Shine
Member
Looking for some advice on my Addy. Shes a Red-Lored that is approx 15 years old. Shes definitely a 'she.'
I got her 16 mos ago from Craigslist. She was living in a cage in someones back yard.
I brought her home and found her to be very timid, very shy, but also very sweet. I quickly found out she LOVES men, but hates me! After about a year she started letting me scratch her head.... sometimes. She has never stepped up unless bribed by a pistachio and only occasionally at that. And not in the past 4 or 5 mos. About 6 weeks ago I needed to weigh her, she looked like she had lost some weight again, so tried to get her step up and she flew off her cage onto the floor. Ever since, she has been terrified of me. If she sees my hands, or I walk by too close, she screams and runs away. She even does this when I'm changing her food and water sometimes. Its gotten a bit better, in the past couple of weeks, but she still screams a times if I get too close. I talk to her constantly and offer her food, but its almost always a no go. I have not been able to touch her at all in the past 6 weeks. I have a male friend that she LOVES! The instant she hears his voice, she runs toward him and immediately lets him scratch her and will start regurgitating. Hes careful about only touching her appropriately etc. But as long as hes here... shes staring at him and cooing at him. He is obviously her person, but he cant be. Shes stuck with me.
She came to me only eating apples, pecans and nutraberries. Thats all she was given.
I started giving her a huge variety of fruits and veges. About 8 mos ago, she ate a couple of pieces of grapes, and a few blueberries. Other then that, she will eat snap peas. She LOVES snap peas. For the last 6 mos, the snap peas is the only thing she will eat, as well as a bit of apple. Thats it as far as fresh stuff, and I give her a variety of fresh fruits and veges daily. She NEVER touches them, only the snap peas and maybe a bit of apple.
She does eat fruit Zupreem though but probably not enough to satisfy her if I were to take away the snap peas. At this point, I'm afraid to not give her a bunch of snap peas every day!
I have discussed this with my CAV and he told me to increase her pecans and nutriberries again so would gain back her weight. Also said that it can sometimes take up to 2 to 3 years to get them on a better diet. Sadly, her diet has not improved, at all. She will eat corn and rice sometimes, but I know thats not considered good food for her.
If you have read this far, thank you.
My questions are, can she live and be healthy on pecans, apples, snap peas, nutriberries and fruit zupreem and the occasional corn on the cob?
And, should I look for a new home for her with a man? She is very attentive to any man that comes into my apt, so it seems to be men in general that she loves. And she truly hates me.
I want her to be healthy and happy and I know shes not happy. She eats ok if I give her the things she will eat, but I have to wonder if she was in a living situation where she was happy, maybe she would eat better?
I'm happy to keep her with me, I dont want to rehome her, but I hate her being unhappy.
Any and all advice would be appreciated.
Thanks
I got her 16 mos ago from Craigslist. She was living in a cage in someones back yard.
I brought her home and found her to be very timid, very shy, but also very sweet. I quickly found out she LOVES men, but hates me! After about a year she started letting me scratch her head.... sometimes. She has never stepped up unless bribed by a pistachio and only occasionally at that. And not in the past 4 or 5 mos. About 6 weeks ago I needed to weigh her, she looked like she had lost some weight again, so tried to get her step up and she flew off her cage onto the floor. Ever since, she has been terrified of me. If she sees my hands, or I walk by too close, she screams and runs away. She even does this when I'm changing her food and water sometimes. Its gotten a bit better, in the past couple of weeks, but she still screams a times if I get too close. I talk to her constantly and offer her food, but its almost always a no go. I have not been able to touch her at all in the past 6 weeks. I have a male friend that she LOVES! The instant she hears his voice, she runs toward him and immediately lets him scratch her and will start regurgitating. Hes careful about only touching her appropriately etc. But as long as hes here... shes staring at him and cooing at him. He is obviously her person, but he cant be. Shes stuck with me.
She came to me only eating apples, pecans and nutraberries. Thats all she was given.
I started giving her a huge variety of fruits and veges. About 8 mos ago, she ate a couple of pieces of grapes, and a few blueberries. Other then that, she will eat snap peas. She LOVES snap peas. For the last 6 mos, the snap peas is the only thing she will eat, as well as a bit of apple. Thats it as far as fresh stuff, and I give her a variety of fresh fruits and veges daily. She NEVER touches them, only the snap peas and maybe a bit of apple.
She does eat fruit Zupreem though but probably not enough to satisfy her if I were to take away the snap peas. At this point, I'm afraid to not give her a bunch of snap peas every day!
I have discussed this with my CAV and he told me to increase her pecans and nutriberries again so would gain back her weight. Also said that it can sometimes take up to 2 to 3 years to get them on a better diet. Sadly, her diet has not improved, at all. She will eat corn and rice sometimes, but I know thats not considered good food for her.
If you have read this far, thank you.
My questions are, can she live and be healthy on pecans, apples, snap peas, nutriberries and fruit zupreem and the occasional corn on the cob?
And, should I look for a new home for her with a man? She is very attentive to any man that comes into my apt, so it seems to be men in general that she loves. And she truly hates me.
I want her to be healthy and happy and I know shes not happy. She eats ok if I give her the things she will eat, but I have to wonder if she was in a living situation where she was happy, maybe she would eat better?
I'm happy to keep her with me, I dont want to rehome her, but I hate her being unhappy.
Any and all advice would be appreciated.
Thanks