Arlene n Food

[Dragonwyke]

well, arlene has been here just over a week. i've been trying to get her to eat mash and fresh fruits n veggies. but all she's going for is pellet. i've tried taking the pellet out of her cage at night so she's hungry in the morning, but she'll sit there w/an empty crop till i put the pellet back in and growl/snap at me when i take out the mash cup and dive right into the pellet cup. does the same thing w/the veggie/fruit cup in the afternoon.

it's a really good pellet, Exact Natural, but it's not what she should be eating and it's frustrating. should i keep trying w/her? she's at least 17yrs old and she's pretty well set in her ways, it's only been a little over a week and she's still a very angry bird. amazons, 'toos, and greys are easy feeders compared to a neglected ekkie.

how long do y'all think she'll last like this?


DW

 

[mtdoramike]

Have you had her to a vet to rule out any medical issues? She is probably malnutritioned. I can't speak on Eclectus's in depth, other than what I have read. I have only had my male Eclectus for a week. He's a healthy eater and likes both pellets and fresh foods. It sounds like the previous owners were too lazy to give the bird the proper diet it should have been getting.

If it were me, I would try the old tough love thing. I would take out the pellets all together and put in a variety of fresh fruits and veggies, changing them out twice or three times a day. She will eventually get tired of going to the bowl looking for the pellets and not finding them and start tasting what IS in the bowl. I would do this for no longer than two days though and see if it helps.

Or, you can try a few pellets sprinkled into her bowl full of mashed sweet potatoes & carrots or what ever and see how that works for you.

 

[Dragonwyke]

the previous owner had her for about a year and said she had her to the vet for blood panels and everything came back normal. however, arlene is doing the ole wing twitch/toe tap thing, hi-iron/low calcium, that ekkies get and she's got no feathers on chest, belly or back, so i'm loathe to believe everything is normal.

i can't take her to the vet till i can afford the high cost of avian visits, but she'll be going in the next few weeks (w/in a month). in the meantime, the pellets are low iron, she's getting extra calcium, and green tea 2-3x per week to chelate the high iron in her blood. she's also not had a shower in ages so i've started giving her those twice a day. she seems indifferent to them, just doesn't like the being handled, but over time i figure she'll get used to that since i don't plan on stopping handling her. lol

DW