New additions 2021

[BrianB]

In other news - I have a fertile harlequin egg that I expect to hatch late this week or early next week. The green wings are on at least 3 eggs, and they will probably hatch a week after the others. My African Greys are sitting on eggs and I'm hopeful that this will be a fertile clutch for them. If I have my timing right, we'll have hatchings each week for the next 3 or 4. I'm glad I have my vacation planned in between all of that. I'll come home just in time to pull babies.

 

[howdymjm]

Forget. how many pairs of RFM do you have? just curious. Thanks.

 

[BrianB]

Just one pair. Looking to add others but not in a rush. My plate is full at the moment.

 

[Hankmacaw]

You are sure busy! I wouldn't raise baby birds for all the gold in China. I'll just watch you and "oooh and awww". Have you found out any more about your heath issues?

 

[BrianB]

It's never a dull moment here. A woman contacted me earlier today and asked if I would be interested in a blue & gold. The story was - a family member passed away and she was the only one capable of coming to AZ and cleaning out his apartment. She knew he had a bird, but had no idea it was a macaw. She wasn't able to take him home cross country with her, so here we are. This is Christopher. She said she understood that he's 18 years old, but I don't believe he is. He's well-muscled even though he's been on a crap diet. The poor boy has been alone in the apartment for the last month. Someone has been feeding him, but he's had no attention and very little interaction since his human went into the hospital. He was on the floor in a dark room with no windows and a ceiling fan running. I picked him up and immediately took him by the store and got his nails and beak trimmed. I figured it best to get all the trauma done at once and then give him space to relax and de-stress before I start working with him. He's sweet, and talks a little, but he's obviously terrified.

As for my health - well, it's still a mystery. Sometime in the next few weeks, I'll be having a bone marrow biopsy. Then there is a regular colonoscopy which I get every 3 years since I had colon polyps at 41, then in early August, I'll be having some cardiac tests. I am now the age my mother was when she died and my primary Dr said I should get a bunch of tests just to be sure there isn't anything unexpected. Surprise, my EKG shows an abnormality that may indicate I've had a silent heart attack in the past. I've resolved to not be stressed about it. I'll use baby birds to keep my mind focused on something else.

 

[Kassiani]

Thank you for taking him in! He's beautiful, but you can see in his eyes how frightened he is -- poor lad.

 

[Hankmacaw]

Christopher is a beautiful boy. I'm sure he is terrified from the last month or so.

Well, you have plenty of babies to keep your mind refocused - LOL

 

[howdymjm]

you take care and keep up the great work.

 

[BrianB]

So my new boy has eaten very little since he's been home. I don't know what he was eating before, but he seems to want to eat with people. He doesn't really know how to move around in a cage so getting him to step up is a challenge. We're working on that and I'm trying to rearrange things to accommodate him where I can. I gave him pellets and some nuts and this morning there were a few on the ground, but not much else. It was obvious he hadn't eaten much if anything overnight. This evening while we are I put him on the island with us to help build a connection and trust. He was very interested in what we were eating. Since it had mushrooms in it, I wasn't going to share it, but I made a salad for him with some nuts and chop that I had. He ate some of it. Not enough to satisfy me, but at least he ate some. While I was at the bird store today I picked up a bag of seed just on the chance that he was eating a complete seed diet. At this point I just want him to eat and I don't care what it is. I get it from his perspective too. His human left and never came back, and he doesn't know why. The people who fed him didn't pay any attention to him and now he's in a new place with new people. He did talk to us while he was hanging out on the island and he looked around when the green wings were screaming. Progress is a slow process.

 

[Kassiani]

Hopefully Christopher will eat in time once he realizes his life will be stable for a while! When I brought Opie home he wouldn't really eat for about 5 days, just little bits like your Christopher.

 

[Hankmacaw]

I really emphasize with you. Kitty was in pretty poor shape when she got here and ate nothing other than 15-20 pistachios for the first five days. This was despite my fixing her exactly what her previous owners had fed her - from their recipe. She was showing signs of starvation, so I packed her up and took her to Dr. Driggers for gavage feeding. He got her up to 938 from 909 and I brought her home, She has PDD and it has been a constant battle to get her to eat (her tummies feel bad) ever since.

