ECLECTUS NOTES
THE MAIZE CRAZE
An informal survey of owners of Eclectus parrots has established corn as one of the favorite foods of this species. And why not? It is a bright and shiny hue of yellow; it is sweet tasting and juicy; and it has "peel appeal"! Parrots instinctively try to peel every morsel of food presented to them, so each kernel of corn is a pleasurable task with a tasty reward! When offered on the cob, it becomes an even more enjoyable task--when the very last kernel has been removed, a "food toy" magically appears. When one views a corncob in a thousand tiny pieces, it is easy to see how this food could be used to entertain a parrot who might otherwise find destructive ways of amusing itself. For very young Eclectus just starting to sample solid foods, I often cut the corn off in small pieces which they can manage easily. But I never throw away the cob as it becomes an object of entertainment for an older bird when tied or skewered and hung in the cage or aviary. Even the natural packaging of an ear of corn can be enjoyed by a caged bird. The inner husks and silks can capture the curiosity of parrots who can spend a good deal of time shredding them.
Birds can be stimulated to try foods by presenting them in different shapes. Many people offer fresh corn in "rounds" and when cut in this fashion, one ear of corn can be divided into many pieces. Eclectus love to hold these rounds with one foot while happily perching on the other and munching away. Besides presenting it in its natural form, there are many other ways to prepare corn for the Eclectus. Although it is unlikely that an Eclectus in the wild would ever have the opportunity to sample cooked corn, somehow they have a natural taste for it and almost every bird will choose it over uncooked corn.
"Plumped" corn is the absolute favorite food of every one of my Eclectus pets and breeders. In fact, it is the most sought-after food of parents feeding babies in the nest. I offer it as part of their soft-food mix which also contains beans and brown rice, and usually chopped sweet potato for the natural Vitamin A content which Eclectus need. But, you can easily prepare it alone and offer it to your Eclectus of all ages. It is very inexpensive and is similar to the popular but more expensive pre-cooked mixes available in pet supply stores. I usually buy clean shelled whole corn from feed or pet stores but shelled popcorn works just as well. The kernels are not quite as large as the feed corn but the birds seem to like it just as much. The main advantage of using popcorn is that it requires no washing, whereas feed corn sometimes contains bits of trash. After the first time you prepare it, I believe you will agree that it is an extremely easy food to prepare and it can be frozen in individual portions. Simply soak a bag or two of popcorn or a couple pounds of feed corn overnight in a large stockpot. In the morning, cook for a couple hours or until the kernels have swollen and popped and tripled in volume. You will need to add water as it is absorbed. Cool before serving or freezing for later. That's all there is to it and your birds will let you know what a wonderful parrot food this is!
Recently, while testing recipes to feed parents of nest babies, I discovered another corn food which Eclectus love! It is similar to a flan or soft pudding. Mike Beattie of Cape Cod who adopted my baby male Eclectus, Harley, says that his birds like it so much they wag their tails while eating it! He calls it "Cornmeal Fantasy" and my birds just call it YUM! If you can boil water and stir, you can make your birds very happy! You need only fine ground corn flour, available in most supermarkets. Stir it into boiling water until it starts to thicken, and continue stirring for another minute or two. At this point, you have a soft pudding. If you want to embellish the recipe, you can add pumpkin puree, apple sauce, or baby food fruits or veggies. I think you may be surprised just how much your birds like this simple food. You'll have no problem finding a feathered friend to "lick the spoon"! It can be refrigerated for several days or frozen in squares for later use.
Corn contains appreciable amounts of Vitamin A as well as Phosphorus, Potassium and Magnesium. So perhaps our Eclectus are demonstrating their natural ability to choose foods which will keep them healthy by their love of this very versatile food.
Reprinted by Pretty Birds from Electronic Eclectus 1997 by Carolyn Swicegood
If you have an Eclectus parrot living happily in a cage and you place him in a carrier and trudge off to your avian veterinarian, by the time you get the parrot to the clinic, wait for 30 minutes in a waiting room full of other kinds of animals and then take him into a glaringly bright room and out onto a table with strangers gathered around him. HEY! YOU JUST AIN'T GOIN TA GET ANY NORMAL BLOOD VALUES!!
So what happens? The results all come back and several of them (WBC for example) come back elevated and treatment is started. UNNECESSARY TREATMENT!!!!
So what to do. The only thing you can do is to either learn to take the blood samples yourself at home or pay your veterinarian to come to your house and draw the blood there quickly. If the veterinarian won't come you can probably hire one of his vet techs to come and do it with your help. OH YOU SAY SO EXPENSIVE! But, how much is all the unnecessary treatment going to cost you in $$$ and eggs plus what damage will result from the treatment itself?
Beware of Hypothyroid Diagnosis!
Many veterinarians do not seem to be aware of the fact that drawing a sample of blood from an Eclectus when it is stressed out in a veterinary clinic atmosphere gives erroneous values on many tests but particularly on thyroid tests. Most often the diagnosis comes back as: HYPOTHYROIDISM. The drug treatment for this, when it is not a real condition, can cause numerous problems but the most striking one is the complete change of feather color. The second problem is that this treatment, once started, has to be stopped very gradually to avoid leaving the bird with a totally impaired non functioning thyroid.
Reprinted from Electronic Eclectus 1997 - Veterinary Resources Americas, Inc. Edited by M. L. Simmons, DVM
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