Desperate need of Help

[Glassy]

Hi everyone! I am new here and looking for some help.

 

I rescue this African Grey last month, it came with a big cage and all of her toys. The owner was a High School teen who was going to college and gave me the bird because he couldn't take it with him.

 

Well, her food is part seeds and part pellets... She is very nervous around new people and things and lift her toes up and put them in her mouth letting you know she is nervous. Her owner had her since she was a baby and locked up in a room with not much interaction expect his mother and him.

 

She is located is in the patio now where she sees everybody and our family is active around the yard. Also we whistle and try to keep her happy and active. She Loves being pet on the head.

 

My major problem now is she is losing/plucking her feathers, not gaining weight rather going skinny...Every morning I see tons of feathers on the floor?She does most of the plucking during the night. At night, I cover all the cages I have. (I have a Sun Conure and Llamarr(The african grey).

 

Llamarr likes to eat the conure pellets so that's a plus and I try to offer her lots of pellets, I try to put in new foods to maybe get her to eat what she likes but is always scared of the fruit or veggie and most of the time will avoid it at all cost. She likes to drink apple juice from a bottle cap and eat lots of almonds, peanuts, sun flower seeds,unsalted crackers. Right now I have tomatoes, broccoli, bananas and a little bit of pickle but she doesn't have ANY interest at all...Also scared of oranges..

 

The Ex owner never gave her any fruit or anything....Just had her in a room and play around with her lots... I let llamarr out of the cage for 3-5 hours a day too..

 

Another problem is when trying to have her to take a bath...She is scared out of her mind about water and I try misting and that freak her out, also I put this big water bowl and she only try to knock it down..If she sees or hear watering she goes crazy .She is REALLY itchy most of the time and feathers just FALL off, and when she is really nervous she plucks them. It seems the past owner never taught her for bathing or anything..

 

Please let me know if I am doing anything worng and how to solve these issues right now I am saving up to take her to the vet I never had a problem with my sun conure and seeing her loose so many feathers per day is heart breaking..She gets all the attention from our family and she is falling apart.

[Jayd]

Welcome, you need to take this baby to a vet ASAP! don't worry about changing the diet right now, give her a chance to get used to her new home, don't give her much fruit, if shes eating seeds and pellets, keep a lot of them in her cage..I'm going to give you a couple of links to proper bathing, and I want you to PM, Dave007, tell him I sent you, and ask him to read this thread!!!!Please..Not to much apple juice!!!Stop the sunflower seeds,crackers,peanuts,pickles!!! She has a lot of baggage, give her time to adjust.. how old is she? Get aloe vera juice, soak her with that. Thanks Jayd

 

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/showthread.php?189753-Bathing-possible-method-1

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/showthread.php?189752-Bathing-possible-method-2

[Glassy]

She is 3 year old.

 

I am saving up for the vet and calling around to see which is the best avian vet around not just any vet that knows a little about parrots. I am reading everything on this site and doing alot of research. She is adapting well because she picks up alot of sounds and whistles. When she wakes up she starts to whistle until she wakes me up and I uncover her. (Around 9am and goes to bed at 10pm)

 

I don't give Alot of apple juice just a little bit from a bottle cap every week. She seems happy so it seems but very itchy and dust all over since she was never bathed...The pervious owner told me he try to switch to full pellets but would starve to death instead.

 

My problem is just really FREAKS out at any form of water and when she freaks out then I freak out more because I don't want to hurt her.

[Jayd]

I've been working with this person in deciding rather she should get a rescue or not. All re-homes are different, A Grey won't starve it's self to death. Your going to have to gain her trust. Picking up sounds can also be from being nervous..Check out these sites, they might help you understand whats going on with your Grey. I hope you chose to contact Dave007. Jayd

 

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/sho...NING-OF-RESCUE

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/sho...nd-or-shoulder!

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/sho...-advice-please!

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/sho...-Parrot-s-Poem

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/sho...r-has-a-parrot

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/sho...-to-Buy-a-Bird

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/sho...Bill-of-Rights

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/sho...nder-Your-Butt!

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/sho...-Just-Realized!!!

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/sho...your-baby-grey.

