinosrawr · Jan 22, 2015

I was on my Facebook scrolling through pictures of a bird page that I like, and I stumbled across this picture of a rescue eclectus:

I had NO idea that a poor diet could be so absolutely brutal on this species. I knew it was bad, and could result in poor feathering, and especially poor health considering their requirements, but wow. I can't help but commend the owners on this forum for taking such superb care of their fids!

labell · Jan 22, 2015

I have never seen one quite this bad, poor girl.

The problem becomes there are probably lots of people who would like that coloring so much that they would aim for it!

Dinosrawr · Jan 22, 2015

That was my thought, too! At first I was wondering why you'd even mess with their colouring and make a hybrid like this, but nope... just terrible, terrible diet. I've also never seen one this bad before too. I can only imagine what kind of food she was eating...

Mango121913 · Jan 22, 2015

Truly heartbreaking.

labell · Jan 22, 2015

My first guess would be colored pellets.

Sunset_Chaser · Jan 22, 2015

Poor girl! How can people do this??????

Dinosrawr · Jan 22, 2015

That would make sense, it's crazy to think how much damage can be done with something so... simple. And it's really amazing what people will do. Brendon said a woman came into the pet store he used to work at and complained it cost her more than $20 a month to feed her cockatiel :/

labell · Jan 22, 2015

I don't add up what it cost to feed my eclectus mostly because I don't care I made a commitment to keeping them to the best of my ability and feeding them the diet they require. There are no short cuts and it really breaks my heart how often I see eclectus for sale in just horrible condition. I wish I could save them all unfortunately I can't.

Hawk · Jan 23, 2015

labell said:
My first guess would be colored pellets.

I second that, as I was thinking same thing. Maybe on a colored pellet only diet? I heard of people altering coloration on canaries that way but ekkies? Awww man. Did it say what exactly their diet was of?

Mekaisto · Jan 23, 2015

Coloured pellets wouldn't cause this, it looks more like a seed-only diet.
But definitely not enough fruit and veg!

Psittaciformes · Jan 23, 2015

I seriously thought it was an eckie/sun conure hybrid ... That is just crazy.
Makes me really sad to see ...

4dugnlee · Jan 23, 2015

Psittaciformes said:
I seriously thought it was an eckie/sun conure hybrid ... That is just crazy.
Makes me really sad to see ...

That's what I thought too...

Birdman666 · Jan 23, 2015

Yeah.

Eckies are diet sensitive birds. If you get one you have to pay attention to that stuff.

It's even worse with things like Toucans. Feed them wrong, they keel over and die in short order!

labell · Jan 23, 2015

Mekaisto said:
Coloured pellets wouldn't cause this, it looks more like a seed-only diet.
But definitely not enough fruit and veg!

Actually the reason I said this is I was once consulted on a female that had many orange and yellow feathers. Not as many as this poor girl she also didn't have the extreme beak discoloration.
The lady had been told by her vet to feed only pellets and "some fresh" which she admitted wasn't often and was mostly corn or stuff they were having for dinner. She fed no seed (vet said not to) and only gave nuts (almonds) 1 or 2 once a week as a treat. The pellets she fed were the ridiculously bright colored ones!

Birdman666 · Jan 23, 2015

Dinosrawr said:
That would make sense, it's crazy to think how much damage can be done with something so... simple. And it's really amazing what people will do. Brendon said a woman came into the pet store he used to work at and complained it cost her more than $20 a month to feed her cockatiel :/

Then don't get one! Grrrrr...

Dinosrawr · Jan 23, 2015

I just wonder how on earth someone could just sit there looking at their bird and think, "oh, this is totally normal!" But I guess there's a lot of people out there who lack common sense...

labell · Jan 23, 2015

Dinosrawr said:
I just wonder how on earth someone could just sit there looking at their bird and think, "oh, this is totally normal!" But I guess there's a lot of people out there who lack common sense...

I could tell you stories that would make you cry a river over what I have seen people do with and keep their parrots.

Absolutely soul wrenching conditions that people think are just fine cuz' birds are naturally dirty don't you know!

Birdman666 · Jan 23, 2015

Amen to that one...

They are naturally messy. One of their roles in nature is to spread the wealth, from fertilizer, to foods that other animals cannot reach, to spreading the seeds after eating the fruit...

In the wild they will take baths, but nature gives them baths almost daily in the hello- that's why they call it a RAIN forest.

Take them out of the rain forest, you have the responsibility for bathing them.

You also have the responsibility for cleaning up their messes...

And feeding them correctly...

And giving them love and a quality of life...

it's not optional, or when you feel like it.

It's daily!

Or, if you can't be bothered, don't bother to get one...

SilverSage · Jan 23, 2015

Colored pellets could be the problem, not because the color gets to the feathers, but because most of them are crap, and ESPECIALLY TO AN ECKIE! Ugh. As to the comment about canaries, the feather and pigmentation process in canaries is entirely different. Most of the color on parrots comes from feather structure, and even the pigment is not changed by food as long as the bird is healthy. You can safely hand humanely manipulate the level of red on a canary, not so a parrot.

PetoftheDay · Jan 23, 2015

I have always thought there show be a mandatory test given to anyone purchasing a bird, to prove they know basic dietary requirements and care. A conure cannot live on the stuff you throw down for wild birds, folks! So glad she is in a better place now!

I never knew! :eek:

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