My family refuses to bring parrot to 1st vet check

Supaoskd

New member
Mar 20, 2022
7
18
Parrots
Apollo, around 3 months old
Male Eclectus Parrot
I brought a 6 months old male eclectus parrot home last month. As he came from a breeder that only fed him pellets and a place with a lot of wild birds, Iā€™m concerned for his health. His feathers are black as the picture below. My family said they asked their bird friends and said it is normal for young birds to have black feathers which Iā€™m not entirely sure of what they said.

Sometimes his droppings are watery and my family said itā€™s because he drinks a lot of water. His water bowl is always filled with food but Iā€™m not sure if itā€™s because he wants to soften his food or heā€™s thirsty whenever he eats.

I give him chop twice a day. Sometimes pellets mixed into his chop

Am I wrong? Should I convince them to allow him to go to the vet?
 

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ginaekkie

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Mar 10, 2022
18
38
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Eclectus male and female
Iā€™m not an expert but here is what happened to my male rescue in his previous home when he was given human food and bad diet (bbq from the grill we heard) he was black and a year later with less bad stuff / better food heā€™s already improving Before and after

Right side is when we got him 6 week ago and heā€™s on a conversion diet to get off seeds so hope heā€™s full green after a molt or two

D196C7AE-9C71-43EF-BDC8-092E5132FF7A.jpeg
 

wrench13

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The 1st vet visit is the most important, as the vet can establish a base line on your parrot when he is well ( we hope), so that in the future if things go wrong, they can compare the values from then. Please show your parents this, its very important. The vet should be a certified Avian Vet, not a cat and dog one. Parrots are a specialized field of vet medicine.
 

Scott

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Aug 21, 2010
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A warm welcome to you and Apollo! Black feathers abnormal for a male eclectus, primary way to determine cause is certified avian vet (or equivalent) vist. Eclectus nutrition highly specialized, predominantly fresh veggies and some fruit. Many parrots contaminate water with food, please change frequently to avoid bacteria buildup. Excessive water consumption a potential red flag as well.

Veterinary visits can be costly but often lifesaving and less expensive in the long run.
 

Henderbird

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Apr 7, 2022
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Hey!
I don't have any creative or pleasant ways of going about giving you advice in your situation besides to just talk it out with them and educate as much as you can while still being respectful.
Let them know the detrimental effects that this could have on your bird and how YOU would feel if things were to get worse.
Mention the natural instinct of parrots willingness to hide their illnesses, and they hide it well.
And hopefully there will be some sort of common ground as the outcome.
Good luck!
 

Keatz

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Jan 5, 2016
108
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Basil (Amazon)
I think the best you can do is just ask your parents to take him to the vet, and if they so no, there really isn't much else you can do except look after him well.
I looked at the pictures, and I wouldn't worry too much if I were you.
I'm sur that with the right diet, his feathers will improve after his first couple of molts. Some young parrots do look motley and they are prone to chewing their feathers, as yours appears to be. They're just learning to preen, and it's not uncommon for them to over preen.
When I got my eclectus, his feathers appeared in worse condition than yours. He also had several large wing feathers that had grown out askew. I took him to several vets, and they all said they believed that he was not weaned correctly, which can affect feather development. Also, as a young bird, he over preened his feathers and barbered his tail feathers. It took a few molts, but over time, his feather condition improved. He stopped barbering his feathers; he does not over preen like he used to, and his crooked feathers corrected themselves and now grow in the correct way now. He looks like a big, healthy boy.
I think that if you look after yours to the best of your ability, he'll be fine too. As for his watery poops, if there is liquid in the food he eats, his poop probably will be watery.
 

kme3388

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Sep 17, 2021
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Hi there, and welcome. I too have an Ekkie boy! Mine's an old man. An avian vet is so important. Ekkie's can have some challenging health issues (it was described to me it would be like comparing a person that is immune compromised to someone who isn't). Their diets are very important as well because they tend to have digestion issues. Ekkie's can be hormonal year round. They don't just get this way in spring. Their feathers are different, and are more stringy.

I do agree with the above poster @Keatz about the watery bowl. I used to feed my conure a seed diet before I learned that this was terrible for her health. When I transitioned her to a pellet diet her bowl changed more green, and watery. I'm still working on getting her to eat veggies. For whatever reason a seed diet gives parrots solid black, and white bowl.

