Ladies & Gentleman...Meet Chips!

StephenAndKyleigh · Sep 26, 2015

Yay!

My wife and I adopted a parrotlet today! The owner no longer wanted him because of his splayed legs. My wife and I met him, and we fell in love! His name is Chips!

RavensGryf · Sep 26, 2015

Aw, Chips is CUTE Stephen! Such a beautiful color mutation. What a surprise

. Cute name too. Did you name him? So now you have both the largest and smallest parrots! Careful... he can get "lost" under Kyleigh's wing

.

Does he need special accommodations, or can he get around well?

MyFlock · Sep 26, 2015

Very pretty blue! He's gorgeous!

StephenAndKyleigh · Sep 26, 2015

Thanks ya'll! He is able to get around fairly well. He just has a "unique" way of walking. He is flighted, flies well around the house, and lands smoothly. His name was Morek...but we changed it lol. We are going to bring him with us on our visits to the feeder so him and Kyleigh can meet and get used to each other. He is fairly tamed, but the previous owner admitted to not taming and training him very well. His diet was mostly pellets, and some fruits and veggies. We are going to switch that and do mostly fruits and veggies, with pellets supplemented. I am doing research on what exactly he should be eating. And I think a vet check next week. Just in case.

Mimsy01 · Sep 26, 2015

Chips is such a beautiful color. Parrotlets are so adorable. They are on my wish list bird.

Allee · Sep 26, 2015

He's beautiful, such a pretty blue! Congrats, what a sweet surprise.

RavensGryf · Sep 26, 2015

You say you're planning on bringing him to visit Kyleigh, make sure the hand feeder is okay with you bringing a bird who 'really should be in quarantine' into their home around babies.

Kiwibird · Sep 27, 2015

How cute! I'm sure he'll be a wonderful addition to your home! Birds have an amazing ability to overcome their disabilities, so I bet his splayed legs won't give him any problems at all.

I think you mentioned Kyleigh will be home in December, so plenty of time to get Chips vet checked and give him the standard 6 week quarantine period to be 100% sure he's healthy with lots of time to spare for a meet and greet with her before she's ready to come home

SilverSage · Sep 27, 2015

Agreed, please don't ignore quarantine

and what an AMAZING color! My eclectus is played legged as well. They don't know it isn't normal

StephenAndKyleigh · Sep 27, 2015

This is why I love you all lol. Thanks for bringing back down some. In my excitement, I completely forgot the quarantine period. Is there a good post around here that explains how that goes? Or is it as simple as keeping him away from other birds for 6 weeks and getting him vet checked during that time?

OOwl · Sep 27, 2015

Congrats on your new parrotlet!

On QT, isolate for 6 weeks, go for a vet check (especially on an adult bird with an unsure past), and have disease tested. And be sure to completely wash before visiting your baby bird. Chips is probably just fine but better safe than sorry.

I have a special needs parrotlet, as well. He has a deformed foot, but he hops around and is an expert flyer so it doesn't slow him down too much. We modified his cage to help with his disability. The best feature that he uses ALL the time is a little three-point seagrass trapeze (Amazon). It gets the pressure off that lame leg. You might look into that for chips. We also use lots of boings and flat-shelf perches. He also has a soft tent to sleep in at night (but watch those for signs of chewing).

GreatBlue320 · Sep 27, 2015

Awwww, what a cutie! Congratulations!

Anansi · Sep 27, 2015

Congratulations on the new addition to your family! (And I heartily cosign on the change of names! Morek sounds like the final boss in a fantasy role-playing game! Hahaha!)

There are tons of threads on the forum that address quarantine, as well as some good suggestions given by OOwl, but I'll give you my take as well.

A quarantine period of at least 90 days is most effective, IMO, as there are some symptoms that can take 2-3 months to pop up. Of course, some can take closer to a few years, but obviously we're being realistic, here.

You should get your little guy vet-checked as soon as possible, with a full blood panel, fecal gram stain, and disease checks for PBFD, psittacosis, polyoma and PDD.

The PDD test isn't 100% accurate and can give false negatives - as it only detects the virus when it's actively shedding - as well as false positives, so a positive would be followed up by an x-ray of the proventriculus.

Polyoma generally affects baby birds, but it has been known to affect adults as well.

There are other diseases you can test for as well, but the tests can be expensive. PBFD would be at the top of my list, as it is highly infectious and, like polyoma, is a nonenveloped virus... which means it is very hardy and can survive in the environment outside of the host body for quite some time.

As far as your visits to Kyleigh in the meantime, you'll only want to go wearing clothes that you weren't wearing when you interacted with Chips. (Including footwear) Until you know otherwise, you want to approach the situation as though Chips is indeed contagious... for Kyleigh's sake.

Once the QT period is over, and Chips has been vet-cleared, you can go about slowly introducing them to one another.

Sorry to be a bit of a downer, but I've lost a bird to PDD. So I know that these precautions are extremely important. Especially when dealing with a baby bird who has not yet developed a fully capable immune system.

StephenAndKyleigh · Sep 27, 2015

Anansi said:
Congratulations on the new addition to your family! (And I heartily cosign on the change of names! Morek sounds like the final boss in a fantasy role-playing game! Hahaha!)

There are tons of threads on the forum that address quarantine, as well as some good suggestions given by OOwl, but I'll give you my take as well.

