Catch Illness Faster: Weigh Your Bird

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We’ve all heard of the stories from various bird owners where one day their bird was hopping around joyfully and the next it was puffy and on the bottom of the cage, closely following the loss of their feathered companion.

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The reason we can lose our birds so fast is that they cover up being sick really well. In the wild, it means the difference of life or death. Predators would quickly target an injured bird in the flock if it was obvious to them so this instinctive trait is carried over to our captive parrots.

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Loss of weight is a very early sign that we can catch ourselves and give us a better chance of saving our companion parrots before its too late. which is why it is so essential to weigh your parrot regularly.

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You can find various birdie scales online, I prefer the ones with perches on them so it makes it easier for your parrot to weigh himself and get comfortable. The scale MUST weigh in grams as other measurements (ounces, lbs, etc) are too large of measurements to be able to detect important changes in your bird’s weight.

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I can’t tell you how many times it has helped me with my own flock to detect illness by weighing my own birds.

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If you have a young bird, it’s always a good idea to weigh before and after feedings to be able to track just how much your baby bird is consuming.

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By tracking your bird’s weight, you can have an idea of your bird’s average weight and be keener on noticing a sudden drop. It will also help your vet in determining what might be wrong with your bird. The more information, the better.

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Most birds fluctuate based on the time of day you weigh your bird, what they have or haven’t already consumed for the day and the time of year and weather changes. It’s normal for birds to fluctuate up to 10 grams in either direction. By keeping track you will be able to tell what means illness and what is normal for your bird.

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For more detailed information with percentages of weight loss and so on click here.