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Help with new Eclectus

Brighty199

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Brittany
A friend of mine just showed up at my house with an Eclectus that I guess someone was going to just set free outside. I have other birds, but I have no experience in caring for this guy. (Green = male right?) All of the research I've been doing in the last couple hours has mentioned them needing a special diet, but there are several different variations of this diet. What do you recommend/What do you feed your Eclectus? This poor baby has also been plucking his feathers, he has a bald patch on his chest area. Any advice would be appreciated.
***I did call my avian vet and set up an appointment to have him checked over, but they arent able to get him in until Thursday morning so I just want to make sure I properly care for him in meantime until my vet can advise me of this birds needs***
 

Monaco

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Poor guy. Thanks for helping him.

It's going to depend on what he's accustomed to eating, and changing his diet can be difficult.

For the time being try for high water, fleshy fruits and vegetables. Squashes, papaya, melon, mango, grapes. They often have sensitivity to dyes, so pellets without dye will be a good plan... I've used Higgins intune, Roudybush and tops to wean off of zupreem. Butternut squash and sweet potatoes (steamed) is excellent, and papaya has digestive enzymes. I like these to use to introduce new foods or hide things my girl doesn't like very much. Cinnamon is a favorite here that I also use to disguise things she doesn't like. Try for as much fresh as he will eat.

I'll get you a link to a thread on diet.
 

sunnysmom

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Thank you for helping him. Poor baby. Yes, males are green.
 

Monaco

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A good read, with some specific ratios for you. Vets frequently offer misguided advice about ekkie dietary needs. Mine recommended 80% extruded pellets. It's just not a common enough species for research dollars, so it's typical they get treated as similar sized species like Greys.
 

Brighty199

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Thank you all for your advice, I greatly appreciate it! This morning I fed him a mixture of carrots, yellow squash, green beans, corn, romaine lettuce, cherry tomato, strawberries, honeydew and watermelon. I also have a smaller dish with a small amount of eclectus seed mix & harrisons pellets. He kind of just picked through it and mostly ate the carrots and watermelon and then went straight for the seed/pellet mix.
 

Brighty199

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Also, does anyone have any reccomendations as far as his plucking goes? Is it safe to give him a feather supplement? I'll attach a picture of him so you can better see the extent of his plucking.
 

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Monaco

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Also, does anyone have any reccomendations as far as his plucking goes? Is it safe to give him a feather supplement? I'll attach a picture of him so you can better see the extent of his plucking.
Not until you have some blood work from the vet. Ekkies don't do well with synthesized vitamins, particularly A. Once you have a handle on the diet and information from the lab work, you can move forward with changes. It can take a long time to convince them to cooperate, but don't give up! I think it's great that he picked through your offering! Mine will avoid an entire bowl if there's a suspicious new thing...sometimes for months at a time. Males tend to be a little more adventurous in that regard, so use that to your advantage!

I would say to evaluate the feather issue over the next two months. Watch for wing flipping and odd movements, toe tapping. Those indicate an issue with vitamin A, and will require a pellet without it. Watch for behavioral issues and see if you can log as much information as possible about the plucking incidents. What time of day, what he ate, what's happening before and during the plucking, and keep the notes to compare and refer back to.
I suspect that appropriate diet and calm, happy surroundings will do a lot of the work for you toward the plucking issue.
If you can incorporate foraging to his food now, you will do a lot of good for his physical and mental health. Especially his seed and pellets. Hide them in foraging toys or even several dishes all over the cage or play area. Skewers for chunky fresh food are also fun and helpful.

It's a lot of work, but the payoff when they blossom is indescribable!

Is he flighted? I found that exercise has been extremely helpful for my girl, but she can't fly. It's taken serious creativity to get her moving more.

He's beautiful! Thank you again for helping him.
 

Brighty199

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Not until you have some blood work from the vet. Ekkies don't do well with synthesized vitamins, particularly A. Once you have a handle on the diet and information from the lab work, you can move forward with changes. It can take a long time to convince them to cooperate, but don't give up! I think it's great that he picked through your offering! Mine will avoid an entire bowl if there's a suspicious new thing...sometimes for months at a time. Males tend to be a little more adventurous in that regard, so use that to your advantage!

I would say to evaluate the feather issue over the next two months. Watch for wing flipping and odd movements, toe tapping. Those indicate an issue with vitamin A, and will require a pellet without it. Watch for behavioral issues and see if you can log as much information as possible about the plucking incidents. What time of day, what he ate, what's happening before and during the plucking, and keep the notes to compare and refer back to.
I suspect that appropriate diet and calm, happy surroundings will do a lot of the work for you toward the plucking issue.
If you can incorporate foraging to his food now, you will do a lot of good for his physical and mental health. Especially his seed and pellets. Hide them in foraging toys or even several dishes all over the cage or play area. Skewers for chunky fresh food are also fun and helpful.

