New Cockatoo, rehomed with issues.

[MrsMom25]

Quick intro, I am a 45+ year old farm mom, married, with 4 kids (three still home, youngest are 16). I've had extensive experience with a variety of farm animals, including many, many farm birds. I've also had innumerable pets, including finches, doves, parakeets, and cockatiels.

Yesterday we acquired our first Goffin's Cockatoo. She's a DNA tested female, approximately 6 years old. She was rehomed from a friend, who got her from her son, who got her from Craigslist. I don't know how many homes she had before that. I do know that in her last two homes she was with a single person who worked full time (one at night), and was therefore alone most of the time. She has pretty extensively plucked herself, though with "treatment" (I'm not sure what my friend did) her feathers are growing back, but she still looks pretty rough. I also know that she's on a Walmart-available parrot feed (3-D brand), and assorted commercial treats. I was told that she "won't eat fresh fruits or vegetables", but this morning she was quite happily nibbling on a 1/2 slice of fresh mandarin orange. Also, her cage was crammed full of tons of toys. I know they need "several" toys, but wouldn't a handful, rotated frequently, be better than literally two dozen all at once, but never changed?

Being a farm family there is nearly always someone at home. At most, she might be alone for 3 or 4 hours on any given day, so she now has lots of company. She is also near a window and able to watch the farm animals moving around even when we're not home. I will work on slowly introducing her to more fresh fruits, veggies, and cooked eggs, etc. She will not step up, but likes to be petted and scratched, says a couple of words, and loves to bob to music.

Now my questions: What brand(s) of food and treats do you recommend? I know, that's like asking your favorite color; everyone's is different. But I'd like some ideas anyway. Is the Walmart stuff okay? Does PetSmart have a better brand? Is homemade the best? I've done quite a bit of research since we knew we were going to get her, and cooked oatmeal with bits of fruit seems to be recommended quite a bit. I'm willing to do that sort of thing if it would benefit her. Also, besides a better diet and more company (which she appears to be CRAVING), is there anything else I can do for her feather picking? She was taken to a vet approximately 5 months ago and treated for a mild infection, but otherwise were told she was "healthy but stressed" which precipitated the move to my friend's house. So my guess is that the feather issue is from diet and stress, but what do you think?

Thanks all!! I'm looking forward to your infinite wisdom, and doing the best I can for Amelia!
Carrie

[Pajarita]

Welcome, Carrie and Amelia! First of all, thank you soooo much for opening your home and heart to this poor bird! Now to the nitty gritty: diet - the one she has is no good but I guess you already figured this out. I actually buy dog and cat stuff in Walmart and even some treats but they don't have any good bird stuff - I don't know why but there you have it.

You will find that most of us here strongly believe in a fresh food diet. Most of us use some version of gloop and one uses a completely raw diet. If you look in the diet section, you will find several recipes for both gloop, raw, birdy bread and treats.

I have two cockatoos and had, in the past, three more. They all ate the same thing: gloop with raw produce for breakfast and a good quality seed/nut mix for dinner. I have found that contrary to what people say, cockatoos are EXCELLENT eaters -they are the only parrots I've even had (and I've had a lot of them under my care) that would go for the leafy green first and eat it with relish! The trick is timing and presentation (although mine were never fussy about the presentation part of it). If you feed her the high protein food (seed/nut mix) for dinner and take away her dish once she is asleep and them, in the morning, give her the produce when the sky is beginning to light up, she will be hungry and willing to try the new foods -especially if you eat them in front of her and offer her some from what you have in your hand (just make sure you don't allow her to eat from the side where you bit because we humans have real bad bacteria in our mouths). Parrots learn to eat from watching other parrots (usually their parents) so, in captivity, it falls to us to teach them. Mine love all kinds of fruits and veggies, today they got fresh habanero peppers, pears and escarole, for example (you will find that your entire family will end up eating healthier thanks to Amelia's diet ). Then, about an hour after serving her the produce, you serve the gloop. Start by making a simple one with only grains and pulses in it and mixing a sprinkling of seeds into it to 'show' her that this is food - then when you see she is eating the grains (you will find empty white 'skins'), you start adding veggies to it (start with corn because they all love it, then peas -they love them, too-, then diced carrots, etc). Very soon, she will be eating a nutritious meal every day!

