confusion after vet (pellets??)

[ifnlovebirds]

So I went in for a wellness exam for my male eclectus who is now 1yr old. He’s never been to this vet so today was his first time. This vet, who my friend and i have been trusting for the past 12 years for our birds and the only avian vet i trust IN WASHINGTON. Told me today to start feeding my male eclectus pellets. So obviously i’m really startled because there’s such a huge community around NOT feeding this specific breed pellets due to multitude of reasons that I am well aware of. I let my vet do the explaining and he said it’s because I can’t adjust how much of each nutrient the bird is getting from chop?

“You don’t know much much vitamin A he’s getting or how much calcium etc. It’s much better to have a mix of both so he has something that’s already balanced for him on top of his chop.”

I would agree with this if it was any other parrot than an a eclectus. I also trust this clinic A LOt and people in WA who are bird owners also do so. He also mentioned birds who are on a pelleted diet (he said to feed topps and harrison’s) live longer. That was what kinda scared me because obviously I want my bird to live as long as possible while still being healthy. So idk!!

So now i’m really confused and Idk if I should trust internet/community or my vet… And again this clinic is really respected and known for providing really great care for avians specifically and i’ve been trusting them for a while.

thank you for reading.

 

[zERo]

While the vet makes a point, if the veg being provided either isn’t diverse enough/isn’t being eaten by the bird, pellets can fill in gaps.
As far as I know, pellets aren’t suitable for Eclectus?
I’ve seen people feed them TOPs pellets and they fed them just a few pellets a day.
Hopefully someone will chime in who owns one.

Edit: Also did the vet do a blood test? That way you would know what he’s missing or isn’t getting enough of.

 

[ifnlovebirds]

While the vet makes a point, if the veg being provided either isn’t diverse enough/isn’t being eaten by the bird, pellets can fill in gaps.
As far as I know, pellets aren’t suitable for Eclectus?
I’ve seen people feed them TOPs pellets and they fed them just a few pellets a day.
Hopefully someone will chime in who owns one.

Edit: Also did the vet do a blood test? That way you would know what he’s missing or isn’t getting enough of.

Ohhh that’s true if he is being picky I see how pellets could help. that does make sense.

But the way he was just telling me to get pellets instead of explaining to me what MAKES chop balanced felt like “here’s the easy rout” and i wasn’t sure if the “easy rout” was accurate.

I didn’t do a blood test today since it hasn’t fully been a year since his last vet visit w his breeder. (about 6 mo)

 

[saxguy64]

Wow, tough call. I'm no vet, so just my opinion. The vet's advice sounds reasonable to me on general principle for anything besides ekkies. On that, I totally agree with you. I'm not one to say pellets or quality seed mix are completely evil for ekkies. I just do what I can to best balance my guy's diet. He doesn't particularly care for most greens, so Top's being largely comprised of greens is a way to get at least some into him. As they say, everything in moderation. Top's is far from being the bulk of his diet, and after trying daily for well over a year, he finally eats maybe 6-8 pellets in a day. I've never tried Harrison's, but I was reading on their website. First, organic or not, they have added vitamins and minerals, which can definitely be an issue for ekkies. Second, in their write up about ekkies, they call toe tapping a nervous habit that's unrelated to diet. Call me what you like, they're wrong. My guy has experienced it a few times since he's been with me, and I can absolutely tell you it's diet/nutrition related. Certain foods trigger it for him, and discontinued feeding of those foods stops it. It can be difficult to figure out though, as tapping can start within hours of consuming the trigger, and can take days to completely subside.

I guess if it were me, I'd do what I know works, and keep quiet about it to the vet as you may need him for other things later.

 

[zERo]

Ohhh that’s true if he is being picky I see how pellets could help. that does make sense.

But the way he was just telling me to get pellets instead of explaining to me what MAKES chop balanced felt like “here’s the easy rout” and i wasn’t sure if the “easy rout” was accurate.

I didn’t do a blood test today since it hasn’t fully been a year since his last vet visit w his breeder. (about 6 mo)

Does he eat everything offered?

I’m sure an Eclectus owner will chime in but I’m fairly certain TOPs pellets are safe for them. As long as their pellets don’t contain artificial preservatives/vitamins, dyes or fillers.
Basically that limits you to TOPs!

As long as the chop you make has 10+ different veggies I’d say you’re good. Feeding them sprouted grains/legumes/seeds is very beneficial too.