Your Ekkie is a handsome boy! I hope everything is fine with him.
 

Sama

Member
Jul 14, 2021
15
58
Australia
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Amazons, eclectus, indian ring necks, cockatiels
I brought a 6 months old male eclectus parrot home last month. As he came from a breeder that only fed him pellets and a place with a lot of wild birds, Iā€™m concerned for his health. His feathers are black as the picture below. My family said they asked their bird friends and said it is normal for young birds to have black feathers which Iā€™m not entirely sure of what they said.

Sometimes his droppings are watery and my family said itā€™s because he drinks a lot of water. His water bowl is always filled with food but Iā€™m not sure if itā€™s because he wants to soften his food or heā€™s thirsty whenever he eats.

I give him chop twice a day. Sometimes pellets mixed into his chop

Am I wrong? Should I convince them to allow him to go to the vet?
Eclectus parrot especially the male so sensitive, slow eater, his food should be fresh varieties of fruits and vegetables and source of protein like cooked mix beans, lentils, they need soft food so why they use water daily to soften their food easier to eat.. So first try to change his food at least three types of fruits and three types if vegetables daily 2 times and add some sprouts mix seed in another dish..
Sun is much important and shower.
Let him out if his cage in the room daily at least one hour to be more healthy and happy, give him some gumtree eucalyptus branches to chew midday to enjoy chewing and tirm his beak..
They are soical so need your attention..
Check his health daily to see .
Hope this info help youšŸ„°
 

kme3388

Well-known member
Sep 17, 2021
1,059
3,249
Minnesota, USA
Parrots
Eclectus Parrot: Nico (male)
Jenday Conure: Kiwi (female)
Eclectus parrot especially the male so sensitive, slow eater, his food should be fresh varieties of fruits and vegetables and source of protein like cooked mix beans, lentils, they need soft food so why they use water daily to soften their food easier to eat.. So first try to change his food at least three types of fruits and three types if vegetables daily 2 times and add some sprouts mix seed in another dish..
Sun is much important and shower.
Let him out if his cage in the room daily at least one hour to be more healthy and happy, give him some gumtree eucalyptus branches to chew midday to enjoy chewing and tirm his beak..
They are soical so need your attention..
Check his health daily to see .
Hope this info help youšŸ„°
Iā€™ve tried to find eucalyptus branches with no luck. I am in the U.S. Do you know where this can be found?

Iā€™ve also looked for Java trees to build my Ekkie a stand with no luck.

Is it just me or is this stuff hard to find?
 

Laurasea

Well-known member
Aug 2, 2018
12,593
10,702
USA
Parrots
Full house
I brought a 6 months old male eclectus parrot home last month. As he came from a breeder that only fed him pellets and a place with a lot of wild birds, Iā€™m concerned for his health. His feathers are black as the picture below. My family said they asked their bird friends and said it is normal for young birds to have black feathers which Iā€™m not entirely sure of what they said.

Sometimes his droppings are watery and my family said itā€™s because he drinks a lot of water. His water bowl is always filled with food but Iā€™m not sure if itā€™s because he wants to soften his food or heā€™s thirsty whenever he eats.

I give him chop twice a day. Sometimes pellets mixed into his chop

Am I wrong? Should I convince them to allow him to go to the vet?
I'm not sure what ekkie stool should look like on constancy. But I can tell you the urates should be white and creamy not yellow and stringy like in pictures. Probably the fecal should be more formed. So I would worry a bacterial or other infection. Veterinarian needed. Likely a round of antibiotics from veterinarian will clear right up. The longer you wait the more expensive and prolonged recovery may be.

Feathers a combination of health, diet, and feather destruction behavior like Over preening . A health issue can cause this. And behavior plus health can lead to plucking. Once plucking starts its difficult to stop. So a timely vet visit may prevent a bald bird.

In my home I was always taught to take care if the ones who can take care of themselves first.
 

HeatherG

Well-known member
Apr 25, 2020
3,893
6,966
Can you save up some money so you can pay for at least part of the visit? My parents were worried about money so if I paid for something or part of something they might allow it.
 

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