A quarantine period of at least 90 days is most effective, IMO, as there are some symptoms that can take 2-3 months to pop up. Of course, some can take closer to a few years, but obviously we're being realistic, here.

You should get your little guy vet-checked as soon as possible, with a full blood panel, fecal gram stain, and disease checks for PBFD, psittacosis, polyoma and PDD.

The PDD test isn't 100% accurate and can give false negatives - as it only detects the virus when it's actively shedding - as well as false positives, so a positive would be followed up by an x-ray of the proventriculus.

Polyoma generally affects baby birds, but it has been known to affect adults as well.

There are other diseases you can test for as well, but the tests can be expensive. PBFD would be at the top of my list, as it is highly infectious and, like polyoma, is a nonenveloped virus... which means it is very hardy and can survive in the environment outside of the host body for quite some time.

As far as your visits to Kyleigh in the meantime, you'll only want to go wearing clothes that you weren't wearing when you interacted with Chips. (Including footwear) Until you know otherwise, you want to approach the situation as though Chips is indeed contagious... for Kyleigh's sake.

Once the QT period is over, and Chips has been vet-cleared, you can go about slowly introducing them to one another.

Sorry to be a bit of a downer, but I've lost a bird to PDD. So I know that these precautions are extremely important. Especially when dealing with a baby bird who has not yet developed a fully capable immune system.

Not a downer at all! I am sorry for your loss, but I do thank you for sharing what you've learned to me. I didn't consider most of this.

I am picking him up today from the lady that is raising Kyleigh. They've known each other a while through raising birds. Should I be concerned that she is bringing him to the place Kyleigh will be? I planned on asking for vet records when I meet her today.

StephenAndKyleigh · Sep 27, 2015

Anansi said:
Congratulations on the new addition to your family! (And I heartily cosign on the change of names! Morek sounds like the final boss in a fantasy role-playing game! Hahaha!)

LMBO!!!!! Completely agree there bud

Anansi · Sep 27, 2015

StephenAndKyleigh said:
Not a downer at all! I am sorry for your loss, but I do thank you for sharing what you've learned to me. I didn't consider most of this.

I am picking him up today from the lady that is raising Kyleigh. They've known each other a while through raising birds. Should I be concerned that she is bringing him to the place Kyleigh will be? I planned on asking for vet records when I meet her today.

I would be concerned, yes. There are mitigating circumstances, however. If Chips comes from a single bird home, and has had no occasion to come into contact with other birds outside of your feeder's home, then the risk is obviously greatly minimized. But then it still comes down to how much you can trust the prior owner's word, as well as possible indirect contaminants. (Contaminated toys, cage, perches, dishes, etc.)

So in short, yes, it would be best to keep this bird out of Kyleigh's environment until the end of QT. Although many might take a calculated risk based on those previously mentioned mitigating factors.

For example, my own Maya was a rehome from a single bird home a little over a year ago. And she came from another member of this forum. A member in good standing. So, given those mitigating circumstances, I maintained a quarantine just shy of 2 months instead of the more appropriate 3 before introducing her to my Bixby. (Who, ironically enough, was the one who was born with PDD. No test had picked it up, and I'd had no idea. Thankfully, Maya never caught it.)

RavensGryf · Sep 27, 2015

I completely agree with Anansi (the other Stephen

). I also have lost a bird from PDD, as more people than you realize have. While contagious, this is a disease that they are usually born with. I always have a pretty good amount of paranoia whenever the original source that a bird originated from is unknown. PDD is scarily common.

Also, as our other Stephen mentioned, PBFD would be at the top of the list to be tested for, as it is a scary one, highly contagious, and very hardy in the environment and hard to eradicate. IMO, especially with the lack of history behind this bird, "quarantine" people speak of is not always enough. Testing is expensive, but worth every penny I believe.

SoCalWendy · Sep 27, 2015

StephenAndKyleigh said:
Yay!

My wife and I adopted a parrotlet today! The owner no longer wanted him because of his splayed legs. My wife and I met him, and we fell in love! His name is Chips!

BEAUTIFUL... Has he been dna'd. looks like he may be a she. Usually males have a distinct cobalt blue stripe behind each eye. A females has it too, by more diluted. Look at my picture, Kiwi is a female. Cute name, they love to fly around, mine does dive-by all the time. she is fast too.

StephenAndKyleigh · Sep 27, 2015

Chips is now home with me. I got more information on him. He has been DNA tested and is in fact a male. Surprised me too. He is a little under a year old. The breeder sold him, with a health guarantee, to a lady with children and no birds. The children stopped playing with him after a month and he has spent the last 10 months in a cage with zero attention. He is a little underweight, but not much. He is a bit afraid of hands, but with some millet I was able to have him come to me. Once he was in my hands he sat there for a few minutes. His diet has been 100% seeds and millet. I researched and read that parrotlets dont necessarily need pellets, but can definitely have whole foods. For the first few days I will continue giving him seeds, and the start adding in some very finely chopped veggies and fruits.

He is going to be a sweet sweet bird and just needs some love and attention. He also hadn't been given a bath in a while. Once he calms down a bit I may bathe him. Right now he is in the corner of his cage. I am seeing if he will eat some. If not, I will start to handle him and what not today!

Scott · Sep 27, 2015

Mr. Chips is a handsome boy, and very lucky to have been adopted by your family. Giving a home to a special needs bird, albeit minimally, is a wonderful gift!

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Zeki is such a pretty bird

When will he eat on his own!

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