 

[zERo]

Wow, tough call. I'm no vet, so just my opinion. The vet's advice sounds reasonable to me on general principle for anything besides ekkies. On that, I totally agree with you. I'm not one to say pellets or quality seed mix are completely evil for ekkies. I just do what I can to best balance my guy's diet. He doesn't particularly care for most greens, so Top's being largely comprised of greens is a way to get at least some into him. As they say, everything in moderation. Top's is far from being the bulk of his diet, and after trying daily for well over a year, he finally eats maybe 6-8 pellets in a day. I've never tried Harrison's, but I was reading on their website. First, organic or not, they have added vitamins and minerals, which can definitely be an issue for ekkies. Second, in their write up about ekkies, they call toe tapping a nervous habit that's unrelated to diet. Call me what you like, they're wrong. My guy has experienced it a few times since he's been with me, and I can absolutely tell you it's diet/nutrition related. Certain foods trigger it for him, and discontinued feeding of those foods stops it. It can be difficult to figure out though, as tapping can start within hours of consuming the trigger, and can take days to completely subside.

I guess if it were me, I'd do what I know works, and keep quiet about it to the vet as you may need him for other things later.

Eek! Sorry Jon! Posted right when you did 🤭

 

[saxguy64]

Also

Eek! Sorry Jon! Posted right when you did 🤭

No worries, I type slow 🤣

 

[saxguy64]

Okay, if you haven't seen this already, this is a good resource with some good explanation of ekkie diet.

The Eclectus Diet: The Do's, the Don'ts, and Everything You Need to Know But Were Too Afraid to Ask

The eclectus diet; much talked-about, always poorly understood. This post will have three objectives: Explain the dos and don’ts of feeding your eclectus Relate it to wild eclectus feeding behavior Examine the discussion surrounding their physiology, and what makes them unique among parrot...

www.parrotforums.com

ETA:

Another listing of different safe vs not safe foods

fruitandveg

 

[SailBoat]

To be fair, there are a larger number of self-taught Avian Vets that work hard to keep-up with this highly-specialized, rapidly expanding field. Certified Avian Vets are a very highly specialized and small group of Avian experts that have specific re-certification requirements and a group, which they belong too! This group is open to those self-taught Vets and will provide them information.

So What: As an Example, Eclectus are rare in the Companion Parrot Market, but are becoming more popular. As a result, there is very little field studies that had been completed and sadly, their needs have been linked to mid-large Parrot requirements. Point being, unless your Avian Vet is keeping-up with this small group of highly unique Parrots, it would be understandable that your Avian Vet would recommend pellets in addition to -or- in replacement of Chop!

As a member of this Forum, you have an expensive history open to you and deep into that Forum you will find extensive information on historical issues faced by Eclectus owners. FYI: Toe Tapping, if the individual providing information does know what it is and what commonly causes it, they are not current regarding the requirements of Eclectus.

Eclectus Species: I referenced Eclectus Field Studies and the lack of them! Why is that important? Eclectus come from a very special region that for a number of reason is highly limited (darn little) in much needed nutrition. As a result their system works overtime to pull what little nutrition found in their local region. When they are provided a diet that is based on the needs of other Parrots, the diet is overly rich in nutrition and as a result overloads the Parrot. As a result, blood testing is far more common/ important with Eclectus to track their nutrition levels. To recommend a change to an Eclectus diet and not have a current blood test, strongly imply limited knowledge of this species!

Whether you wish to place any credibility in what I provided above is up to you.
Your choice, your Parrot!

 

[ifnlovebirds]

Wow, tough call. I'm no vet, so just my opinion. The vet's advice sounds reasonable to me on general principle for anything besides ekkies. On that, I totally agree with you. I'm not one to say pellets or quality seed mix are completely evil for ekkies. I just do what I can to best balance my guy's diet. He doesn't particularly care for most greens, so Top's being largely comprised of greens is a way to get at least some into him. As they say, everything in moderation. Top's is far from being the bulk of his diet, and after trying daily for well over a year, he finally eats maybe 6-8 pellets in a day. I've never tried Harrison's, but I was reading on their website. First, organic or not, they have added vitamins and minerals, which can definitely be an issue for ekkies. Second, in their write up about ekkies, they call toe tapping a nervous habit that's unrelated to diet. Call me what you like, they're wrong. My guy has experienced it a few times since he's been with me, and I can absolutely tell you it's diet/nutrition related. Certain foods trigger it for him, and discontinued feeding of those foods stops it. It can be difficult to figure out though, as tapping can start within hours of consuming the trigger, and can take days to completely subside.