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/sho...D-THEIR-RIGHTS

[judygram]

Jay is right, you need to take this grey to an avian vet as soon as possible to have her checked out but she does need time to settle into her new home. She could be going thru a heavy molt right now but from the way you describe it sounds like she is plucking her feathers, that could be due to the stress of going to a new home.

One thing I want to point out is when she freaks out at any form of water or whatever please do not freak out yourself as that will only increase her stress, try to stay calm and not over react for they sense our stress level and it will only make things worse. It will take time, lots of time to gain her trust so just be patient and it will work itself out.

[Glassy]

I am the only one in the house that she has trust alot and will go on top of me..But she likes to be pet from anybody expect females. She likes men only! I did Pm Dave007 and I hope he comes to read my thread and give me his inputs. The Teenager was going to give it away to another family that had lots of small kids and didn't have experience but had love birds and I don't think she would have adapted or would be the best situation for her. The owner chooses me because I had more experience with birds. I hope everything will turn out alright.

[Jayd]

Could you please start posting a after big poop weight each morning? It would be greatly appreciated. I wonder if they used to spray her with a squirt gun or something? as punishment? or to be quiet?brings a tear to my eye!!!

Keep up the good job....Jayd

[Glassy]

Tomorrow I will buy a weight scale(since I don't have one) and a gallon of aloe and see what will dave suggest. Her poops seems fine and I always check and see if she is pooping alright. I would like to mention she eats throughout the day and appears not gaining any weight though.

 

I can not give you any details about water gun or as punishment(who really knows?Only the owner who was a home schooled teenager).

 

Even a drop of water will make her go crazy and any form of running water she will go all over the cage. I try my best to calm her down by whistling and grabbing her attention. I can say I am dumbfounded when it comes to bathing her she is very different from my sun conure as my sun conure loves water and is on a full pellet diet. I don't have any idea on what to do like step by step on a scared out of her mind bird to take a bath.

 

The owner DID mention that they had a dog that scared her and she says alot "doogieboo" as to scare away the dog put she was always in a office room and only saw the mother and the teenager. I am trying to get all the help and provide everything possible for llamarr, she is such a great bird I would do anything to make her happy!

[judygram]

It would be very helpful if you could find out more about her past for it might explain a lot of things and be very useful to try to work thru them and I can imagine that Dave will ask that also.

[Glassy]

I will try to get more information, though probably the "bad" experience" will never be told to me. Though the teen probably moved out and relocated to another place near whatever his college is at.

 

He told me he bought the bird off a pet shop when it was a weaned baby and raised it himself.

[Jayd]

Thank you, My questions were just me thinking out loud. LoL At her age, her weight should be stable, no loss,no gain...Most of our fids are rescue or re-home, I've seen this so many time, it makes me sick...Freddy's our worst case. Good luck, sorry I couldn't help you...Jayd, Maggie, Spock and the Flock

[Glassy]

I don't mind questions I can/will answer to the best of my ability. She seems really shinny and a very picky eater..I hope dave can help out or anybody that has experience.

 

Thanks for trying to help everyone!

[Joolesgreyuk]

What a sad story, I do hope Dave responds quickly, meanwhile please take Jay's excellent advice because he handles dozens of rescues and has seen it all before, believe me he knows what he is talking about. The advice you have been given already by others is good advice you should take seriously.

 

One point, when I first had my grey from a baby he was also petrified (it scared the crap out of me too!) of being sprayed with water but I persevered and kept it up twice a week, I set the nozzle to a fine mist and started by misting avove his head, just so it fell gently onto him like ultra-fine raindrops. I think you could start by doing this and your grey will gradually accept this, as he tolerates it increase the frequency until eventually every other day. Good luck and please keep us updated with your progress.

[Joolesgreyuk]

I should also add that most greys are not over fond of bathing as others sometimes are so he may never love bathing as your conure does but eventually he should be able to tolerate it.

 

Please don't feel it necessary to buy expensive scales to weigh your grey, just ordinary digital kitchen scales will be sufficient, you may already have some suitable ones.

[pearllyn]

Hi Glassy, how sad that poor Llamaar is so afraid and in such condition, it's such a worry for you. I'm sorry I have no advice for you, others such as Jayd have and will help you though. I wish you luck with your grey.

