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Baby Green Wing macaw refusing formula at 11 weeks old

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Re: Baby Green Wing macaw refusing formula at 11 weeks old

Postby Pajarita » Thu Jun 02, 2016 10:29 am

I also don't have any personal experience from where to draw a good conclusion on this but, personally, I would stop the syringe feeding. I don't know if I am on the right track or not but I would try it for two or three days just to see what happens... I am just going by the seat of my pants on this, mind you, but it seems to me that the force feedings, medicines, shots, physicals, etc have taken a toll on him and that he no longer trusts that the food you give him is any good. He is hungry but he doesn't want to be fed because feedings have become something to fear instead of something to enjoy. And that is a dangerous thing to have established with a young animal, Chad.

What I would do is forget about nutrition for now and give him anything he wants and would eat on its own. I would eat breakfast, lunch and dinner with him every day (and this needs to be his food and at his schedule so breakfast should be 1 hour after dawn and dinner 1 hour before dusk- so as to take advantage of his natural daily biorhythms) and start by eating something myself and with him just perching in front or next to me. I would talk to him calmly, praise him, sing to him, play with him, etc. but I would not make a single movement toward feeding him. I would put the food on the table so he can reach it but directly in front of me and not him and not in his bowl, either, but a 'human' plate. I would play with the food (break it into little pieces, chew it exaggeratedly, make yummy noises, etc) and watch him out of the corner of my eye to see if he takes the initiative to steal it from my hand or take a bite out of a piece I am holding (you can also try 'fighting' with him with the food -like making 'jabbing' movements with it toward his beak). I would start with something I know he likes (my birds LOVE bread, peanuts, pasta and fresh corn so I would start with that). But, if he doesn't eat anything on its own, I would put the same kind of food I had been eating in his cage and bowl (or wherever his eating place is) and simply walk away. Do NOT handfeed him and do not insist. It has to be HIS choice and not yours. I do not know of a single animal that would commit suicide by starvation and I doubt Robert will be the first in the history of the world. And give it time - at least two days, as long as he is drinking water, he will be OK for a couple of days. The idea is to show him that he won't be forced to eat anything he doesn't want to.
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Re: Baby Green Wing macaw refusing formula at 11 weeks old

Postby seagoatdeb » Thu Jun 02, 2016 2:06 pm

The important thing is to get him to eat so offer all sorts of soft foods and eat them along with him, and see if you can get him eating more. I am wondering if the antibiotics has left him yeasty and is giving some of the syptoms now. A probiotic for parrots may be needed.

My Red Belly parrot Gaugan had part of her toe amputated and had been kept in an isolation cage partly bound so she would not chew on her sore toe, and fed with a tube, and was not well when I purchased her. She had yeast, was underweight and was very very picky about what she would eat. it was a long process to get her eating a good diet. She is a very healthy parrot today 17 years later.
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Re: Baby Green Wing macaw refusing formula at 11 weeks old

Postby chad84 » Fri Jun 03, 2016 11:13 pm

Robert didn't eat a single thing for the day. He drank some water and that was it. When I made the yummy noises he came over and took the food from my hand but he didn't know what to do with it. he also took some food from the bowl but just moved it around in his beak but no swallowing was done. No food entered his stomach for 24 hrs now. So sad that he doesn't want the syringe but he doesn't wanna eat either. Offered his chop, whole grain penne and water. I just wanna cry right now.

Update:
He doesn't like the syringe. He runs from it. My wife just warmed some greek yogurt and he ate like .5 ml of it. 1st from from my finger then from a small bowl. He didn't want anymore after like 2 mins. I think he doesn't know how to swallow food.
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Re: Baby Green Wing macaw refusing formula at 11 weeks old

Postby chad84 » Sat Jun 04, 2016 6:13 am

Just made some gloop and will try to feed it to him.
I used:
Bananas, broccoli, carrots, corn, lentils, oats, quinoa.