I guess if it were me, I'd do what I know works, and keep quiet about it to the vet as you may need him for other things later.

I do have Topps pellets in my inventory as I fed them to my other birds and he has eaten them before when I was out of chop (maybe once a month) and he's been fine from it. I will get a blood test next time I go to see if the diet I have him on is fine for him.

The things about Topps containing more greens (i didn't notice before) is actually really helpful because my ekkie DOES prefer other things over greens so I might try to toss a couple of pellets in his food. I will stay away from harrisons because I really don't want the extra added mineral stuff (didn't know this either). Thank you for your response.

 

[ifnlovebirds]

To be fair, there are a larger number of self-taught Avian Vets that work hard to keep-up with this highly-specialized, rapidly expanding field. Certified Avian Vets are a very highly specialized and small group of Avian experts that have specific re-certification requirements and a group, which they belong too! This group is open to those self-taught Vets and will provide them information.

So What: As an Example, Eclectus are rare in the Companion Parrot Market, but are becoming more popular. As a result, there is very little field studies that had been completed and sadly, their needs have been linked to mid-large Parrot requirements. Point being, unless your Avian Vet is keeping-up with this small group of highly unique Parrots, it would be understandable that your Avian Vet would recommend pellets in addition to -or- in replacement of Chop!

As a member of this Forum, you have an expensive history open to you and deep into that Forum you will find extensive information on historical issues faced by Eclectus owners. FYI: Toe Tapping, if the individual providing information does know what it is and what commonly causes it, they are not current regarding the requirements of Eclectus.

Eclectus Species: I referenced Eclectus Field Studies and the lack of them! Why is that important? Eclectus come from a very special region that for a number of reason is highly limited (darn little) in much needed nutrition. As a result their system works overtime to pull what little nutrition found in their local region. When they are provided a diet that is based on the needs of other Parrots, the diet is overly rich in nutrition and as a result overloads the Parrot. As a result, blood testing is far more common/ important with Eclectus to track their nutrition levels. To recommend a change to an Eclectus diet and not have a current blood test, strongly imply limited knowledge of this species!

Whether you wish to place any credibility in what I provided above is up to you.
Your choice, your Parrot!

Ah it really sucks how little info there is on these birds

My vet did try to get me to do a blood test but I declined because of the time frame but now I will defo go back next visit for a blood test to see if the diet he is on fits his needs. Thank you for your response, after reading I think it is best to keep him on his current chop diet and try to add occasional pellets (to fill gaps of missing nutrients but not a LOT to overwhelm and I'm thinking every two days..) see if that causes any issues. Again, thank you

 

[ifnlovebirds]

Does he eat everything offered?

I’m sure an Eclectus owner will chime in but I’m fairly certain TOPs pellets are safe for them. As long as their pellets don’t contain artificial preservatives/vitamins, dyes or fillers.
Basically that limits you to TOPs!

As long as the chop you make has 10+ different veggies I’d say you’re good. Feeding them sprouted grains/legumes/seeds is very beneficial too.

He eats 90% of the thing offered as long as i hand it to him...
And ok I've also heard TOps is the best pellet brand for them and this post just confirmed it so I feel safer giving him those.

Thank you for your response

 

[BennyTheBeaver]

So I think the biggest misconception here is that Pellets aren't an automatic no-no. However, feeding an Eclectus solely a Pellet diet is a big no-no.

Our vet told us the same thing as yours did. What we do, and our girl thrives on it, is we give her a few Harrison's Coarse Adult Pellets (Pepper Blend) with each meal along with her fresh/thawed chop (5-8 Pellets depending on the size of the chop).

She still gets the majority of her nutrients from the chop (and is healthy for her gut) but she also gets the few nutrients she's missing from the Pellets (she also loves the Pellets). We supplement this with BeneBac added to her food once every week or two to keep her crop and gut bateria healthy. Most people recommend Tops, and Tops is fantastic dont get me wrong. We went with Harrison's as its what our Avian Vet carries, recommends, and our girl didn't care for Tops.

Healthy Eclectus should have blood work done annually with well bird checkups.

 

[kme3388]

Hi there, I was wondering how your Ekkie is doing on Tops pellets? I cannot find Roudybush in store anymore. They are sold out online a lot. Roudybush is what I am currently feeding my Ekkie. I was thinking about changing him to tops. Have you had any toe tapping, or wing flipping with these pellets?