[danmcq]

This is a big change for that Grey. It has lead a very sheltered life from your description and was not exposed seemingly to anything new, like surroundings, different rooms, people etc. That equals one very scared bird of anything new when it comes to grey behavior.

 

One question on the nighttime routine. Did the previous owner cover the cage at night? IF not, do not cover it. This could be causing undo stress because it cannot see out out the cage.

 

Another question, when you say the Grey is presently housed out on the patio, do you mean outside? If so, this is another highly stressful factor due to the environmental things the grey is not used to such as sounds of critters, cars and who knows what else. Then add on top of that the feeling of possibly being eaten by a monster at night and you have one very freaked out grey thats going to pluck.

 

If possible, you should get all the information you can on routines that grey is used to from interacting, feeding, bathing (if ever) and any other things this grey has become used to over it's past 3 years of life. It will help immensely in providing the grey as much comfort and familiarity as possible, while you SLOWLY introduce changes which will ultimately give the greater freedom from fear of change (Relative of course) during it's life and coping skills which are presently non existent.

 

Also, since it is still early, when you notice something that is freaking your grey out, stop doing it and if you must, please try not to become apprehensive yourself. A bath is not something the must have to address a health issue. It is obvious the water has really been a bad experience at some point. Introduce it SLOWLY. They pickup on your internal feelings and stress level instantly and react in an equal manner. It's hard, but always try to calm yourself, smile (The know a smile) and speak in calm reassuring words the grey may know like "It's OK", "Your such a good bird", "I love you" etc.

 

It's good to hear you are going to get a scale, start monitoring weight and find a vet for a checkup.

 

One thing on the diet. Do not just suddenly try to change it. It must be done very slowly over time. All avian vets caution on trying to change a diet and to do it slowly while monitoring the weight of you bird closely. Ask the vet about it when you have the check up.

 

The others have all given excellent advice.

Edited May 31, 2010 by danmcq

[Jayd]

Dan, thank you so much, your advice is what these new parront's need. As Dan and others have said, a vet check will give you the answers we can't, because we're not there! A bird will his hide illness till it's sometimes to late, some vets will take payments! Make a thread stating where you live and ask if any one can recommend a good vet!!!!

[Glassy]

THANKS for everyone post and suggestion. I took a few pictures this morning of what llamarr looks like. She's such a great bird! I am reading and learning from all the post. Though, I don't think misting would be possible because if it happens she will just fall in her cage and might get hurt. I only do it for my sun conure.

Also added a picture of what her food looks like.

[Jayd]

One big problem I see right away, Shelled peanuts, never give your parrot them.....http://www.greyforums.net/forums/showthread.php?115338-ASPERGILLOSIS Please read jayd

[Jayd]

Are the feathers your finding white? you baby looks really good, good color to the tail, no strees marks that I can see. Looks like there might be a little over preening! I see a little fat on breasts, looks good! The only peanuts you can safely give your bird is roasted shelled peanuts...As a side note, foods with fake coloring isn't the best for our baby's. There's a number of thread about Peanuts on the forum. Remember, a bird food maker's main interest is making money! peanuts and sunflower seeds are cheap...Jayd

[Glassy]

I see lot's of feathers on the ground some are white but most are gray. I got her very skinny and I don't know her weight to me she seems to me at least a under weight problem maybe I am wrong?

 

I am feeding the diet is lived all her life but I did add a few more pellets that she likes to eat. I will remove the peanuts though as mention.

[Dave007]

Some of what you say isn't that unusual for a rehomed bird. Long term neglect, being in a place locked up, having minimal contact can cause loads of problems with a grey and not all of those problems apply to every singe re homed grey.

First off you've had the bird a short amount of time--with some birds that have certain problems, iit may take a couple of months to see some sort of results. With others that have other types of problems, it may take much longer.

