New Vasa Owner!

[Brittany0208]

As of 3 months ago, I have adopted a 13-year-old male Greater Vasa that only has one leg. I haven't had any luck with internet searches about the species, and I was wondering if anyone could help me out with learning more about my guy. A little backstory on him: he has been an aviary breeder his entire life and lost his leg due to a raccoon attack, which damaged some of the nerves in his remaining foot, so he only uses three of his four toes. When I got him, he was very underweight, being 359 grams and severely calcium deficient. I have revised his diet, and as of yesterday, he weighs 429 grams but my avian vet says she wants him in the low 500s. He is very fearful of people and objects, but has bonded to me over the last 3 months to the point no one else can go near his cage or touch him. I'm still learning his personality, and I'm not sure if I've seen it yet since he is my first parrot as I have only had a budgie when I was 11 and a dove when I was 14. All stories, suggestions, and insight are welcomed.

 

[WendyN]

Thank you for giving Java a loving home.

 

[Brittany0208]

@WendyN Thank you for your kind words

 

[WendyN]

 

[greys4u]

Thank You

 

[Birdbabe]

We have section here called " Vasa Vista"..check it out..thank you for helping him.

 

[Brittany0208]

@Birdbabe I did, and was hoping some of the members would still be active.

 

[sunnysmom]

Thanks for helping him. Vasas are beautiful birds but not very common. I'm not sure if any of our active members currently have one..........

 

[Brittany0208]

@sunnysmom I'm hoping to learn more about them since I've gone through just about every internet article, which typically said the same thing, and the breeder I got him from only had him a year or two before I ended up with him.

 

[camelotshadow]

Oooh poor Java...Glad you are taken care of him & he survived an attack by a raccoon!

Just have patience & cater to his special needs as you would any bird...

They are really captivating to me!!! I like the unusual & not too many people withthem & you won't find alot but just learn from the bird.

Not sure if the diet is specialized but go for the usual lots of fresh grains fruits veggies pellets seeds etc...

We lost a veryspecial one to an accident...not sure if there are any activemembers with one left.

 

[WendyN]

What a sweetie pie!

 

[Brittany0208]

@camelotshadow I believe the vasa diet is somewhat speciallized as they require more protein than average and typically don't do well on a pellet-heavy diet. I've also read that they eat A LOT of fruit, which he loves, but I feel the sugar content is high, so I've been providing more vegetables and grains than anything.

 

[camelotshadow]

If thye eat alittle pellets they can get some protein with some vitamin/minerals etc. Does not have to be alot.

Right now the best thing is to just have him eat & get his weight back to normal & then tweak the diet to the most healthy.

 

[Brittany0208]

If thye eat alittle pellets they can get some protein with some vitamin/minerals etc. Does not have to be alot.

Right now the best thing is to just have him eat & get his weight back to normal & then tweak the diet to the most healthy.

I agree, right now, the only pellets I'm feeding him are Harrison's High Potency, which he has no problem going through. He won't touch Zupreem Naturals or TOPS. Even the breeder I got him from can only provide some of her own personal information, which doesn't typically help me in the long run since finding information on Vasas is scarce.

 

[camelotshadow]

Wow, Harrisons Hi Potency is the best for protein etc so you're on the right track!!!

No big loss on the Zupreem but Tops is a good food except for its lack of vit D3.
Make sure he gets sun. Was it an outdoor aviary? TN is a moderateclimate

MAkebirdy bread with almond or coconut flour mixed in with other good thingsin it...Add almond butter nuts seeds,veggies fruits throw them into a tasty morsel!

 

[Brittany0208]

@camelotshadow he LOVES birdie bread, and I throw all kinds of stuff in there: chia seeds, crushed eggshell, almonds, brazil nuts, vegetables, dried fruit, and his ABSOLUTE favorite, Red Palm Oil. I was told that Vasa Parrots need an animal-based protein source, and I've tried offering cooked chicken and scrambled eggs but he wants nothing to do with them.

 

[camelotshadow]

Penny it has been said willeat amorselof meat, chicken or fish. Not given her any yet but she loves scrambled egg.
She's a good eater.

Sounds liek you are doing well...try to get some chicken in disguise. Maybe coat it in almond butter or someting he likes or crumble it small & get it in the bread.

 

[Brittany0208]

Penny it has been said willeat amorselof meat, chicken or fish. Not given her any yet but she loves scrambled egg.
She's a good eater.

Sounds liek you are doing well...try to get some chicken in disguise. Maybe coat it in almond butter or someting he likes or crumble it small & get it in the bread.

I will definitely try that, just have to make sure he doesn't see me

 

[faislaq]

He's so handsome! We can try tagging some of the more recent members who have had vasas. Some of them may get email alerts.

Here goes nothing: @Tinta That's it. I can't even tag the other ones I found.

Maybe some of our rescue members may have worked with them? Worth a try: @Laura729 @Jenphilly Any other rescue folks to try?

 

[Brittany0208]

@faislaq thank you very much!