Older Conure

[MsBirdyk]

My 22 year old Green Cheek Conure suddenly quit eating his Roudybush pellets. He's eaten them his entire life. The vet says he can find nothing physically wrong with him He does eat his fruits and cooked vegetables. Also he's stopped grooming his tail feathers which I feel is because of his arthritis. Any advice on a new food or what this means. Just getting old?

 

[Mizzely]

Maybe contact Roudybush with your lot number to see if there was a recipe change? Or if the bag has been opened a long time (like if you buy in bulk), perhaps its stale or the oils have gone off?

My 25 year old Jardine's randomly stops eating his pellets often so this is an issue for me a lot lol. If he stops eating his pellets I usually take them away from him completely for a few weeks (and obviously make sure he has alternative food options still!) and reintroduce. Usually this gets him eating again. You could also try a new pellet to see if he's just bored! There are a lot of options: Pellets for Parrots

 

[webchirp]

My 22 year old Green Cheek Conure suddenly quit eating his Roudybush pellets. He's eaten them his entire life. The vet says he can find nothing physically wrong with him He does eat his fruits and cooked vegetables. Also he's stopped grooming his tail feathers which I feel is because of his arthritis. Any advice on a new food or what this means. Just getting old?

In addition to @Mizzely wonderful advice…

An x-ray can show arthritic points (bone will be clear on X-ray)

My arthritic birds are on:Celebrex, tumeric, gabapentin depending severity/age.

Did you do bloodwork for kidney values? I just lost an elderly cheek for this.