Changing food---if your bird likes doesn't like conure food, don't feed it conure food.Try a different pellet. They too are all the same except for size. It won't hurt. Don't expect one parrot to like what another one likes. Basically, all parrot mix is the same. None of it hurts parrots. If the bird doesn't like fruit, don't give fruit. As a matter of fact, fruit isn't that important. It's acidic and many birds survive quite well without food. Tomatoes, bad idea--to acidic and more than likely, not organic although both still produce acid. Pickles--bad idea. It's not a natural food that they would eat in the wild so they shouldn't be given it. The ingredients are aged and many additives are put in. *The Ex owner never gave her any fruit or anything*.... And that may be the reason why she doesn't eat them at all. Changing homes doesn't change the likes and dislikes of food.I have greys that only like macaw sized pellets so I feed them that plus seed mixtures and some veggies. If they don't like them, I simply don't give it. I'm not gonna get nervous because they don't eat things that all the text books say the bird should eat. I can't force feed them. None of them show any problems and most of them are much older than yours and all of them produce very healthy big chicks and my pet greys are equally healthy. In my eyes, you have a baby (3 yrs old) and a baby bird has a much bigger chance of changing habits than an older bird, especially when those older birds are rehomes.

Nervous---many greys are high strung and many times the cause of that is not letting a bird wean properly. Not enough time is given and birds are prematurely put on solids without formula. Most of the time that has to do with selling chicks for money purposes. This is one of the most common reasons for high strung birds. Many people don't know that because they're new to grey ownership. Many times, that type of nervous personality never leaves a bird. The older the bird gets, the more ingrained the trait becomes so you may have to accept that trait if it exists.

Plucking---the combination of molting plus plucking at the time isn't a very pleasnrt thing to see. She may not have been a plucker before you got her and now she is and that may be due to many changes she's gone through. Your bird may be an acute plucker or a chronic plucker. Big difference in the two. So, only time is gonna tell you what she is. You never said how long she's been doing it.

Chronic means that a bird will always pluck because it's ingrained in the bird

Acute means that a bird has occasional bouts with serious plucking and then stops. Some birds molt lightly. Others molt heavily and pluck out feathers at the same time and it's not pretty but eventually, they do grow back in.

""nervous around new people ""

Very common for many greys but much more obvious when a grey is extremely and naturally high strung. Every little thing the bird does is magnified in your eyes and only time will settle her down.

Baths---* It seems the past owner never taught her for bathing or anything..*

And more than likely, that's the reason she won't bathe but you're right. She does need a bath periodically but not as much as other people bathe their birds. That would be called a major bath. Many birds are fearful of bowls of water.

As far as your major trouble with bathing--Are you afraid of your bird? Is she quick to bite you if you did the littlest thing?

If not, there's a section here called bathing *1 and *2. Check them out. If it were my bird, I would go for the one that has to do with putting the bird in the sink. What's required is this--putting the bird on the floor, grabbing a hold of the whole body so she can'y flap her wings and putting her in the sink. If she won't let you do this repeat the same thing but use a towel to wrap her up go to the sink. Your bird is gonna give you a hard time but read the methods above and you'll see what to expect. I don't wanna repeat those instructions.

Drinking--putting water in the cage----try to put a water bottle full of water in the cage. It's the type used for hamsters and such. Understand that every bird will drink water. If you wanna do a different method, have your bird out of the cage when you put water and food in. I can't tell you how many people use this method because if they don't the bird will bite the person seriously.

 

I also agree about the vet. Your bird needs a checkup that will involve certain tests. You need to describe what's going on since you got him.

Remember that most of what's going on manifested itself in another place.

You'll need to address these problems one at a time and you can't put time limits on any of these things.

PS---don't get upset with the price the vet charges. It will be expensive but at this time it has to be done.

Edited May 31, 2010 by Dave007

[danmcq]

Thanks for sharing the photos of llamar. Beautiful Grey and on the breast close up I see 2 pins coming in at the neck breast merge level.

 

As Jay said, no visible evidence of plucking from the angles you provided.

[Jayd]

Don't worry about white feather, they lose them all year, I'm really sorry no one can begin to answer your weight question until we know the weight in grams, you should be weighing daily. Walmart sells a digatal scale for $20.00. Whats more important is the weight constant? With no scale, we don't know!!! Now, this work's, get some organic or natural peanut butter, it has palm oil in it, Skippy's, Laura Scudder's, Smith/Krogers etc, give 1/2 teaspoon twice a day, if the baby won't eat it off a spoon, put it on a small piece of wheat bread,[small] or pasta......Jayd

[Jayd]

Thank you Dave and Dan so very much. Many different people have given you similar suggestion's, these are some of the most knowledgeable people concerning Grey's there is! One in common, a vet check!

Were here for you. Jayd