Feather barbering and pellets(!)

[domyoburk]

Pellets versus seeds is almost as volatile an issue with parrot owners as clipping versus not clipping, so please keep an open mind about this post.

 

Our baby CAG started biting off feathers at about age 7 months, clipping them right at the base. She averaged 5 feathers a week for about 4 months... we visited an avian vet and tried everything we could think of. The vet finally figured it was behavioral, although without any apparent trigger or pattern. We felt sad and inadequate.

 

When the barbering escalated, though, and she was biting off 20 feathers a day, we were in despair and decided to try a different avian vet. THANK GOODNESS we did! This new vet sees only birds and has done this for 20 years. She believes feather destruction is almost always due to a physical cause, it being the only way the bird can respond to discomfort or pain.

 

An X-ray revealed Ursula's GI system was quite inflamed - and sure enough, her plucking had spread to her breast. Our vet has found that, despite the prevailing ideas out there, many parrots do not do well on pellets. They are too soft and rich. We transitioned Ursula from pellets to a good seed mix (she also gets veggies, fruits, beans and rice, etc.) and her plucking immediately decreased to a couple feathers a day. She has since molted and it's been months since she chewed any feathers.

 

She will always be inclined to chew feathers when she's uncomfortable, most likely, but we will take it is a sign something is wrong and turn to our wonderful vet. Thank god there's a vet out there who had the expertise to get to the bottom of our problem instead of just blaming us for causing "behavioral" feather chewing!

[pearllyn]

Hi Domyoburk,

I'm sorry to hear of the feather trouble you were having, but glad you are getting on top of it! I am very surprised to hear you think it was the pellets causing it! I have been through the same thing with my 20 month old CAG, but from the other end - she was on seed, and now I'm trying to convert her to the Harrisons pellets (on vets suggestion)!

Whatever the reason, so long as we have happy healthy birds at the end, that's the main thing!!

x

[she]

This is very interesting.Could you please let us know what brand of pellets you fed.I am so happy that you have got to the bottom of the feather problem.I always think a physical problem needs to ruled out before branding feather chewing behavioural, my vet is of the same mind.

[JillyBeanz]

How thoroughly bizarre! I've just checked on what my pellets contain though - and I am at a loss how I would supplement Harvey's diet with those minerals and vitamins that the pellets give - surely the pellets aren't made as a "supplementary gimmick" and our parrots really do need these?

 

I give Harvey pellets (Kaytee)along with his seeds, nuts, fruit, veg, beans and rice too.

 

Considering these pellets are so expensive, surely they must be a need, rather than an addition?

 

I am pleased though that Ursula's problem does seem to have been remedied <br><br>Post edited by: JillyBeanz, at: 2009/11/02 13:37

[domyoburk]

We tried Lakes (what she had been weaned onto) and then Harrisons and then back again.

 

And lest anyone think that was all we tried (!) - we adjusted sleeping time (12 hours all the way to keeping her up with us and getting her up with us, 8 hours of sleep); regular (non-chlorine) showers and no showers; no extra protein (pellets only, plus her fruit and veggies); hours of attention (bringing her to work with me or not); getting her bird company (parakeets) and finding a new home for her bird company; lots of toys and foraging opportunities. She's too young for it to be hormonal and it didn't follow any pattern. Otherwise she is/was happy, well-adjusted, bonded to both my husband and me, talkative, playful, non-territorial. Her sister (back and breeders) was not feather chewing.

 

Our vet is big on careful examination of the droppings plus x-rays to see the state of the internal organs. Curiously, our previous vet (she loves birds, don't get me wrong!) was big on physical examinations. Recently we took Ursula in for a check up and her droppings revealed high levels of crystals, suggesting her kidneys were working overtime. When the vet heard we were giving Ursula vitamins (for molting) she asked us to stop, saying that birds are evolved to get with they need from very little and it's easy to overdose. Apparently Ursula has a sensitive GI system! But thank goodness the vet found this out before we did damage!

[she]

Jill some brands have a lot of colourings and addatives in and it could be these causing problems .Harrisons is organic though.I agree with your vet that the need for suplements are often not needed if a good diet is given.I dont feed any supplements to my birds.<br><br>Post edited by: she, at: 2009/11/02 13:47

[JillyBeanz]

Well that's Kaytee then! They glow in the dark!!!! I've tried Harvey on Harrisons - he is about as interested in the Harrisons as I am in a pork chop!

 

Domyoburk - it seems you have tried everything in the book to aid your baby - and it's good you have found a vet that you trust - that's my next goal !!!

[domyoburk]

As to those who have success with pellets, more power to you! But I wanted to post this to let people know the possibility that your feathered family member may be more like Ursula, and actually sensitive to them. The last thing we considered was taking her off pellets! We only thought of restricting her diet even more to pellets than just letting her eat whatever she wants, more or less!

 

Our vet mentioned that she often sees enlarged gizzards (with pellets they have nothing to work on), and in Ursula the problem was progressing further down the GI tract. She also says she has patients that have been on seed mix plus fresh food (a good, well-balanced seed mix like Voortmans) for decades and they are very healthy - the most important thing, she says, appears to be the amount of physical activity the bird gets. Sounds like of like humans!

[domyoburk]

Oops - actually it's flaccid gizzards and inflamed/enlarged elsewhere...

[she]

one thing to add, my cousins 40 odd year old cag has only ever been on a seed diet and looks great.

[katana600]

It really does go to show that each situation calls for a different approach. You and your vet have gone through a lot of effort to understand Ursula's communication device. It is similar to some humans consuming milk or other food product and getting healthful vitamins and some being lactose intolerant and having to seek an alternate way to get those nutrients. I think the important thing is your willingness to work together with your vet to use the tools available to watch the whole system and tinker with the food types until Ursula feels good and is getting a varied nutritious diet. Congratulations on the effort it has taken for you to get this sorted.

[danmcq]

Parrots do not need pellets to be healthy.

 

If you feed your Parrot a good diet with seed mix, nuts, veggies and fruits, along with either outdoor time or an Avian lamp for D3. They will do just fine.

 

Remember, there are no pellet trees in the wild. The wild parrots do just fine eating their natural diets :-)

[judygram]

danmcq wrote:

Remember, there are no pellet trees in the wild. The wild parrots do just fine eating their natural diets :-)

 

That is so true Dan but I think we are asked to include pellets in our fid's diets to make up for what they may not be getting nutritionally in the other things they eat.