Now, it seems to me that she would benefit from getting some extra vitamins and minerals because if she has been eating only seeds, she has to be deficient in them (and, most likely, it was the lack of vitamins that caused that infection she had) so give her some for the next two or three weeks until she is eating well on her own. You can also add some orange or white grape juice to her water -it's not the same as eating the fruits, of course, but every little bit helps, right?

Please, no eggs. I know it's common to hear about people feeding eggs to their parrots but the truth of the matter is that there isn't a single species of parrot that eats eggs in the wild. Eggs are animal protein (which parrots are not good at digesting), high protein, fat and bad cholesterol (not good for them).

Also, taking into consideration that she has been eating seeds all her life (high protein), I would put a bit of liquid alcohol-free milk thistle extract in her water to help her liver cleanse itself out.

Aside from that, keeping her at a solar schedule will keep her endocrine system healthy and in tune with the seasons, as it should be, and help with her plucking, too!

Let us know if there is anything that needs further explanation or if you have any doubts or questions - we are all bird lovers here and glad to be of help.

[MrsMom25]

Thank you for all that information, Pajarita!!

I've got my gloop shopping list ready and hope to get to the store this afternoon. Amelia is, right now, happily nibbling on an apple slice and looking out the window, so the "fresh food movement" is under way for her. LOL She is adapting quickly and has been preening and beak-grinding as she dozes, which I take as good signs of contentment. We all talk to her often, and her cage and perch are in the central room of our home, which includes tv/living room, dining room, and kitchen, so she can pretty much always see and hear us. Even the dogs and cats seem to amuse her to no end! Must be nice, after only have a TV for company, I guess. (No, she will NEVER be uncaged when we are not home, or even not in the house. The dogs I trust, as they're used to small farm animals, and will even cuddle baby chicks and bunnies. The cats...never.)

I got her some better quality seed mix from a good bird store, and vitamins for her water and as top-dressing for her food. We also got some treats that are more whole nuts and dried berries, rather than the "candy" looking stuff that came with her. And no eggs. Gotcha. What about meat? I've read so many places that suggest feeding meat to them. I know they'll likely eat insects in the wild, but meat?

Thanks again for all your advice.
I'm on the lookout for an avian vet, but don't have my hopes too high. We're in a very rural area.
Carrie

[Pajarita]

I have no problem feeding insect protein to parrots, especially cockatoos that are known for actually chewing wood in order to get to the grubs BUT insect protein is not the same as chicken, beef, pork, eggs, etc protein. Insect protein is low in fat and hardly has any bad cholesterol while we all know how bad the 'real' meat is -and don't even get me started on all the antibiotics, hormones and unnatural diet of food animals! There is a reason why animals that eat insects are not called carnivores and the reason is that not all protein, even when it comes from animals, is the same. I have started lately feeding insect protein to my birds (I am constantly doing research on their wild diets and forever tweaking the one my birds get) but only during the warm weather months as I believe in giving them a different diet for the breeding season (spring and summer) than the one they get during the resting season (winter). Now, if your bird has been eating seeds all along, she has had a bit too much protein so I would actually feed her a lower protein diet in order to allow her liver to clean itself out (and that's why I recommended the milk thistle in her water). But, I think that you could start adding a bit of insect protein to her diet on occasion once the warm weather is here.

[liz]

I buy 3D from Walmart and pick the peanuts out. In a sealed container I know I am getting a fresh product. I also know that no insects are in it. (Pantry moths). My kids eat so much veg, fruit and grain that sometimes they don't even eat the seed.
I don't use nuts as treats for training so I give them half an English walnut with breakfast and an almond still in the shell with supper.

