what do you think about her feet?

[runningoutofroom]

hello, so as some of you know i adopted a 20 yr old amazon female. and she has very scaly feet, i was wondering if this looks normal to you guys or not? if not any suggestions for helping her?
thanks so much

 

[MommyBird]

I have 2 older Amazons,
Your birds' feet don't look too bad from what I can see.
Are the bottoms nice with no pink or uncerated spots? THAT is where 'zons develop problems because of their weight and tendency for couch potato-itis.
Just be sure she has a variety of sizes and textures perches - wood, rope, concrete.
Be sure she gets enough vitamin A to avoid foot and other problems.
Run a humidifier to help keep skin moist.
Let her have a few good fats, like a little walnut daily.

 

[Gen120]

My amazon's feet look the same way. Have you tried Red Palm Oil??

 

[Beatriz Cazeneuve]

Actually, the older the bird, the more flaky the feet look. It's one of the two physical signs of aging in zons (the other is the eyelids but they only change after they hit 40) and you were given the right advice: RPO for betacarotene and check the bottom of the feet because, as they get older, the sole gets thinner and they can develop sores (but don't worry too much about it because 20 is not old at all for a zon). I would also make sure she gets flax seeds for omega 3.

 

[runningoutofroom]

thanks for the advice. i need to buy some red palm oil, just not sure what is the best brand. i did just buy a humidifier i will be setting it up today. as far as perches, she really only sits on one... she seems scared of the rope kind and i bought her a really nice. the kind that is smooth for the pad of the feet but textured for the claws, but she is terrifed of it. and she doesn't seem to know how to play so she sits in the same spot most of the day.

 

[Hendryx]

Red palm oil added to the diet will help,also you can rub an aloe oil into the skin once or twice a week..

 

[Sharpie]

her feet look pretty normal to me. Jasper's get a little dry if he's not getting bathed often enough, so make sure she's getting her baths along with a healthy diet. Remember that amazons are extremely prone to obesity, so while good fats and oils are helpful, moderation is key!

 

[MommyBird]

Chico had only had one perch for most of his life. He did not understand other perches.
He must have fallen once too because he acts afraid of the perch plus afraid of what will happen.
It takes him a long time to accept a new perch, but he will eventually try and trust him.
He is much better lately as I did some training of getting him to step on different things for awhile.
My favorite was a wadded up quilt that would be unstable but he learned to trust himself and soon got brave to walk on many different things.
Just take it slow but keep trying.

 

[Kristy]

How did the looking at the bottom of the feet go?

Sometimes they can get kind of fiesty about that kind of thing.

I try to look at my guys feet about once a month & it isn't always easy or fun to do.

 

[Thugluvgrl187]

They look a little flaky but I don't know much about zons.

 

[Kimba]

I use olive oil on my amazons feet, they tend to get dry in the winter, on the account of the radiator heat. I take a dish, put some olive oil in it and dip Poe's feet into the dish. Adding food supplements will also help like suggested, and will help long term. The olive oil however will be immediate in terms of relieving the dryness, while you wait for the dietary changes to take hold.

 

[jylu97]

Wonderful thread, I was wondering about this myself. I have a 25 year-old YNA and I have tried everything to work on her dry scaly feet because she would pick at the dry skin. I tried RPO, but prefer using foods that are rich in beta-carotene like carrots, sweet potatoes, and orange squash because RPO is pretty fatty unless you use it sparingly. I also add flax seed oil for the omegas. My zon uses rope perches, but some of them can be pretty hard. I try to stay away from the sandy perches that are sandy all the way around as I'm afraid of abrading her soles. It took my zon 3-4 weeks to try the perch with the smooth top and rough sides. I realize that the only two things that seem to have made a difference are adding beta-carotenoids (only has helped to a limited extent) and biweekly showers. Those scales are pretty dry and need to absorb some moisture in the shower. Her feet after that look better and she doesn't pick the dry skin off. One of the avian vets (a diplomat) put a teeny amount of bag balm on her feet; be careful, if you add too much it gets on the feathers. Rubbing a moisturizer only is a temporary measure though.

Liz

 

[Sharpie]

These are Jasper's feet (24yo YNA) He gets showers at least twice a week, but would prefer daily. They help his feet look better, but he doesn't pick or seem uncomfortable.

 

[Kimba]

Poe, BFA gets the olive oil treatment

 

[Billie Faye]

Great thread!
Would love to see more feets!!!!!!!!

 

[runningoutofroom]

thanks everyone. at the moment my amazon is not tame so the olive oil will not work right now, but we are making progress. i looked at the under side of her feet and they look fine, no as flakey.

 

[Bokkapooh]

What is her diet?

How high is the humidity?

Is she near a heater?

That can happen with low humdiity, high temps, and improper diet.

 

[LuvMyBirds]

Just inspected the 3 pair of YNA feet here Look okay to me.

Jasper has lovely feet!

 

[JLcribber]

More feets!!

 

[jylu97]

Talk about a gentle too? My amazon does not like to play footsie.