It's a lot of work, but the payoff when they blossom is indescribable!

Is he flighted? I found that exercise has been extremely helpful for my girl, but she can't fly. It's taken serious creativity to get her moving more.

He's beautiful! Thank you again for helping him.
Thank you for all of this information. He goes to the vet on Thursday and I will give you all an update on how that goes. I will definitely encourage more foraging and activity for him. I just ordered a bunch of different types of toys for him on Amazon, they will be here tomorrow. I did manage to get ahold of the person that previously owned him. I was told he has been kept clipped. His flight feathers appear to have pretty much grown back though and he has not attempted to fly at all yet.
 

Monaco

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If you have any trouble getting him interested in toys or shredding things, please reach out to our vendors. I finally threw my hands up and asked for help in December, and it was the best thing I've done so far in terms of playing and foraging. They're also very reasonable and unquestionable quality.
 

Monaco

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Thank you for all of this information. He goes to the vet on Thursday and I will give you all an update on how that goes. I will definitely encourage more foraging and activity for him. I just ordered a bunch of different types of toys for him on Amazon, they will be here tomorrow. I did manage to get ahold of the person that previously owned him. I was told he has been kept clipped. His flight feathers appear to have pretty much grown back though and he has not attempted to fly at all yet.
Were you able to get any information about his diet and behavior?
 

Brighty199

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Were you able to get any information about his diet and behavior?
I was told he bites alot and that he dislikes men, that he screams at night, has night frights, and has been plucking for about 2 years now. He was fed zupreem pellets and seed along with fruit and vegetables. Also fed chicken, ham, and pizza. Dislikes peanuts but will eat just about anything else you offer him.
 

Brighty199

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If you have any trouble getting him interested in toys or shredding things, please reach out to our vendors. I finally threw my hands up and asked for help in December, and it was the best thing I've done so far in terms of playing and foraging. They're also very reasonable and unquestionable quality.
How do I contact the vendors? I have an order coming in tomorrow from Amazon, but it never hurts to have a variety of things on hand in case he doesnt like what I picked out for him.
 

Monaco

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I can't say enough about Lil monsters, @Mizzely, her foot toys and foragers have been a godsend. Seriously nutz, @Macawnutz also has an excellent selection of toys and is really good at figuring out ideal materials.
Hoot n holler has got some serious foraging items, and we're about to graduate to a few of her creations. Kate is @WallyLoopey here, but is more active on ig.
I've used six so far, and they're all fantastic. You won't ever have to worry about safety, and they're all very responsive. Several people here take advantage of the subscription boxes from nutz and Lil monsters.

I may have missed it if you posted it elsewhere, but what are the other birds in your life?
 

Monaco

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I was told he bites alot and that he dislikes men, that he screams at night, has night frights, and has been plucking for about 2 years now. He was fed zupreem pellets and seed along with fruit and vegetables. Also fed chicken, ham, and pizza. Dislikes peanuts but will eat just about anything else you offer him.
o_O
Well, there's just no accounting for people. Did you happen to learn his age?

I would go as slow as he needs as far as handling. Try almonds and safflower seeds to make friends and build trust. If you can get an idea of what was triggering the bites in his old home, you'll be ahead of the curve and able to avoid them in the future. There must have been some serious frustration in that house, and a serious lack of basic knowledge. I feel for him, but I bet you will find a very intelligent, happy guy despite his recent circumstance.
 

Monaco

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Any news from the vet?
 

Brighty199

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Update from the vet visit: Lucky is within the healthy weight range and he had his beak and nails trimmed. The vet also sedated him to have blood work done. I should be getting the results of the bloodwork on Monday, but the vet believes the plucking is a behavioral issue
 

Brighty199

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The vet also suggested starting him on a feather supplement. Does anyone have any recommendations on a supplement?
 

Monaco

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I would still wait for the blood work. I don't want to assume your vet's experience, but especially if it's behavioral...I would wait a bit longer. I have a food topper that I would recommend...I'll get you the information this evening after work.
 

Monaco

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Lots of omegas and herbs that help support the immune system and organs. I add turmeric and cayenne to my seed and pellet mixes as well.

A little extra protein won't hurt at all. I like boiled egg, and she chooses yolk or white, and offer about an 1/8th per day until the pins are in. You can offer chicken if he does not like eggs, but I don't give meat more than a couple of days in a month. Higher fat may help too, extra almond or two...you can add some red palm oil (tiny, 1/2 pea size) to warm food a couple of times a month too.

I would stay away from supplements with vitamins, and try to go for whole food sources instead. Lots of yellow, orange and red veggies and fruits for carotenoids (A precursor) also dark leafy greens, but go easy on spinach, chard, and brassicas because the oxalic acid can block calcium absorption. A little goes a long way!
 
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