P.S I’m hoping to convert my entire flock to tops. It would make my life easier. However not sure how this will go as my conures tend to be more picky.

 

[chris-md]

To tack onto what my friends have said, this “must feed pellets” is resounding for all vets, not just this “respected” vet. I got it at a small vet as well.

Your vet is correct in that feeding unsupplemented runs the risk of missing vital nutrients. What he’s NOT saying is that if you feed a highly diverse diet (ie your chop contains like 20+ ingredients, he’s getting all manner of diverse treats, etc), the risks of this really are minimal.

What Benny indicated isn’t unreasonable, include a couple pellets into a chop dinner. But you have to watch your bird for any adverse reactions.

There is also another pellet I’ve found, Wild origins, which I lack any supplements like TOPS. But they have double the ingredients of tops with more exotic ingredients, so run around $70 where tops would be $20. But I do as Benny and throw just a small amount on top of his morning or evening meals. They aren’t as crumbly as TOPS which is a bonus.

 

[azflcowboy]

Hi there, I was wondering how your Ekkie is doing on Tops pellets? I cannot find Roudybush in store anymore. They are sold out online a lot. Roudybush is what I am currently feeding my Ekkie. I was thinking about changing him to tops. Have you had any toe tapping, or wing flipping with these pellets?

P.S I’m hoping to convert my entire flock to tops. It would make my life easier. However not sure how this will go as my conures tend to be more picky.

Hello I did much research and reading posts on Parrot Forum (which is Great Site many recommended the Topps after a few days Moses started eating the Topps and appears to Love them while my wife prepares his daily fresh cut fruits and vegetable in the morning I see Moses likes to eat Topps which i leave in his feed dish throughout the day and change every night Sometimes during the afternoon or evening before "Sleeping Time" (when i say that about 7:30 pm, moses comes to me and indicates he is ready for "Sleeping Time"
My wife says somedays he eats more fresh food diet and less Topps Pellets, the next day he may eat more Topps Pellets and less fresh fruits and vegetables
I take Moses to the 3rd avian vet on thursday. The other 2 so-called avian vets were not so good I shall ask the vets about things i am reading that feeding Good Pellets (like Topps) is better than fresh cut fruits and vegetables because it is more consistent to their diet. hmmmm we shall see?
In closing No toe tapping or wing flipping the only time he flaps his wings is usually when i take Moses out by the pool (which is enclosed of course and i say "WEWEWEWE" then he flpas his wings on those words and I give him a small very small piece of walnut now Moses has learned to "poop" when i ask him if he needs to "Poopie") and then he gets a small piece of walnut when he "poops" I hope I helped you and God Bless Our "Fine Feathered Friends"

 

[azflcowboy]

So I went in for a wellness exam for my male eclectus who is now 1yr old. He’s never been to this vet so today was his first time. This vet, who my friend and i have been trusting for the past 12 years for our birds and the only avian vet i trust IN WASHINGTON. Told me today to start feeding my male eclectus pellets. So obviously i’m really startled because there’s such a huge community around NOT feeding this specific breed pellets due to multitude of reasons that I am well aware of. I let my vet do the explaining and he said it’s because I can’t adjust how much of each nutrient the bird is getting from chop?

“You don’t know much much vitamin A he’s getting or how much calcium etc. It’s much better to have a mix of both so he has something that’s already balanced for him on top of his chop.”

I would agree with this if it was any other parrot than an a eclectus. I also trust this clinic A LOt and people in WA who are bird owners also do so. He also mentioned birds who are on a pelleted diet (he said to feed topps and harrison’s) live longer. That was what kinda scared me because obviously I want my bird to live as long as possible while still being healthy. So idk!!

So now i’m really confused and Idk if I should trust internet/community or my vet… And again this clinic is really respected and known for providing really great care for avians specifically and i’ve been trusting them for a while.

thank you for reading.

