First Vet Trip in 15+ Years!

[ksee425]

Hello everyone,

I rescued/adopted Aerial, my African Grey, from my boyfriend's family's home over the last year. Aerial had previously been my bf's father's bird. He was well taken care of as a baby and was a wonderful pet to my bf's dad, however after some time the novelty faded. Aerial hit sexual maturity and from what I know the owner/bird bond went sour and then completely severed. I started dating my bf almost 3 years ago and had started bonding with Aerial. Eventually, I took him in completely. I bought him a brand new cage ( his first upgrade ever!) and new toys ( also first new set of toys since he was young!). I have been working on clicker training with him and have finally (over the last year) gotten him to step up on command and willingly accept pets without being aggressive. Since I got him to be handleable again, I scheduled him his first vet appointment in over 15 years because he definitely needed a check-up and I thought he had a fuzzy stuck in his eye, as I previously posted.

Good news! Aerial did great. He got his beak buffed down and his nails clipped ( which is awesome for me because his nails are no longer digging holes into my hand). He weighs a solid 511g, which is perfect for a Grey according to the vet. His eye was fine and he was overall in great health. I was so proud of him and beyond happy to hear he is such a durable little guy. The only thing the vet noted was a Vitamin A deficiency, which is common. I was instructed to go out and buy Red Palm Oil as a supplement for this problem and am already including that in his diet.

Here are some pics of Aerial on his big day:

[Andromeda]

Aerial is a very handsome bird! I'm glad that you gave him a better home with a new cage and new toys. He's a lucky bird that you have the patience to work on training and taming with him because a lot of people just give up if they have a bird with behavioral or tameness issues.

I'm happy to hear the issue with his eye was nothing serious! That's a relief! I guess it ended up being a good thing that he got a fuzzy in his eye because it allowed you to catch the Vitamin A deficiency.

Regarding the red palm oil, I just want to say a lot of what is sold is made from the kernel which is inferior and doesn't give the same health benefits as oil made from the fruit. Harrison's sells Sunshine Factor which is made from the fruit. There are probably other companies that sell oil made from the fruit as well but just make sure you know whether the oil you're using is made from the fruit or the kernel.

[marie83]

Glad the appointment went well and theres nothing wrong bar the vit deficency which can be easily corrected.

And well done for all your hard work with your grey, he is lucky to have found you

[janetafloat]

He's gorgeous! And what a heartwarming tale.....so glad that you found each other & that Aerial is in such good shape

[friend2parrots]

glad to hear Aerial is doing so well and that the issue with his eyes turned out to be nothing. he's lucky to have you as a parront!

[ksee425]

Regarding the red palm oil, I just want to say a lot of what is sold is made from the kernel which is inferior and doesn't give the same health benefits as oil made from the fruit. Harrison's sells Sunshine Factor which is made from the fruit. There are probably other companies that sell oil made from the fruit as well but just make sure you know whether the oil you're using is made from the fruit or the kernel.

Thanks for the tip! I might need to go tomorrow to get a better one. The vet was supposed to write down which one for me to get, but she forgot, so I winged it and bought whatever I could find.

[ksee425]

And thank you everyone for the support. It hasn't been easy or quick getting Aerial to where he is now, but I am patient and he makes me so proud

[Utoomom]

And thank you everyone for the support. It hasn't been easy or quick getting Aerial to where he is now, but I am patient and he makes me so proud

Awww...your an angel with invisible wings...~~Aerial is a stunning grey. Hugs to both of you