What Size Harness do your Capes Wear?

[lotus15]

Lola was trained to wear a Small as a baby, but I think that since she has grown considerably I will upgrade her to a Medium. The head space is quite small for her now and she really doesn't like how tight it is when it goes over her head. She weighs 350 grams. What size harnesses do your Capes wear, and how much do they weigh? Thanks!

[Michael]

Truman wears a small. It was tight from the very start and his head barely fits into it. However, once it is tightened, it's a perfect fit. I'm afraid that moving up a size will mean it dangling loose which is more dangerous. If the bigger size works out for you though, definitely let me know.

Truman's weight range is from 310g-350g with 330g being his typical between meal weight. 325g-335g is probably his typical range but extremely full/extremely empty can take him to the edge of 350/310g.

[lotus15]

Thank you!! Wow, I'm surprised by Truman's weight!! I always thought the males were pretty significantly larger. How interesting! I think I will try the Medium and see how it goes. I will obviously keep the Small too in case the Medium turns out not to be snug enough.

[Michael]

Well there are a few factors when it comes to weight. First off, parrots (like humans) will vary on an individual basis. Some will come from bulkier parents and others from smaller. I know African Grey parrots can range from 200g-600g across subspecies, but even just the CAG can be 300g-600g.

There is definitely a size/weight different amongst the Cape Parrot subspecies with the P. robustus being the smallest, P. suahelicus the largest, and P. fuscicollis somewhere in between. Truman is most likely P. fuscicollis but the differences are so subtle that it is impossible to be absolutely certain.

Another thing that could be different is that I keep my parrots "leaner." This is not only because I use some food management for training but also because they fly a lot. The flying provides both exercise but also an automatic deterrent mechanism against obesity. Juvenile parrots tend to lose weight when it comes time to first fledge so I think a similar mechanism is at play for flighted parrots.

One last factor I can think of comes down to calorie to weight ratio of foods consumed. Two parrots can have the same body frame weight and same caloric intake, yet one weighs more because of consuming heavier (but less caloric) foods. The amount of food matter in the parrot's body at time of weighing can probably swing the weight +/-10% easily. I definitely noticed this when switching diets. Sometimes it can lead to a permanent drop in weight but the parrot remains normal/healthy. That's because the new food is more calorie rich and less of it occupies the digestive system/crop at any given time to provide equal energy outputs. A 300g Cape vs a 400g Cape is clearly a body size difference, but when you're within 30g, all these other things can play a role. This is why I prefer to discuss my parrot's range of weights rather than just one weight that was discovered at a random weighing.

[lotus15]

Interesting -- Lola is a Pff and she is also flighted and flies quite a bit. Interestingly I found that she has taken to flying a lot more than she did when she was a baby, and my vet ventured to guess that all of the muscle growth was probably a big factor in her weight gain. I've seen this happen to other parrots too (weight gain after increased flight time). I had always thought that the reason baby parrots lost weight after fledging was because this typically also coincided with them beginning to take food on their own rather than being hand-fed or parent-fed and therefore they weren't getting quite as much or a guaranteed syringeful at a given hour.

I weigh Lola daily at the same time each day so as to get the most accurate reading on her weight (in the morning after her big morning poop). She is always between 350-360 grams.

To get back to the original topic, I have decided to purchase a medium and try it on her