It is so scary and disheartening when they won't eat. Now she is on two hand feedings of 60cc each and a few pellets that she eats and is barely holding her weight. Fuzzy told me that Oscar wouldn't eat either when he was PDD positive.

I hope your boy comes to his senses soon.

 

[BrianB]

He picked at a little food this morning while I was having some coffee. I moved things around in his cage so he has more room around his food dishes. It was such a last-minute thing that I just threw stuff in there without a lot of thought. I'm not sure he's ever spent much time in a cage so it's all new to him. I've offered everything I can think of and he does take a few things from my hands but doesn't eat them. I had a little luck with fresh bananas. I also looked back through the pictures I was originally sent. I see a bowl of nuts and what looks like Zupreem fruit-flavored pellets. I offered that to him and he wasn't interested. I have some Mazuri pellets that I'll try next. I look at the pictures and they make me both sad and angry. He was on a tree wedged into the corner of a dark room and it was surrounded by wooden chairs almost like fencing. There are droppings and spilled food piled up under the tree. I get it that his human was sick and not home, but over the last month, someone just threw food and water at him. No one made any attempt to clean the mess up. It's really no wonder he's an emotional mess.

I brought him into the office with me and he sat on my arm for a while, then he climbed up onto my shoulder and onto the back of the chair. I ordered breakfast and on a whim, I offered him my fork with scrambled eggs on it. He ate it so I slowly fed him about half of my eggs. It isn't much, but I'll take it.

 

[Hankmacaw]

He looks hefty in that picture, so he has been eating - no telling what. At least he doesn't act like he has been physically abused and he should come around pretty quickly.

 

[BrianB]

He looks hefty in that picture, so he has been eating - no telling what. At least he doesn't act like he has been physically abused and he should come around pretty quickly.

From what little he's let me touch him, I can tell that he's not thin. It feels like there may be some fat under the skin on his chest, but he's definitely not skinny. Even if he eats garbage I'm ok with that for the time being. I know it doesn't take much for a bird to lose a lot of weight so I want to keep him stable until I can get him to the vet for a good physical and some blood work.

 

[Pat H]

It's never a dull moment here. A woman contacted me earlier today and asked if I would be interested in a blue & gold. The story was - a family member passed away and she was the only one capable of coming to AZ and cleaning out his apartment. She knew he had a bird, but had no idea it was a macaw. She wasn't able to take him home cross country with her, so here we are. This is Christopher. She said she understood that he's 18 years old, but I don't believe he is. He's well-muscled even though he's been on a crap diet. The poor boy has been alone in the apartment for the last month. Someone has been feeding him, but he's had no attention and very little interaction since his human went into the hospital. He was on the floor in a dark room with no windows and a ceiling fan running. I picked him up and immediately took him by the store and got his nails and beak trimmed. I figured it best to get all the trauma done at once and then give him space to relax and de-stress before I start working with him. He's sweet, and talks a little, but he's obviously terrified.

As for my health - well, it's still a mystery. Sometime in the next few weeks, I'll be having a bone marrow biopsy. Then there is a regular colonoscopy which I get every 3 years since I had colon polyps at 41, then in early August, I'll be having some cardiac tests. I am now the age my mother was when she died and my primary Dr said I should get a bunch of tests just to be sure there isn't anything unexpected. Surprise, my EKG shows an abnormality that may indicate I've had a silent heart attack in the past. I've resolved to not be stressed about it. I'll use baby birds to keep my mind focused on something else.


View attachment 387470 View attachment 387471

#1-- You PRECIOUS MAN... As busy as you are, to come to this birds rescue... God will Bless You.
#2-- My father-in-law passed away at 50yr... My husband Pete KEPT SAYING that he would die at 50 also... and you know what-- he did. Please don't take offense with me--- but I will stand 'in the gap' for you, and offer my prayers... YOU ARE NOT your mother, and you don't have to die at the same age she did. Stand tall, rebuke those thoughts and look forward to Life With Your Birds! God made birds before He made man. 'The world proclaims His Majesty.'

