Meliawen Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 I need some feedback, here. I recently got my Grey back after a period of having a friend sit for me, and she was perfectly healthy when he returned her. However, I've noticed that she seems to have dropped some weight since she's been home. After having my cocatiel die on me from a neck-break incident...I feel extremely paranoid. Chivalry (the grey) is acting perfectly normal aside from being skinny. I feed her a substantial meal once a day, but there are very little pellets and seeds in her diet. Do I need to add more?? She usually gets fresh fruit, veggies, and sometimes a little pretzel. She always has fresh water. But I am, as I said, paranoid now. Is this a stress issue? Will she gain the weight back? Should I panic and rush her to a vet? Any feedback here is appreciated. I added some millet to her last few meals in an attempt to "pooch" her back up, because I'm worried. Please help! ~Leora Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TinyTimneh Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 If she's acting normal and doesn't show any symptoms of being ill, isn't sleepy all the time etc. I would keep an eye out just in case but I wouldn't suspect disease as an issue. If you're worried, a check-up at the vet is always appropriate. If she's only eating fruit and veggies as the majority of her diet I would expect her to be skinny. If you or I existed solely on fruits and veggies we'd be very skinny too as there is really no fat, protein or carbs in fruits and veggies. She needs a good source of these substances, especially as a grey who in the wild eat a lot of the palm fruit and palm nut which is very fatty and oily. If you want to feed her a homemade cooked diet start feeding her a varied combo the various grains & legumes etc. recipes that you can find on the forum or on the internet, along with fresh fruit, veggies and some seeds. If want to feed a more commercially made diet put her on a pellet mix as the base of her diet and supplement with the fruits and veggies. I'd be careful about the pretzel because of all the salt, like humans, excess salt is no good for parrots. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 Hello Leora, how much weight are we talking about here, if it is as much as 10% of her normal weight then it is time to worry? Did she eat when she was in the care of your friend? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meliawen Posted July 2, 2009 Author Share Posted July 2, 2009 Yes, she ate very well with him (he took care of her for several months while I was staying with my parents). It must be the lack of protein. I thought that might be the case so I made her eggs today. I'm not sure exactly how much weight she's lost; I don't own my own scale. She just looks thinner to me. @ Tiny; she -has- been acting a little sluggish, but no more so than normal. She's never been a super energetic parrot. Is there a way to make sure she is taken care of immediately? I realize there is rarely an insta-fix, I am just worried for her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 If you are really worried you could take her in to see an avian vet to make sure but give her more protein foods for the time being, a little egg, some chicken, a little cheddar cheese, beans, rices and pastas will help put a little weight on her. You really should get a gram scale, you can get one for not too much money but that way you can monitor the weight and see when there is a substantial loss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meliawen Posted July 2, 2009 Author Share Posted July 2, 2009 Okay, I'll see if I can rummage up some extra cash to buy a scale. In the meantime, I'll hit the grocery store and get the rest. Thank you for the advice. Also, one last question, should I feed her twice a day til she regains her weight? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 Feed her as much as she will eat, leave her a bowl of pellets in her cage that she can snack on any time she wants, just follow the guidelines about how much and how often she should get the eggs, chicken and cheese as you can give them but so much. Why don't you introduce yourself in the welcome room and tell us some more about you and Chivalry, love that name btw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
she Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 Hi.I would have a check up with an avian vet who will advise on diet.From the diet you feed , I would increase the pellets so they are always available and feed other food twice daily.Go easy on the cheese and chicken,give plenty of pasta and rice and maybe add some healthy nuts such as almonds and pine nuts,that is the diet my grey is fed.An avian vet will be able to give you more detailed diet advise and check your grey out. Scales I use a digital kitchen scale that measures in gramms.It is just a flat scale and does a good job and was not expensive.<br><br>Post edited by: she, at: 2009/07/01 19:42 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meliawen Posted July 2, 2009 Author Share Posted July 2, 2009 The trouble with leaving pellets in her cage all the time is that she goes the other way, and becomes -overweight-. Like...impressively so. She is definitely a food lover! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 Meliawen wrote: The trouble with leaving pellets in her cage all the time is that she goes the other way, and becomes -overweight-. Like...impressively so. She is definitely a food lover! How do you know she is over weight when eating pellets, with out a gram scale? Cut way back on fruit in small quantities 2 to 3x maximum a week. She must have proteins, omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, calcium and vitamin D3 from either the pellets or direct sunlight. Being Protein and omega 3 and 6 fatty acid deficient can cause some very serious health issues in your Grey or any other bird for that matter. Out of curiosity, what type of pellets do you feed her? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meliawen Posted July 2, 2009 Author Share Posted July 2, 2009 I forget the brand name off the top of my head, but it smells like fruit and is shaped like little pieces of fruit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave007 Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 1--some type of food should be available in the cage 24 hrs a day. Parrots don't have the same eating habits that domestic animals have. 2--greys are not prone to obesity problems, even if food is in the cage 24 hrs a day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meliawen Posted July 2, 2009 Author Share Posted July 2, 2009 Wow, Dave! I didn't know either of those things! That helps a LOT; thank you very much! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meliawen Posted July 19, 2009 Author Share Posted July 19, 2009 I just wanted to let everyone know that Chivalry is doing -much- better, now. She's onery and loud just like always, hehe. Thanks to everyone who gave me such good advice. ^-^ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 Thats great to hear Leora, thanks for giving us an update and please do keep on posting if you like as we like hearing from you and Chivalry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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