Constipation from pellet?

[AngelNikolov]

Hi guys, so this sunday I was cleaning the little guys's cage and I noticed that the number of his droppings have decreased, I had a day off on Monday and spend allmost the whole day with him and he seemed really constipated. He was struggling to poop and somethimes he was trying hard but nothing was coming out. I started converting him to pellets at the beggining of this month, he doesn't like them very much so I've been mixing them with his seeds. The constipation continued and I got worried so my girlfriend called her vet ( a regular vet there are no avian ones in Bulgaria ) because she has some experience with birds (lovebirds, cockatiels and owls) and she said and I quote that she is 99% percent sure that the constipation is caused by the pellets, he cant digest them properly for some reason and what we should do is to not give him any food at all for one day and then stop giving him pellets.
So my question is do you think she could be right? Because I dont think so, but hey Im no expert. Also I think not giving him any food for a whole day is kinda messed up, and why he wont be able to digest the pellets? Also I started feeding him pellets 26 days ago and the constipation started this Sunday, I think it should have started earlier if it is caused by the pellets.... Anyway do you think that she is right or have any advice?

 

[GaleriaGila]

Oh, gosh... not all pellets are created equally... Rbird has eaten Harrison's most of his life (along with fresh stuff). Will your guy eat any natural laxatives? Greens, for example. I would think that water and maybe even veggie/fruit juice, if accepted, should help. That must be scary not having an avian vet. Best, best wishes. Please keep us posted.

 

[AngelNikolov]

Oh, gosh... not all pellets are created equally... Rbird has eaten Harrison's most of his life (along with fresh stuff). Will your guy eat any natural laxatives? Greens, for example. I would think that water and maybe even veggie/fruit juice, if accepted, should help. That must be scary not having an avian vet. Best, best wishes. Please keep us posted.

Thank you
I asked around for the quallity of the pellets everybody said that they are good, they are really expensive too. He is not a big fan of greens, I've been giving him a lot of pears he likes them and it they seem to help.

 

[ZephyrFly]

I am not a vet, I am not qualified to give you expert advice. But like Gail said try softer foods and some fresh orange juice. Good soft foods can be mash sweet potato, or boiled veg (all chilled to a reasonable temperature). The increased water should help for softer stools and the juice as well as being attractive to parrots should give him a little added natural acidity to his gut temporarily.
Before and After this I can only advise finding a better vet.

 

[AngelNikolov]

I am not a vet, I am not qualified to give you expert advice. But like Gail said try softer foods and some fresh orange juice. Good soft foods can be mash sweet potato, or boiled veg (all chilled to a reasonable temperature). The increased water should help for softer stools and the juice as well as being attractive to parrots should give him a little added natural acidity to his gut temporarily.
Before and After this I can only advise finding a better vet.

Thank you for the advice, he is a picky eater but I think he know whats good for him because he started to eat pears and melon more since he got constipated, he's also been drinking a lot of water.
Finding a better vet will be really hard unfortunally, most of them threat mainly cats and dog and have little to no experience with birds ...
What do you think about the not feeding him for a day thing?

 

[wrench13]

Salty enjoys his pellets sometime mixed up with his chop and left to sit for an hour or so to get nice and soft. He eats them dry too, this is more of a treat. You just have to experiment to find which veggies he like , which he loves and which he hates. Experiment on different prep methods too: au natural, big chunks, or finely chopped. Room temp, chilled (a bit) or warm ( A BIT). Mixed with grains ( cooked or not). Check out Sailboats thread on amazons, he has one post that has a great list of good foods that would good for your conure too. Make sure your boy has ready access to fresh water all the time - Salty will take a big drink when he eats pellets - they's dry stuff for sure.

 

[SailBoat]

Yes! Please see that Thread! It is located in the Amazon Forum and is Titled: 'I Love Amazons' and what you are looking for is on the second page.

Since you are mixing the Pellets with the Seed, I find it difficult to believe that the cause is the Pellets. Yes, they are drier and require more water as part of the diet. So, unless there was no water available during and/or after eating, the first area that would have presented a problem would have been your Parrot's Crop.

When talking about a Parrot's Digestive System, both ends of the spectrum represents a clear indication of a 'Medical Problem' that required the attention of Avian Qualified Vet!

You stated that an Avian Qualified Vet is not available in your area. That clearly represents a problem that required thinking very differently than standard. Do you have a Zoo near you and do they have Birds??? If so, contact them directly; asking if they have a Vet as part of their staff or one that provides them Vet Services. Ask for contact information for that person and contact the Vet directly! Do Not Tell The Zoo Staff That You Are In Need of Personal Care For Your Parrot! Lie if you have too! Like you wanting to personally compliment the Vet on the great care of the Animals at the Zoo! Or, some like story!

As recommended above; greatly increase the amount of moisture laden foods like Fruits and Veggies. Your goal, regarding feeding right now is to get as much moisture laden foods into your Parrot as possible!

Please Making Increasing Moisture Laden Foods and contacting a Zoo a Top Priority!