Amazon Feet Help

[pfinarffle]

So giving raw veggies (ie.) carrots - without boiling/steaming them would still hold the Vit. A correct? I know Gort will eat small amounts of carrots. Better than nothing

definitely anything is better than nothing! however gort prefers to eat it is the ultimate way to go. and sometimes how you prepare or even present a food (how it looks, its texture, temperature etc) make all the difference in the world.

i have no idea how cooking increases the nutrients for some foods but not others. maybe it makes it easier for us to digest the nutrients out? i can't imagine trying to digest a raw sweet potato. but i'm sure there's more food science in here than i'll ever understand. in general i was told that cooking slightly reduces the nutrients in dark leafy greens, but increases it in other foods. it also depends on how you cook things. i think steaming is less damaging than baking in high heat for short periods.

in the past few months, all this notice to my bird's nutrition has got me thinking of my own diet, and i think for the better!

[entrancedbymyGCC]

I'm hoping ours don't develop a deficiency... Scooter eats all kinds of fruits and veggies, but is not fond of the orange ones and is quite stubborn about eating pellets, so he has a seed, grain and pellet mix. Scotty eats only grapes as far as fresh foods go, but loves nuts and is pretty good with his pellets (although the only ones he really likes are the Zupreem, he eats the rest of the mix somewhat reluctantly). Both do eat sprouts. Vit A seems to be the number one deficiency to worry about.

[Dodger]

You know you're a bird person when your birds eat better than you!

[kellybird]

Sorry to hear about your amazons feet. I am curious to see a picture of how they look as I am not picturing it in my head??? I also have a amazon but haven't had any sort of problem with his feet. About the only issue I have with him right now is that he is a little wee bit overweight. We are working on that lol.. I have a variety of perches in my birds cages. I use mostly manzanita, rope perches, concrete, and pvc. All in different sizes, shapes and textures. Can you post any pictures of him, especially his feet???

[Kyle]

Chillies are supposed to have lots of vitamin A and C, I know you can give African Greys one now and again, not sure about little parrots though.

[Dodger]

I got Gort switched over to the rope perches and put vet wrap around the hard smooth wood perches but have yet to put them back into his cage... I am wanting him to use his rope perches before putting in his hard wood perches... Is this a good idea?

Is there any other way to help a bird transition to new perches other than "deprive" him of his favorite ones?

He is also eating a -bit- of "heatlhy" food for him. He definitely loves strawberries and grapes of course... Wont touch green beans or carrots though. And I believe strawberries and grapes are sugary. So I only fed him a bit of them in moderation.

Any suggestions to get him to try and hopefully like new foods?

[kellybird]

So has he tried any of the new perches? If he is just hanging on the sides of the bars avoiding them all together? I wouldn't take away all of his normal perches if he isn't using the new ones. Sometimes it just takes a little bit for them to get used to something new. Also try other veggies if he doesnt like something just try new ones until you find something he does like. My birds love dark green leafy greens, like kale, chickory, romaine (there fave). Also mine love apples slices with skin on, bananas, how about some larger nuts like almonds, brazil nuts? Also scrambled eggs with shells are good, beans, broccoli etc. There are so many varieties out there, must be something he likes lol. Good luck with him!

[CheekyandMalolo]

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.

You might do better to call Vetwrap a cohesive bandage as that's what it actually is, pretty sure Vetwrap is a brand?? Cohesive bandages are stretchy and stick to themselves, not what you attach it to, so you'll need to wrap it over itself to make it stick. Visit your local feed store, or a tack shop might have it. Or online might be your best bet, but I only have links for Australian sites.

[Dodger]

I have used vetwrap before. My mom's a paramedic and I've also used it to help dog and cat wounds stay clean by using it to cover. I've had the perches wrapped for a couple days now...

Went out and bought Gort alot of toys and some more rope perches today as-well as some more healthy foods to try out what he likes.

He's using the rope perches like a pro now but doesnt want to touch the perch with vetwrap on it. He thinks it's evil or something