HELP! Very Worried

[Wingz]

Hi,
So I got my B&G Macaw "Sky" from a breeder exactly a week ago today. They breeder told me he finally fully weaned her and said that she was ready to go home. Everything looked fine, but for the past week now she has not been eating any of her pellets ( which are Zupreem Fruitblend for Large Parrots ), and barely touching her mixed dried seeds, nuts, fruits and bean mix. She IS however eating a whole bowl of fruit salad that I mix up for her daily. ( Cantaloupe, Blueberries, Carrots, Bananas, Orange and Apples ) She was born Aug. 26th of this year and apparently weighed 1,050 grams the day she left. I think this is complete non-sense because I took her to the vet today for a check-up and she only weighed 680 grams. I am very concerned because I really hope there is no possible way she lost that much weight in only a week! I started her back on handfeeding 3 days ago, at 90cc two times a day. Im wondering if this is a normal weight for her age, and if it's not what is a normal weight. Also, if there is any other solutions for helping her to put on some more weight. The vet said her breastbone is sticking out too much, therefore being underweight and she said her target weight would be around 1000 grams. I really don't want anything to happen to my baby, and I have been taking all the right measures to ensure everything goes smoothly. Can anyone put me at ease? Thank you in advance.
Karma Sky

[sidech]

You seem to be on the right track. Giving her feedings daily will definitely help. What does the vet say about quantities and number of feedings ? Also, if she likes fruits and veggies, I don't think there is a limit to the quantity she can eat, and that is definitely healthy food for her to eat.

About the pellets, sometimes babies like them moist. Add a little water to them, or maybe even baby food (they like the fruit ones a lot), and see if she likes that. Make sure you throw them out after a few hours though, because they go bad fast once they're wet.

Babies also like warm oatmeal, maybe you can try that in the morning.

Don't worry, just keep up the good work.

[entrancedbymyGCC]

You might want to add some veggies to the fruit salad... I've been chastised (here) for letting Scooter eat too much fruit and corn! Seriously, dark red and orange and leafy veggies do contain nutrients that tend to be short in avian diets. Was he eating the same pellet and seed mix at the breeder's? What did the vet say aside from "too thin"? Did she take blood, fecal sample, swab? Did she note any poop abnormalities?

I think macaws are one of several species that have higher fat needs than most birds, if he likes nuts, you might try offering some of them (almonds, brazils, pistachios...).

[Wingz]

Thanks for your quick response ! This forum is awesome, everybody is so friendly and have very fast response times! The vet said that between 90-100c twice a day would be suffice. I know I'm overworrying but I just want her to put on a lot more weight a lot quicker. I've tried moistening the pellets with water and discarding after an hour or two but still no interest. I even tried eating a pellet myself to spark some interest with her but still nothing. Does her weight seem severely underweight to you? Also, I was wondering how long it takes a bird of her size and age to fully empty her crop. I'm so attatched to my little girl already, that I just want everything to go smoothly and for her to start putting on some weight. I also got some advice from the vet that to increase the calorie intake from the baby formula, that I can also add Organic Almond butter and mix it into the formula. What do you think? Vet gave her a clean bill of health, she took a fecal sample and came back clean. She said everything was perfect except for the weight. She also implied that she was still a little young to do a blood test and that she would like to wait until she's a year old to do so. She was "APPARENTLY" eating Kaytee Rainbow Large Parrot Mix at the breeders, but when she came home she hadn't touched it for 4 days, so I tried a small bag of Zupreem Fruitblend for Large Parrots and still didn't spark any interest. I figured it was alright to switch the foods, because it's not like she was eating anyways. My little baby thanks you in advance!

[GlassOnion]

Hi, sorry this may be a little off topic but somewhat important..
Did you get her from a breeder in Ontario who goes by windsong aviary?

[Wingz]

No I got her from a breeder called M&D Aviary.

[meowingaround]

Oh I'm sorry for you have no advice really hope you spread the word around bout that breeder though, he should have never sent you home with a bird that wasn't ready like that. Your bird should have been eating well on her own, this should never have been an issue for you.

Sounds like you are doing the best you can though, great job bringing her to the vet and hand feeding though.

So glad my breeder was not like yours, I was so impatient.. at 8 weeks I was dancing sure I could bring Windy home but he week after week he kept putting me off, at 12 weeks he finally gave the ok.
At the time I was so frustrated now I'm so grateful I never had to live through this experience.

Best of luck to you and your baby... lots of good people here to help you who have excellent knowledge about this though so I'm sure it'll work out well

PS I'd definitely try the almond in the formula as your vet suggested..

[sidech]

If you don't already have an electronic scale for her, you should get one. They are not expensive (below 30$) and it will reassure you that she is gaining weight, or at least not losing any.

Weigh her at the same time everyday, ideally before her morning meal, so the conditions are always the same (although I weigh mine after his meal, because I don't have time in the morning, and also I like the fact that he seems a little bigger, although it's not really the case...)

[captwest]

A couple of questions, have you switched over to spoon feeding the formula yet? get the same brand of pellets as the formula, If you can spoon feed, start making formula drier, thicker and then try grinding your pellets,fine at first, and mix with water and spoon feed, then you can use coarser and drier pellets over time until she's eating moist whole pellets.If she likes the fruit try mashing fruit and mixing in a few pellets, i know bananas and pellets work well around my house, let us know how it goes, Richard

[Wingz]

I bought an electronic food scale that goes up to 11lbs. at Canadian Tire for about $25. Works well. I am trying to get her onto the Zupreem fruitblend flavour, and I am currently giving her the Zupreem Embrace Plus handfeeding formula which has the Scarlet Macaws on the front of the bag. Since last yesterday, she has only been taking about 25cc of formula and making whiney noises and then tries to run off and go play on top of the cage or her stand. I have no idea why she is doing this, and by her doing this I cannot handfeed her very much at all. She ate and chewed 5 pellets today all by herself without moistening them, but she will not go into the bowl herself and eat them. She is keen set on sitting on top of her toy at the very top of the cage. She always hangs out there and does not come down to eat. She is not afraid by any means, because she climbs up and down it, but she just won't eat. Clean bill of health from vet though. Formula is at 104 F, so not too hot, and I just don't have any idea why she doesn't want the formula anymore. I was thinking possibly that she was trying to grow up and get some initiative and try to eat on her own, but she isn't touching anything. Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you