BONGO BIRD
Breeder's of Beautiful
Eclectus Parrots
Learning More About.....
ECLECTUS PARROTS
You have seen an Eclectus parrot and have been
enchanted by his/her beauty. You
would like to learn more about them before bringing one into your
household - or perhaps you have already purchased one and would like to
learn more! The purpose of
this handout is to briefly cover some basic information to start you on
your way to learning more!
COLOR:
Eclectus
are the most sexually dimorphic of all parrots – that means the males
and females look very different. Males
are mostly green with red patches on their sides and under the wings.
Their upper beak is yellow with brown streaks when a youngster,
and changes to candy corn shades of orange shading to yellow at the tip
when they are about a year old. Females
are colored a rich red with blue or violet on the front.
Some have a ring of blue feathers around their eyes and some have
a band of bright yellow on the end of the tail.
Their beaks are black with a little yellow when they are young,
which turns a rich black by about a year of age.
There are four subspecies of Eclectus Parrot commonly available
–
Solomon
Island
,
Grand, Red Side and Vosmaeri. Of
these, the
Solomon
Island
is
the smallest and the Vosmaeri is the largest.
DIET:
Eclectus
need a diet that is mostly FRESH and cooked vegetables, greens, fruits,
beans and grains. Sprouts
and sprouted seeds are also important along with dry seeds and nuts to
round out the diet. A
chopped hard boiled or dry scrambled egg included once or twice a week
is also good.
DO NOT feed your Eclectus chocolate, rhubarb or avocado (toxic to
parrots), alcohol or fatty/oily or salty foods (very detrimental to
parrot health).
Most
of the vegetables and fruits chosen should be high in beta carotene –
these would be the red, orange, yellow and deep green/leafy vegetables
and fruits. Examples are
hot and sweet peppers, yams, carrots, beets, kale, collards and papaya.
Quality pelleted foods (especially those without artificial colors or
preservatives) can also be offered to Eclectus as a part of the overall
diet (NOT the majority).
Vitamin/mineral
supplements:
An Eclectus provided with a proper diet is not likely to need
supplementation. Also,
over-supplementation is not good for Eclectus.
Do not give your Eclectus vitamins or other supplements unless
directed to do so by an avian veterinarian.
CAGE:
Eclectus
are active and intelligent parrots.
They enjoy climbing and playing with toys.
An Eclectus cage should be the largest you can fit into your
budget, but no smaller than about 3’ wide by 2’ deep by 3’ high
for a single bird. Perches
should be of a diameter appropriate to the parrot’s feet.
They should not be made out of dowels or other smooth, evenly
round material. Cage bars
should be about ¾” apart for the smaller subspecies (such as
Solomon
Island
), and
about 1” for larger subspecies (such as Vosmaeri and Red Side).
Neither the cage/ cage paint nor any parrot toys/accessories
should contain lead or zinc. These
heavy metals are dangerous to parrot health.
Quality parrot cages do not contain these materials.
Please avoid “bargain” cages.
Like
other parrots, Eclectus are social beings and enjoy spending time with
their human family. They do
well with several hours of supervised out-of-cage time each day to play,
socialize and receive one-on-one attention from “their humans”.
A guide would be at least 4 hours out-of-cage time with AT LEAST
30 minutes (more is preferred) of one-on-one attention from “their
humans”. A parrot
playtree or playgym located in a room where the family spends time is a
good idea.
SLEEP:
Like
most parrots, Eclectus should have a minimum of 10 hours (12 for babies)
of dark, quiet, uninterrupted sleep each night.
If the cage is located in a room where noise from human activity
would keep him/her awake at night, a small sleeping cage equipped with
just the necessities of a perch and cups for water and dry food can be
located in a guest room or other quiet room.
SHOWERS:
Eclectus
enjoy gentle, lukewarm/cool showers with plain water (no soap, detergent
or shampoo, etc) several times a week.
After the shower, allow your Eclectus to preen dry in a
draft-free location at “room temperature”.
MESS MAKING / NOISE /
BITING:
Parrots,
Eclectus included, CAN do all of these!
Some food mess can be controlled with cage aprons (some cages
come with these), or old towels, new plastic shower curtain, or even
chair mats placed under or on the floor around the cage. Some noise is a
normal part of parrot life. Eclectus
are relatively quiet in comparison to other parrots of similar or larger
size, however. Like most
animals, parrots can bite.
THE
VET CHECK:
Parrots,
including Eclectus, should have a veterinarian with knowledge of their
special health needs – an avian veterinarian.
If you are unable to find a certified avian vet, try to locate a
vet who sees many clients with medium to large parrots.
Then be sure to take your Eclectus to the vet within a few days
of purchase to ensure s/he is in good health.
Eclectus
parrots can get upset about going to the vet and, because of that, can
show a highly elevated white blood cell count (called stress-related
leukocytosis), even if they are not sick.
Some vets unfamiliar with Eclectus may not know about this.
They may become concerned that illness may exist, and want to
treat with antibiotics. On
your first visit to the vet, be sure your vet is aware of this
“Eclectus quirk” so s/he can make the best decision about any need
for antibiotics.
DO ECLECTUS MAKE GOOD
PETS? YES!
Eclectus parrots can make wonderful pets!
They show affection, are intelligent, sensitive, like to play and
are good talkers. They do
like to study a new situation or person before “jumping in”.
They need quality time and attention from their human family, but
they don’t need to be the center of attention all the time.
Like other parrots their size, properly cared for Eclectus can
live 30 years or more, so Eclectus ownership should be a “lifetime
commitment”.
SHOULD
I BUY AN UNWEANED BABY AND
FINISH HANDFEEDING AND WEANING IT MYSELF?
I HAVE HEARD IT BUILDS A STRONGER BOND.
Unless you have a lot of experience handfeeding and weaning
Eclectus parrots specifically, PLEASE DO NOT take an unweaned baby home.
Finishing the hand feeding and weaning DOES NOT build a stronger
bond between the human and the parrot, and too many mistakes can happen
that are potentially fatal to the baby parrot.
Please let experienced people finish weaning your Eclectus.
Weaning takes place somewhere around 4 months of age or a bit
more. You can usually
arrange to visit your baby during the hand-feeding and weaning process
so you can get to know each other.
You can also take advantage of the extra time to select a proper
cage, playgym and toys, and to learn all you can about the care and
needs of your Eclectus.
This
handout is intended to be provided free of charge to persons interested
in learning more about Eclectus Parrots.
