Poop

Awkwrd

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Jul 5, 2019
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Hello forum!
I have a red lored amazon parrot and heā€™s about 10+. Pretty recently, his poop has been watery. Itā€™s the same color as his normal poop (green), but itā€™s more liquid than solid. His diet consists of seeds, peanuts, dried chilies and corn. Itā€™s the same food Iā€™ve always fed him. Heā€™s acting the same way as always. He hasnā€™t shown any signs of being sick. Any reason why his poop is the way it is?

Thanks!


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Anansi

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Maya (Female Solomon Island eclectus parrot), Jolly (Male Solomon Island eclectus parrot), Bixby (Male, red-sided eclectus. RIP), Suzie (Male cockatiel. RIP)
Hello, and welcome to the Parrot Forums family!

Okay, I'm going to address this in two parts: short term and long. Short term: I get the impression that this has been going on for a few days now. (Due to your use of the word "recently") If this is truly the case, my suggestion would be that you take him in to see a vet. A certified avian vet if at all possible. Observing a change in droppings over one or two meals could point to some stomach upset over something he ate. (I've often fed my birds papaya, but one day I guess what I'd given them was from a bad batch. They got diarrhea, so I had to toss it all and make sure they stayed hydrated until they were over it.) But a change over a longer period could indicate a bigger problem. And his acting the same doesn't necessarily mean nothing is wrong. Parrots are prey animals, so they hide weakness in the interests of not being eaten.

Long term: That diet is not a good one for an amazon. Seeds should not be a main staple of his diet. It should be more of a treat thing. Or only making up a small percentage of the overall diet. Feeding too many seeds can lead to arteriosclerosis. Too much fatty content.

Peanuts are also way too fatty to be listed as a major part of his diet... not to mention that they are susceptible to aflatoxins, which can lead to aspergillosis in birds (a nasty fungal infection.) Lots of people point out that they've fed peanuts for years without ill-effects, and I don't doubt it. But knowing it is something that can happen, why risk it? I switched from peanuts to cashews (as a treat food) long ago.

I don't have a problem with chilies, as they are a great source of Vitamin A. But corn is just shy of nutritionally useless. It fills birds up without offering them much of value in return. Not particularly harmful in and of itself (unless the bird in question is an eclectus, in which case there is some potential for food sensitivity issues), but it's far too lean on nutritional value to be so major a component of your amazon's diet.

Variety is key when it comes to feeding parrots. You may not have seen much or any ill effects yet insofar as his health, but it's the cumulative effect that comes into play. A poor diet can take decades off a parrot's life. But you can still make some gradual changes toward a better diet. He's 10. Young yet for an amazon. But I'd suggest that you start tackling this sooner rather than later.

Please don't take this as me bashing you or anything. I'm actually writing this in a bit of a hurry (plane to catch), so it may come off sounding a bit more blunt than my posts usually would. You obviously care very much for your bird, or you wouldn't have taken the time to write in after observing a change in his droppings. Heck, the fact that you're monitoring the droppings shows that you care. So I hope you take what I'm saying in the spirit in which it was given.

Here is a great link to a thread about converting parrots to a healthier diet: http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-...7-converting-parrots-healthier-diet-tips.html

And here is the diet I personally feed to my parrots:

I tend to provide between 6 and 8 types of food per feeding (2 meals per day), weighted heavily toward the veggie side as only 1 of the food selections in a given meal is a fruit.
Various sprouts, carrots (very important due to the high content of beta carotene - precursor to Vitamin A), bell peppers (red, yellow, orange and green ā€“ also very high in Vitamin A), jalapeno peppers, Jamaican Scotch bonnet peppers, chili peppers, squash (butternut, green and yellow), pumpkin (again, high in Vitamin A), blueberries and pomegranates (both among the most nutritious of fruits), snap peas, broccoli (high in calcium), cactus pears, persimmon, starfruit, bananas, grapes (only for flavor and hydration. Relatively low in nutrition), kale, turnips, radishes, brown rice, quinoa, cucumbers, endives, dandelion (nutritional powerhouse offered at every meal when seasonally available), sweet potato (cooked), red swiss chard, mustard greens, collard greens, kale, cilantro, parsley, watercress, arugula, granny smith apples, papaya (donā€™t go too heavy on this, as it is a diarrhetic), African horned melon, hominy, oatmeal (sans sugar or flavoring), kiwi, barley, calendula flowers, fennel, chocho beans and garbanzo beans, as well as Volkman's Fancy Soak and Simmer for the majority of their legumes and grains.

For food accents I'll add one or two types of the following as well: star anise, milk thistle, elder berries, rose hips, hibiscus, bee pollen and chamomile flowers.

Twice a month, I'll give some hard-boiled egg (with the crushed shell for calcium). Slightly more frequently during a molt.

For their training treats they get an assortment of unsalted nuts (one to three per bird in a given day, broken into small pieces and fed as rewards during the training sessions). And for their "goodnight treat", up to a teaspoon or two of seeds.
 

SailBoat

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Jul 10, 2015
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Western, Michigan
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DYH Amazon
Truly great advice provided above!
Within the Amazon Forum at its top is a Huge Thread that is titled: I Love Amazons - ... There are numerous Segments that cover a very wide cross-section of topics. Within it you will find one that defines Parrot Poop and another that provides diet information and percentages as to what to feed.

Seed far too often is used to define SunFlower Seed which is very bad for Amazons. That said, there is a very wide cross-section of Seed which are great for Amazons.

Work to eliminate both Peanuts and SunFlower seed from your Amazons diet, ASAP without causing your Amazon to starve by first adding a wider cross-section from above and slowly cutting back of the bad stuff.
 

Scott

Supporting Member
Aug 21, 2010
32,673
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San Diego, California USA, Earth, Milky Way Galaxy
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Goffins: Gabby, Abby, Squeaky, Peanut, Popcorn / Citron: Alice / Eclectus: Angel /Timneh Grey: ET / Blue Fronted Amazon: Gonzo /

RIP Gandalf and Big Bird, you are missed.
Welcome to you and your red lored! Anansi and Sailboat just posted the most comprehensive advice possible!!
 
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Awkwrd

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Jul 5, 2019
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Thank you all so much! I genuinely didnā€™t know that his diet was this bad. I really appreciate you taking your time to help me out.


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