Thank you for rescuing her. You are going to be the best human she has ever had. With all the other animals you have and have had you know how to read them and understand how they feel.

[Pajarita]

3D is not really very good food for parrots, Liz. It has dried corn and is mostly sunflower seeds...it also has soy and all kinds of chemicals in it. Look at the ingredients and you'll see.

[Wolf]

Be careful of vitamin supplements as too much is as bad for them as too little. both too much and too little is harmful. I add my vitamin supplement to the food ( gloop ) and only just a little bit once a week for 3 weeks and then I skip a week.

[MrsMom25]

Thanks much, everyone, for the comments and tips! I truly appreciate all the input!

Pajarita, I thought the same thing about cockatoos eating meat. It just didn't seem to make sense, but I knew they'd eat insects. I occasionally offer dried mealworms to my chickens (organic). Would that be good as an occasional treat? Maybe for training sessions? Also, I totally agree with you about all the junk (and by "junk" I'm being polite) in the commercially available meat these days. That's why we raise 80% of the meat we eat. The other 10% is wild-caught seafood.

Wolf, I understand what you're saying. Especially since she was probably deprived of vitamins, I'm giving her just a small amount compared to what the bottle says. I'll build her up slowly but steadily, rather than risk making her sick from too much all at once. At least, that seems appropriate based on what I know of the other birds and mammals I've rescued in poor shape in the past. Am I doing right for her, or should I give her the full amount of vitamins now? Especially since she'll have gloop tomorrow?

Thanks, everyone!
Carrie
PS -- today she was willing to step up onto my hand, and happily shredded a tissue next to me on my desk and watched me do some computer work. I guess that's progress. LOL

[Chantilly]

Hi MrsMom! Welcome to the forum, I would like to second the other posts..
I was wondering if you have had chickens, if I may ask your help for a diagnosis for my ill one?

It has happened to two others, and i havnt been able to find what the problem is, but the chicken will stop picking for bugs and walking around, and eventually they will stop eating and drinking independently, soon they will spend most the day sitting down with their eyes half closed (poo gets on them because they will just poo on their own bum), they will start vomiting water, and after vomiting they die 24-48 hours later. My unwell chicken is currently at eyes half closed/ not vomiting yet. I just cant figure this out, I am really sorry, I know this is a parrot forum, but if you have ever experienced this sort of problem I would greatly apreciate any help. And if you need any more info, i will reply with it asap. Sorry, thankyou again.
Also: The chook is about 4. They havnt gotten unwell in any specific pattern, so i am thinking mabye they have eaten something/ or gotton a infection that isnt contagious (because they get it at random times)

[Chantilly]

Hi MrsMom! Welcome to the forum, I would like to second the other posts..
I was wondering if you have had chickens, if I may ask your help for a diagnosis for my ill one?

It has happened to two others, and i havnt been able to find what the problem is, but the chicken will stop picking for bugs and walking around, and eventually they will stop eating and drinking independently, soon they will spend most the day sitting down with their eyes half closed (poo gets on them because they will just poo on their own bum), they will start vomiting water, and after vomiting they die 24-48 hours later. My unwell chicken is currently at eyes half closed/ not vomiting yet. I just cant figure this out, I am really sorry, I know this is a parrot forum, but if you have ever experienced this sort of problem I would greatly apreciate any help. And if you need any more info, i will reply with it asap. Sorry, thankyou again.
Also: The chook is about 4. They havnt gotten unwell in any specific pattern, so i am thinking mabye they have eaten something/ or gotton a infection that isnt contagious (because they get it at random times)

Also they seem to loose sense of where things are, they go to peck food up high in the air, when really it is below them. Sorry if i should of started a new post for this.. But if anyone on here with chickens has had this happen please let me know. She is a pet, so i am really worried/sad about this. Edit: I am thinking rickets, seeing as unless i find a chicken vet (none around here) you have to make a guess, i am going to give her dosages of calcium&phosphorus(where would you find phosphorus?) for 3 days, no improvement and i will move onto something else.