 

[Kassiani]

He picked at a little food this morning while I was having some coffee. I moved things around in his cage so he has more room around his food dishes. It was such a last-minute thing that I just threw stuff in there without a lot of thought. I'm not sure he's ever spent much time in a cage so it's all new to him. I've offered everything I can think of and he does take a few things from my hands but doesn't eat them. I had a little luck with fresh bananas. I also looked back through the pictures I was originally sent. I see a bowl of nuts and what looks like Zupreem fruit-flavored pellets. I offered that to him and he wasn't interested. I have some Mazuri pellets that I'll try next. I look at the pictures and they make me both sad and angry. He was on a tree wedged into the corner of a dark room and it was surrounded by wooden chairs almost like fencing. There are droppings and spilled food piled up under the tree. I get it that his human was sick and not home, but over the last month, someone just threw food and water at him. No one made any attempt to clean the mess up. It's really no wonder he's an emotional mess.

I brought him into the office with me and he sat on my arm for a while, then he climbed up onto my shoulder and onto the back of the chair. I ordered breakfast and on a whim, I offered him my fork with scrambled eggs on it. He ate it so I slowly fed him about half of my eggs. It isn't much, but I'll take it.

View attachment 387545

That's a great picture of you two sharing the eggs! He's been through a lot of change lately, but I'm grateful he landed with you.

 

[BrianB]

#1-- You PRECIOUS MAN... As busy as you are, to come to this birds rescue... God will Bless You.
#2-- My father-in-law passed away at 50yr... My husband Pete KEPT SAYING that he would die at 50 also... and you know what-- he did. Please don't take offense with me--- but I will stand 'in the gap' for you, and offer my prayers... YOU ARE NOT your mother, and you don't have to die at the same age she did. Stand tall, rebuke those thoughts and look forward to Life With Your Birds! God made birds before He made man. 'The world proclaims His Majesty.'

Thank you! It's just all been very strange to be hit with so many things at once. I have an appointment, or a procedure schedule every single week through the first week of August. It isn't a total loss though, I go get a 4 day weekend in Palm Springs just to rest and get away from it all. As soon as I get back there will be baby macaws to pull and start hand feeding. I've got plenty to keep my mind focused in the meantime. I do appreciate the prayers and well wishes.

 

[Pat H]

Thank you! It's just all been very strange to be hit with so many things at once. I have an appointment, or a procedure schedule every single week through the first week of August. It isn't a total loss though, I go get a 4 day weekend in Palm Springs just to rest and get away from it all. As soon as I get back there will be baby macaws to pull and start hand feeding. I've got plenty to keep my mind focused in the meantime. I do appreciate the prayers and well wishes.

I honestly don't know if I would be able to 'endure my blessings'...[saw that on a poster once --- mama bird over her nest full of babies], getting to do those 2hr feedings.
Our Lovebird Chirp, decided the yarn in the picture looked tasty! So I don't remember exactly what it looked like!

 

[BirdG1rl]

That B&G looks gorgeous! Another dream bird *sigh*. Hope you continue to make progress with him! He deserves all the love he can get!

 

[BrianB]

Over the last few days, I've been throwing one type of pellet after another at Christopher trying to see what he likes and is willing to eat. He picked at ZuPreem fruit blend, but I think he ate it because I stuck it in his mouth. The ZuPreem natural was a bit more interesting. We tried some Pretty Bird pellets, but he just dropped those. Monkey Biscuits were great fun to crush and drop crumbs all over the place, but he didn't actually eat any of it. Caitec Oven Fresh Bites were completely ignored after the first taste. It looks like Tropimix might be a winner. He ate some of that this morning so I'll take it. I've been moving perches and dishes around in his cage to see if I can make it more comfortable for him and swapping the food and water seems to have worked. After he had some Tropimix this morning I put him back in his cage and he went to the water dish and started drinking. I was almost considering trying to hand feed him with some baby formula because he hasn't really eaten much since Monday. I've discovered he likes music too. I remember when I picked him up that there was a keyboard and a few guitars in the apartment. Last night when I had him on my desk I put on some music and he started dancing. I think he's finally realizing that he's safe and now he can relax - and now that he's eating, I can relax too.