Short version: How do you know if your bird has arthritis? What do you do about it?
Long version: I'm beginning to wonder if maybe Jasper has some arthritis in his feet. He's a huge guy for a YNA who's at a healthy weight of 725g. He's spent most of his 24 years in a cage with limited movement, little perch variety, and fat on a seed mix diet (though he did get some fresh stuff). He's gotten into much better shape and is on a better diet now, and his vet's thrilled about how well he's doing. His bloodwork showed that his cholesterol was high when I got him, but we haven't repeated it since. His uric acid was normal.
He will sometimes rest on the bottom of his cage, especially if one of his big whiffle ball foot toys is down there so he can rest his keel on it. He'll do the same thing on his perch where he'll straddle a big ring and rest his weight on that and take a nap. It's not uncommon for him to just flop belly down on my lap when he's getting scritches. He prefers to put his food down and eat it out of a bowl rather than hold it, though he will, and will alternate feet if he has to.
He has a VERY strong, equal grip with both feet when he wants and can easily hang one footed from a toy and do the mad bird flapping, so I don't think there's any neurological or musculoskeletal problems there. The skin on his feet is healthy, there are no sores, and he doesn't limp or seem lame. His joints are not large or abnormal in any way either.
So, what do you folks do for your birds that have arthritis? Does it sound to you like he might be having foot pain? I'm thinking of making him a padded platform perch he can rest on to see if he likes it. The thermo perches interest me, but I'm terrified of leaving anything plugged in when I'm gone, especially something around the birds. Are there any foods or dietary supplements that might help him out?
Long version: I'm beginning to wonder if maybe Jasper has some arthritis in his feet. He's a huge guy for a YNA who's at a healthy weight of 725g. He's spent most of his 24 years in a cage with limited movement, little perch variety, and fat on a seed mix diet (though he did get some fresh stuff). He's gotten into much better shape and is on a better diet now, and his vet's thrilled about how well he's doing. His bloodwork showed that his cholesterol was high when I got him, but we haven't repeated it since. His uric acid was normal.
He will sometimes rest on the bottom of his cage, especially if one of his big whiffle ball foot toys is down there so he can rest his keel on it. He'll do the same thing on his perch where he'll straddle a big ring and rest his weight on that and take a nap. It's not uncommon for him to just flop belly down on my lap when he's getting scritches. He prefers to put his food down and eat it out of a bowl rather than hold it, though he will, and will alternate feet if he has to.
He has a VERY strong, equal grip with both feet when he wants and can easily hang one footed from a toy and do the mad bird flapping, so I don't think there's any neurological or musculoskeletal problems there. The skin on his feet is healthy, there are no sores, and he doesn't limp or seem lame. His joints are not large or abnormal in any way either.
So, what do you folks do for your birds that have arthritis? Does it sound to you like he might be having foot pain? I'm thinking of making him a padded platform perch he can rest on to see if he likes it. The thermo perches interest me, but I'm terrified of leaving anything plugged in when I'm gone, especially something around the birds. Are there any foods or dietary supplements that might help him out?