Hello I have heard the same report about switching to Pellets full time (I and Moses likes Topps Pellets I was hoping that I could get more qualified input as well
ALso we wanted to go on a cruise for a few days and no one has time or experience to chop fresh fruits and vegetables that Moses is used to eating every day for the past 3 years we have been honored to give Moses a Forever Home Moses is very healthy and Happy Please advise if you have done further research thank you and God Bless our fine feathered friends and family

Hello I did much research and reading posts on Parrot Forum (which is Great Site many recommended the Topps after a few days Moses started eating the Topps and appears to Love them while my wife prepares his daily fresh cut fruits and vegetable in the morning I see Moses likes to eat Topps which i leave in his feed dish throughout the day and change every night Sometimes during the afternoon or evening before "Sleeping Time" (when i say that about 7:30 pm, moses comes to me and indicates he is ready for "Sleeping Time"
My wife says somedays he eats more fresh food diet and less Topps Pellets, the next day he may eat more Topps Pellets and less fresh fruits and vegetables
I take Moses to the 3rd avian vet on thursday. The other 2 so-called avian vets were not so good I shall ask the vets about things i am reading that feeding Good Pellets (like Topps) is better than fresh cut fruits and vegetables because it is more consistent to their diet. hmmmm we shall see?
In closing No toe tapping or wing flipping the only time he flaps his wings is usually when i take Moses out by the pool (which is enclosed of course and i say "WEWEWEWE" then he flpas his wings on those words and I give him a small very small piece of walnut now Moses has learned to "poop" when i ask him if he needs to "Poopie") and then he gets a small piece of walnut when he "poops" I hope I helped you and God Bless Our "Fine Feathered Friends"

Hello after i read your post i saw this post hmmmm hope to get more input on switching to pellets 100% of time for Eckies

So I went in for a wellness exam for my male eclectus who is now 1yr old. He’s never been to this vet so today was his first time. This vet, who my friend and i have been trusting for the past 12 years for our birds and the only avian vet i trust IN WASHINGTON. Told me today to start feeding my male eclectus pellets. So obviously i’m really startled because there’s such a huge community around NOT feeding this specific breed pellets due to multitude of reasons that I am well aware of. I let my vet do the explaining and he said it’s because I can’t adjust how much of each nutrient the bird is getting from chop?

“You don’t know much much vitamin A he’s getting or how much calcium etc. It’s much better to have a mix of both so he has something that’s already balanced for him on top of his chop.”

I would agree with this if it was any other parrot than an a eclectus. I also trust this clinic A LOt and people in WA who are bird owners also do so. He also mentioned birds who are on a pelleted diet (he said to feed topps and harrison’s) live longer. That was what kinda scared me because obviously I want my bird to live as long as possible while still being healthy. So idk!!

So now i’m really confused and Idk if I should trust internet/community or my vet… And again this clinic is really respected and known for providing really great care for avians specifically and i’ve been trusting them for a while.

thank you for reading.

Hello I have heard the same report about switching to Pellets full time (I and Moses likes Topps Pellets I was hoping that I could get more qualified input as well
ALso we wanted to go on a cruise for a few days and no one has time or experience to chop fresh fruits and vegetables that Moses is used to eating every day for the past 3 years we have been honored to give Moses a Forever Home Moses is very healthy and Happy Please advise if you have done further research thank you and God Bless our fine feathered friends and family

 

[kme3388]

I have met with 3 vets for Nico (Ekkie). 2 were not avian, and were just trying to help with his medical issues as avian vets aren’t easy to come by. One is avian certified. All of them recommended pellets. I explained on each occasion that I make a chop for Nico. The avian vet herself said that Ekkie’s can’t just eat fruits, veggies, beans, and such. That they do need pellets, and a small amount of nuts as well. She had recommended almond slivers (in small amounts).

I am very curious what you find out at the next vet appointment.

 

[azflcowboy]

I have met with 3 vets for Nico (Ekkie). 2 were not avian, and were just trying to help with his medical issues as avian vets aren’t easy to come by. One is avian certified. All of them recommended pellets. I explained on each occasion that I make a chop for Nico. The avian vet herself said that Ekkie’s can’t just eat fruits, veggies, beans, and such. That they do need pellets, and a small amount of nuts as well. She had recommended almond slivers (in small amounts).

I am very curious what you find out at the next vet appointment.

Hello
I shall all know about thursday report from an avian vet in citrus county, florida
thank you and god bless

 

[Birdman666]

NOT JUST NO, OH, HELL NO!!!!

YOU DO NOT FEED ECKIES VITAMIN ENRICHED ANYTHING... PLUS A LOT OF PELLETS ARE MADE FROM CORN BOTH OF WHICH COULD TRIGGER A RIDE ON THE TOE TAP EXPRESS,..

To me pellets and Eckies are a NEVER!