Star Pets..... Zebedee!

01 July 2010

This month's star pet is Zebedee - a 5 year old African Grey Parrot, who had been in his owner's possession from being a captive bred fledgling.

Zebedee's owner brought him to the practice recently as they were concerned because he had become lame after an accident at home. On examination by the vet it was obvious that he could not use his right leg properly and the foot was twisted from its normal position. He was still able to fly and still able to grasp with both feet. However the vet felt that his leg could be broken or dislocated as he was not able to grip as well with the claws of the affected foot. It was decided to book Zebedee in for a general anaesthetic to enable a closer examination and x-rays to be taken.

Zebedee's metabolic bone disease

A few days later and his owners brought him back to the surgery to be admitted for the day. Once he was asleep under a full general anaesthetic Zebedee had a full check over and it was noticed that not only was the right leg apparently twisted from its normal position, but the left leg was too, though not so obviously. The range of movement in both his tibio-tarsal joints (equivalent of the human ankle) was also greatly reduced. Zebedee was also noticed to be a little thin. X-rays were taken of both legs and feet. The x-rays revealed what the cause of the problem was - both his tibias (equivalent to human shin bones) were severely bowed.

The bowing is caused by a condition called metabolic bone disease - commonly known as rickets. It is caused by a dietary deficiency of calcium and deficiency of vitamin D. It is commonly seen in captive parrots which are fed a diet consisting of poor quality seed, fruit and little else. If given the opportunity African Grey Parrots particularly can become addicted to sunflower seeds proving difficult to persuade them to eat any alternative!

A balanced diet is very important for African Grey Parrots (especially in young birds) to help prevent this condition. Unfortunately a lot of parrots are fed on pet shop seed mixtures and fruit combinations which lead to severe malnutrition - the diets are high in fat but low in protein, vitamins and minerals. It is vital to feed a suitable diet for the species concerned and for African Greys a suggested diet could be based on 20-25% human quality seed, 40% sprouted seed and pulses (made by soaking soya beans, mung beans, black-eye beans and chickpeas for 24-48 hours until they start sprouting then rinsed thoroughly) along with 40% vegetable matter - pigmented vegetables are a better food source than fruit. Good quality avian vitamin supplements - especially containing calcium - are also often recommended. Along with this fresh drinking water and exposure to natural light (with access to ultraviolet radiation) is also very important.

After discussing the results of the x-rays with Zebedee's owners they have agreed to us referring them to an avian specialist so that all aspects of his care can be assessed properly. We hope that specialist advice on diet, housing and behavioural requirements will not only improve Zebedee's welfare but also provide his owners with the information they need to improve the care of this much loved bird. Unfortunately the deformities in Zebedee's legs are permanent but by addressing his dietary needs at least the condition will not progress any further.