Merlin & Charlie update thread!

[Mayden]

Sidney maintains his weight around 135 to 140. He has a nice veggie and pellet diet with the occasional bit of fruit. When I brought him to get his nails clipped at the store I used to go to in Florida I was able to compare his size to a pair of Senegals they had out on a perch. I held him up in his travel cage so he could see them and was surprised to notice he was easily half a head longer than they. My vet there, who is a very very good avian specialist, thought he was a little larger than normal and was unconcerned about his weight. I really miss being able to go to her but I'm 1000 miles away now.

My first Senegal had an issue with holding her poops. She would go hours between drops with resulting massive poops. I was fairly ignorant about bird care then and never really realized that it was not normal and could cause a problem.

Glad to hear that your pair went through the vet visit easily. Sidney is female aggressive and the vets that I go to are women so it can be a bit wild. His body posture is pure "I'm gonna HURT you!" when the vet comes into the room.

Merlin is a large boy too. Had it not been for his leg 135g would probably be perfect but he recently had a sore on his good leg due to too much pressure too often so we're going for the lighter side of things. I think it's so important to have a vet you like& trust, hope youve still got a good one even if its not the specialist lady.

Merlin loves our vets&nurses too (hes such a lover to everyone) until they get out the towel for nail trims! Then he screams bloody murder. Does it help Sidney if you're there too?

 

[JamesC]

Have you ever thought of getting Merlin a padded platform to stand on? At the bird store in Florida they were housing a special needs cockatoo who's owner was in the hospital. I do not know what happened to him/her but the bird was missing a foot entirely and the remaining foot was not in great shape either. They provided him/her that padded platform to ease the pressure on the remaining foot and the bird obviously appreciated it by the amount of time he/she spent on it. Was a very sweet cockatoo. While he/she was there, I'd always spend extra time talking and scritching when I visited the store.

For Sid's vet visits, I am always there. Though he has only had two since I had him, the initial checkup after I adopted him and last summer when I took him to the local vet for the first time for his first yearly. I had to forewarn the new vet about him and it was justified. He didn't like the technician who interviewed me before the vet came in. But the intensity of his dislike sharply increased when the vet arrived. He knew what it was all about and just glared at her following her every move. She touched his travel cage and he went right after her finger. I had to get him out, towel him and hand him over. Even being careful he nailed the tech through the towel with a pretty good nip.

Where my first Senegal had a very easy going, loving and friendly personality after she was rehabilitated (she was a rescue). Sidney has an intensity to him that is sometimes disquieting. They are completely polar opposites and I found myself a bit unprepared after I brought him home. He was sweet and gentle when I met him but a hellraiser with wings after he settled in. I'm always on my toes with him and watching for that switch to occur.