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Rescuing an Eclectus Tonight (NEED ADVICE)

MesozoicMiss

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Hey y'all! This is my first post an I am in need of advice.

The Story: Her name is Miss Scarlett and she is a female eclectus and 3 years old. She was the "mascot" for Hotel Modern. She got to spend the first 3 years of her life roaming the lobby then about 6 months ago she chewed a wire and zapped herself. She was fine but the vet said that she needed a shift in her diet (which the hotel was down with) and that the hotel would need to parrot proof their lobby (which the hotel said no, but yeah that sounds difficult for a hotel to do). So they put her in her cage and moved her back behind the scenes and she didnt really come out and lo! she developed a plucking behavior. They realized that Miss Scarlett didn't have a totally awesome life so I'm going to rescue her....potentially. I'm going to go look at her tonight.

More Information: My co-workers (I work at a zoo) went to go look at Miss Scarlett and learned that she crawls underneath stuff and dashes out to bite toes. Is this a nesty/hormonal thing?

My Background: I've been training birds for 3 years, however I've not worked with eclectus let alone a female eclectus.

Advice Needed: I believe with attention I can fix this plucking thing, however I don't know a lot about eclectus and nesty/hormonal behaviors. I guess I'd just make sure that she doesn't get nest materials as enrichment or hidey holes.
 

sunnysmom

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Welcome! I don't have eclectus experience but I'm sure others will answer soon. I can't believe this bird just roamed the lobby. Wow.
 

macawpower58

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We've some great Ekkie owners on here, you'll get advice soon, be patient.

The running from under things to bite is universal in the parrot world, and yes, it's usually hormonal.

I also know Ekkies need a more specialized diet, and you'll get some advice on that too from our Ekkie owners.

Glad this little girl will soon be in a better place!
 

Birdbabe

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No advice, but thank you for helping her!
 

macawpower58

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Jamy

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Boy can they be feisty girls! The thing with an ekkie girl is that she will only let you help her if you can proof to her that she can trust you. The boys are very loving but the girls make you work a little harder. I would suggest only one person handling her for now they are a bit jealous too so lots of love and attention. Old habits die hard but she will learn to change over some time. Sometimes they will bond with a toy give her some options. I have to worn you some do scare them. The right one can give them comfort. From my experience. Hope it helps. Good luck!
 

redbarnmacaw

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New ekkie owner here, if u have Facebook they have specific groups ... And a lot more active. Wish you luck, we adopted our chicken a little over 2 weeks ago now
 

Chopper

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Sorry - I didn't see this yesterday. I hope things are going well for you. My female ekkie is wonderful. She does not bite me UNLESS she has been away from her cage too long and then she will get a bit harder with her nipping.

I feed my ekkies a lot of veggies in the am. In the pm when I get home from work after six they get about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of fruit or veggies again. If I get home really late they get a seed/nut/fruit mixture and only about 1/4 cup. That happens less than once a week.

My ekkies love the windows/light. They also love to get their spritzes.
 

sierraecho89

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Hi there,

Yes, the constant burrowing-under of things is a hormonal female ekkie thing; that's pretty typical. Basically, you want to eliminate any places that she can potentially nest under, because if she can access it/chew a hole in it/get into or under something, she will. Compulsively. Female ekkies spend something like 10 months out of the year in their nests, protecting their nests from other birds like cockatoos.

The one I interact with frequently will dart underneath things every time she can, or if she *thinks* she can get into something, she'll jump down. Just something to be aware of; they're not really "stand sitter" birds. =)

As far as the plucking goes--she may stop, but she may not. It depends on the cause--if she's plucking from a lack of attention, it might resolve. It could be dietary. It could be boredum. It could be lots of things. Or, even if it started some other way, it might have become a habit, and she might only get marginally better. Prepare for either scenario--ekkies are prone to plucking, so just be ready for that.

Have you researched dietary things for ekkies?
 
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