Skinny bird!

conureluv · 9/14/20

My green cheek is a seemingly healthy bird, and I give him 3 1/2 tbsp every day in pellets. I felt his keel bone and he isn’t in good shape, a little bit on the skinny side. How can I help him get some weight? I’ve increased his diet from 1 1/2 over the course of a week, and he still hasn’t been gaining much weight.

conureluv · 9/14/20

conureluv said:
My green cheek is a seemingly healthy bird, and I give him 3 1/2 tbsp every day in pellets. I felt his keel bone and he isn’t in good shape, a little bit on the skinny side. How can I help him get some weight? I’ve increased his diet from 1 1/2 over the course of a week, and he still hasn’t been gaining much weight.

@Ali and @Zara could you help?

Ali · 9/14/20

conureluv said:
@Ali and @Zara could you help?

Sorry, but this isn't something I can give much information on.

Can you outline his entire diet for us? How much of everything, what food, maybe even the brands and variation of the product? Does he get any seed? How much?

I wonder if you could try him with nutriberries, and plenty of fresh stuff?

Is there any way you could manage to get him on some scales to see his actual weight?

Sorry, I can't help much more. Hopefully with more detail about diet I can offer some more pointers.

@Mizzely ?

Lucas2019 · 9/14/20

Ali said:
Sorry, but this isn't something I can give much information on.

Can you outline his entire diet for us? How much of everything, what food, maybe even the brands and variation of the product? Does he get any seed? How much?

I wonder if you could try him with nutriberries, and plenty of fresh stuff?

Is there any way you could manage to get him on some scales to see his actual weight?

Sorry, I can't help much more. Hopefully with more detail about diet I can offer some more pointers.

@Mizzely ?

sorry to hear that

maybe he needs a vet appointment to be sure is not something else besides his diet . My counure weights is different everyday but he is skinny but I can’t touch his keel bone he is 65 to 64 g . Have you weight him lately ? Maybe if we can see a picture?

budgieluv3 · 9/14/20

If he keeps losing weight, a vet visit is definitely in order, try bumping up the fruit and veg that have less water, broccoli and such. :budgie2:

Mizzely · 9/14/20

Vet visit first

My Jardine's has a hard time keeping on weight. He is simply too busy to eat at his bowl most days :rolleyes:

I give him a mash of Harrison's High Potency, mixed with sweet potato baby food, a bit of almond butter, and a bit of red palm oil a few times a week.

conureluv · 9/14/20

Ali said:
Sorry, but this isn't something I can give much information on.

Can you outline his entire diet for us? How much of everything, what food, maybe even the brands and variation of the product? Does he get any seed? How much?

I wonder if you could try him with nutriberries, and plenty of fresh stuff?

Is there any way you could manage to get him on some scales to see his actual weight?

Sorry, I can't help much more. Hopefully with more detail about diet I can offer some more pointers.

@Mizzely ?

I have a scale and weigh him every week. He’s around the 65 mark. His food is Zupreem natural pellets. I’ll try giving him some veggies daily..although he’s not a big fan.

conureluv · 9/14/20

budgieluv3 said:
If he keeps losing weight, a vet visit is definitely in order, try bumping up the fruit and veg that have less water, broccoli and such.

He isn’t nesicarily losing weight as just not having good shape. He’s maintained his weight but I feel like his keelbone could be better.

conureluv · 9/14/20

Mizzely said:
Vet visit first

My Jardine's has a hard time keeping on weight. He is simply too busy to eat at his bowl most days I give him a mash of Harrison's High Potency, mixed with sweet potato baby food, a bit of almond butter, and a bit of red palm oil a few times a week.

Nobody is willing to drive me there. Quote; “Birds don’t need vet visits if they’re not injured”

Ali · 9/14/20

conureluv said:
Nobody is willing to drive me there. Quote; “Birds don’t need vet visits if they’re not injured”

How far is it?

budgieluv3 · 9/14/20

conureluv said:
He isn’t nesicarily losing weight as just not having good shape. He’s maintained his weight but I feel like his keelbone could be better.

Not sure how to help other than maybe show this thread to people who will not drive you to the vet, it might help convince them. :budgie2:

Ali · 9/14/20

Do you have a friend or outside relative that could?

conureluv · 9/14/20

Ali said:
Do you have a friend or outside relative that could?

Maybe..I might have to borrow money and pay it back considering I’m buying a bag of food today. Then I’ll have 40$. What do you think the avg price will be for a checkup?

Mizzely · 9/14/20

You can call your vet and ask. A standard checkup ranges from $25 to $90

Lucas2019 · 9/14/20

conureluv said:
I have a scale and weigh him every week. He’s around the 65 mark. His food is Zupreem natural pellets. I’ll try giving him some veggies daily..although he’s not a big fan.

Oh ok how many grams was he before ? Mine as always been that weight so that’s how I know is not a concern even his vet told me they are around that weight which is healthy . I feed natural pellets too from zupreme , besides veggies and here and there some nutruberries and now some almonds once a week . But if you feel something is not adding up then you should visit your avian vet .

conureluv · 9/15/20

Lucas2019 said:
Oh ok how many grams was he before ? Mine as always been that weight so that’s how I know is not a concern even his vet told me they are around that weight which is healthy . I feed natural pellets too from zupreme , besides veggies and here and there some nutruberries and now some almonds once a week . But if you feel something is not adding up then you should visit your avian vet .

Now I am not feeding him the small sized pellets, I have switched to almond sized. He goes through the smalls so fast that he annoys the crap out of me during the day..size comparison:

At first he has some trouble and dropped some but now he’s getting the hang of grabbing on to them while eating! Plus I’m giving him more chop after he finishes majority of his meals because I only have 2 food bowls.

Mizzely · 9/15/20

It's possible that he isn't eating enough of the larger pellets because they take more effort. They can eat up to 20% of their body weight a day; my green cheek would go through almost a pound of Zupreem a month and she was only 54g.

conureluv · 9/15/20

Mizzely said:
It's possible that he isn't eating enough of the larger pellets because they take more effort. They can eat up to 20% of their body weight a day; my green cheek would go through almost a pound of Zupreem a month and she was only 54g.

I switched to the larger ones.

Mizzely · 9/15/20

conureluv said:
I switched to the larger ones.

I know. What I'm saying is that if you are now going through less food, it might mean that they are overall eating less food as it is harder for them to eat than the small stuff

conureluv · 9/15/20

Mizzely said:
I know. What I'm saying is that if you are now going through less food, it might mean that they are overall eating less food as it is harder for them to eat than the small stuff

He sure is going through the big ones at a steady rate, I gave him about 4 tbsp of these new ones and about 4-5 pellets fit in the tbsp, so I might give him 2-3 more scoops later on with his chop, I see your point.

Skinny bird!

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