Will update you in 10 mins.
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Re: Baby Green Wing macaw refusing formula at 11 weeks old

Postby Wolf » Sat Jun 04, 2016 9:23 am

We know how hard this is for both you and Robert and due to all of the things that he has had to go through especially with the forced feedings he may very well need to learn to swallow his food. I do not know if it would help to rub his throat when he actually takes some food into his beak, to help him move the food further down his throat or not, it has helped many other animals to learn to swallow their food, but I have never tried it with a bird. Also if he does not eat after 48 hours, then I would perhaps start the syringe feeding the way that you normally do, but after getting a little bit in him pull the syringe back out a little so that you deposit the food near the back of his beak so that he is encouraged to swallow the food. If he doesn't swallow then give him more and then back off again to try and get him to swallow and then after a couple of days start all over again with giving him the food as already suggested for another 48 hours.
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Re: Baby Green Wing macaw refusing formula at 11 weeks old

Postby Pajarita » Sat Jun 04, 2016 10:07 am

Try making something with a smooth (creamy) consistency (like oatmeal or corn meal cooked and mixed with pureed fruits) and feeding him with your finger. Put a bit on the tip of your finger and put it in front of his beak and, when he takes it, praise, praise, praise. Try this many times during the day so, even if he just swallows a tiny bit, he will end up getting some into his crop.

PS I would not feed him yogurt. It's nutritionally defective for a macaw, my dear...
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Re: Baby Green Wing macaw refusing formula at 11 weeks old

Postby seagoatdeb » Sat Jun 04, 2016 1:54 pm

at 11 weeks old he is stil needing very soft food, so you can have gloop there in case he trys it, but you need soft food for him and try to hand feed it to him just like Pajarita is saying.
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Re: Baby Green Wing macaw refusing formula at 11 weeks old

Postby chad84 » Sat Jun 04, 2016 8:25 pm

I fed him the gloop this morning and he ate 2 full tablespoons and didn't anymore. I was so relieved he ate so I didn't force him. An hour later the wife and I kissed him up and he begged for food again. I decided to make some Harrison's formula and offer him the syringe and see if he would like it. He didn't open up and my heart sank. But I opened his beak gently and he gave a feeding response and ate the entire 60 ml of formula. We cried with joy. He too was happy.

At lunch he ate another 60 ml with no feeding response but he willingly ate the entire 60 ml but he took his time.

Tonight my wife suggested that I puree the gloop. So we went to the appliance store and bought a NutriBullet. That thing is super amazing. It made all the ingredients into a thick liquid. Left the banana out as it is very perishable. So the broccoli, carrots, corn, lentils, oats and quinoa became so smooth. Poured out 60 ml, warmed it to 110f and put it at his beak. Upon squirt some in his mouth, it disappeared. In 20 secs the syringe was empty. He ate it all! I am so happy right now. He is sleeping for the night.

I will give him the gloop puree for all of tomorrow (or how ever long it lasts) then return him to formula right after that.

I plan to puree my own veggies & fruits and mix them into his formula on a daily basis.
Formula and carrot puree will be the base as I want to get his beta carotene intake up as I feel he isn't full out of the vitamin A deficiency.

First feeding will be formula + carrot puree + bananas
Second feeding will be formula + carrot puree + papaya
Third feeding will be formula + carrot puree + broccoli

Should I use the above mixture?
or
Should I alternate constantly between formula and gloop puree?
Day 1: 6am-formula, 12pm-gloop puree, 6pm formula
Day 2: 61m-gloop puree, 12pm-formula, 6pm-gloop puree

This is the finished gloop he ate this morning
Image

This is the gloop puree he ate tonight.
Image

Image
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Re: Baby Green Wing macaw refusing formula at 11 weeks old

Postby Pajarita » Sun Jun 05, 2016 10:17 am

Chad, after the vit A injection he got and all the carrot puree you gave him, he couldn't possibly still have a vit A deficiency so don't worry about it and start feeding more stuff than just betacarotene-rich food.

I would continue to offer the pureed gloop as well as the regular gloop and not insist so much on the syringe. He NEEDS to start eating solid food, Chad, and, as long as you continue to feed him with the syringe, he won't make an effort and might revert to resenting the handfeeding again. Personally, when he ate only two tablespoons and later asked for more, I would have given him more gloop and not the formula. Handfeeding formula is really only indicated for babies - it's not good for juveniles or adults (it's like feeding formula in a bottle to a 4 year old child -not good!)
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Re: Baby Green Wing macaw refusing formula at 11 weeks old

Postby Wolf » Sun Jun 05, 2016 7:04 pm

I agree that you need to reduce your reliance on the syringe and give him a chance to start eating as he should. I know that it is hard after all he has been through but the syringe may very well be the cause for his lack of a feeding response.
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