Amazon Feet Help

[Dodger]

I have a 25 year old Orange Winged Amazon that I recently rescued in May. He was badly neglected in his previous home and came to me completely bald. Since coming to me, he has regrown most of his plucked feathers but still has alot of "grey down". I recently noticed after leaving him with a friend for 2 weeks (to petsit while I was away) that his feet are "raw" or look as if they are raw. They had absolutely no interaction with him, as he is pretty aggressive towards other people and only fed and watered him. It is winter (just in-case the dry air has something to do with it) and those 2 weeks were the first time I've ever been away from him since he came to me. His perches are smooth wood (had to add that in-case that could be the problem). And he loves to walk around the house on the floor. There is nothing on the floor that would hurt his feet (ie. sharp objects, etc) and the floor is hardwood. He also climbs all around and ontop of his cage as-well as the bottom of it to "forage".

I've had Macaws for the last 10 years as-well as smaller birds and have never seen this before. He has seen several avian vets, but none can tell me what's wrong. Im just thinking the bottoms of his feet are raw (they're just a shade of pink), but if they are raw, is there anything that can be done to help them heal up or?

If anymore information is needed, please feel free to ask. And any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[MandyG]

I'm not sure about your situation, but Amazons are prone to getting pressure sores on their feet. They're usually associated with being overweight and by the looks of your picture he doesn't appear to be overweight.

Does he spend a lot of time standing in one spot? Are his perches different diameters? Amazons (like most parrots) benefit from having softer rope perches, especially where they spend most of their time and where they like to sleep. Also, rough perches such as 'Wacky Wood' is better for their feet than smooth dowel type perches.

If you've taken him to an avian vet and they haven't noticed any swelling, blistering, or sores then it may not be a serious issue. Extremely dry feet usually start to crack and peel or become flaky. It doesn't sound like dry feet are the problem but to prevent dry feet you should make sure he's bathing regularily. I've heard some people suggest to use different types of natural oils as well but I haven't done any of my own research on that so I can't recommend it. Also you should always contact your avian vet to make sure what you're using is safe for the bird.

It could very likely just be irritation because he wasn't very active while you were away and spent the entire two weeks in his cage standing on the smooth perches. As long as he's seen a vet for a proper evaluation I would invest in some rope perches to see if that helps.

[Dodger]

Thank you for the suggestion! I sure will try out a few rope perches and other things. I may have to take out his smooth perches, as he tends to favor those over others. He has a few calcium perches and will not touch them. His food dishes are on his calcium perches and he will hang sideways off the bars of his cage to get the food instead of standing on the calcium perches.
When I first got him, his food dishes were set on the smooth wood perches, so mixing them up took a bit of time for him to get used to.

But I will definitely invest in some rope perches and see how they work out. Thanks!

[MandyG]

If his feet are bothering him that may be why he's avoiding the hard calcium perches. From what I've read, and what I've learned from the breeder of my Amazon, you should only have one calcium/cement/etc. type perch in the cage and it shouldn't be placed where they sleep or eat so they aren't forced to be on it too often because they're already at risk for foot problems. Personally, I only have one sandy perch and it's in the shower, but I'm sure he'd be fine with an additional one in the cage as well.

There's another member on the forum that has extensive experience with Amazons so hopefully he'll see this thread and be able to provide some for information!

[Dodger]

He only recently started having the problems with his feet. He just avoids the calcium perches at all costs even if his feet arent hurting. His feet dont bother him and he isnt acting like they are. It just worries and concerns me that they are "raw" and I was hoping to find a solution to help his feet before it got too bad. But I will try the rope perches and see if that helps.

Thanks again!

[entrancedbymyGCC]

I'd take away the rough perch for now. You can also try wrapping his perches in "Vetwrap" for a little cushioning.

[Kyle]

Can you wrap perches in leather to make them soft?

[Dodger]

I went out and invested in a few rope perches and will try these out and see how they do. I removed all his "hard surfaced" perches and replaced them with these. He seems to like them alot better and also has fun chewing on them.

Kyle; I am pretty sure you could wrap a perch in leather... But I really wouldnt recommend it, as leather is treated and could potentially be harmful to a bird. Then again, I have had some people say they've used leather with their birds for years with no problems and others say a definite no. I would go with a "no" just to be on the safe side, but it never hurts to get another opinion

[MandyG]

Make sure you check the ropes regularily to make sure there isn't any loose threads that toes can get caught in. My conure likes to chew through her ropes and I have to replace them regularily!

[entrancedbymyGCC]

IMO Vetwrap would work as well as leather would and has the benefit you can just peel it off and toss it! It's also pretty inexpensive.

I do use leather in toys... leather that's tanned free of dyes and sold for use with birds.