New Here and New to CAGs; Have a Question

[kidsnfids]

Hi Everyone,

My names Mindy and I am new to this forum. I signed up a year ago but never made any posts until now :09:. I have done a lot of searching and reading of this forum though.

I currently have 3 parrots; 2 Green-Cheeked Conures 2 and 3 years old, and a 17 almost 18 year old Congo African Gray. The African Gray (his name is Thor) I have had now for about a month and I am so very new to these larger parrots that I would like to get some more information from some seasoned CAG/larger bird owners.

Here is a little background on him before I go into my questions. He is very well adjusted, doesn't scream, hasn't plucked and seems to be settling into my loud home very nicely and is very friendly to my husband, myself and my children. He came from an elderly lady who's husband passed away 6 years ago and he was his bird. His diet wasn't the best but I guess it could of been worse. He was on a homemade type birdy bread for his whole life with fruits and peanuts as a supplement. I don't know if he ever had any other foods but he is very open to trying anything I give him and it took me two days to completely have him switched over to Harrison's High Potency. He gets the Harrison's in his bowl all day now and gets a bowl or two of a vegetable chop that I make. The cage he came with isn't huge but it isn't small to the point where he can't walk around in it. ( I will be upgrading his cage here within the next 6 months) He had one perch in it when we got him and I have since added a swing which he spends a lot of his time on.

So here is my question:

He seems to spend a lot of his time on one foot. I know that it is a relaxing pose for parrots but he seems to be doing it a lot more than my other birds do. The foot that he raises and tucks is the same foot that he eats with. He also at times sits at the bottom of the cage with that foot raised. He hasn't fallen off his perch or anything like that, his foot works just fine and he has no trouble climbing his cage or walking around the floor. My question is do the larger parrots stand on one foot more than the smaller ones, or do you think he has a bum leg? If he is dealing with a sore leg is there anything I can do to help relieve him of his pain or anything I can do to help strengthen the leg so that he can stand on it for longer amounts of time?

 

[Catisue22]

Hi there.
I have a CAG myself, and she doesn't spend any more time on her one foot than my others. I think that if you're really concerned about it, you should find an avian vet in your area. Since you just got him, it would be a good idea to go in for a check up anyway. That way you can see how healthy he is. If your vet isn't concerned about it, I would just keep an eye on it, and go in again if you think it's getting worse. I don't think that it's a bum leg, but he has seventeen years of history you know little to nothing about. You don't know if he hurt it a while ago, or if he was born with his leg funny, etc. Because of that, you should definitely have a check up. Plus, with that diet he had in the past, he should probably have some blood work done to see how he's doing.
I hope I've helped.

 

[Birdman666]

If the foot thing is what I am thinking of, it's probably normal.

He sounds pretty well adjusted.

The CAGS that pluck, and the really neurotic CAGS (usually one and the same) are generally birds that were raised in isolation, that didn't get enough stimulation growing up, and that were allowed to become fearful little perch potatoes...

They are so far from a "normal" CAG.

My CAG is more likely to pluck you, than himself. He's feisty, he's curious, and he is an instigator.

 

[BillsBirds]

Any new bird should get a wellness check. And a follow-up one once a year. Sounds like nothing serious, but, only a vet can know what to look for. Good luck with him.

 

[Featheredsamurai]

Since he's occasionally sitting on the bottom of the cage a platform perch may be perfect for him.

I recommend having a avian vet check out the leg, just encase there is a problem. My galah has a bad leg, when it starts to get sore she'll hold it up more. I can always tell when it's sore because she'll hold it off the perch, but not tuck it in. Hasn't happened as much lately.