Meet Mimi! She’s a 31 year old Amazon parrot. She is such a good bird for her adjustments… most of the time she happily comes out, ready to go, enjoys her sweet taking, and relaxes and closes her eyes for her adjustments. Once in a while she feels a bit spicy, but usually some buttering up gets her back on track.
Mimi started care due to being unable to bear weight on her right talon. This talon was also discolored as a very pale pink, when it should be gray. Her vet referred her for chiro as there were no other veterinary options to help her leg. She has responded well to care. I not only adjust her pelvic area, but also massage her legs and talons, including each toe! Her muscles in the affected leg were quite tight and we needed better blood flow into the talon, so it’s now a regular part of her visit. In my 14 years of doing this, she’s the second avian patient who, besides their chiropractic adjustment, also required a leg massage… the first being a large male wild turkey at the wildlife center who was hit by car. Mimi also usually gets 2-3 cervical vertebrae adjustments and cervical traction (stretching). The neck area can also certainly influence the legs from neurological standpoint.
I usually use a towel, loosely “butritoed” with parrots so I can access all the areas I need to check and they can keep their beaks busy. Most parrots are fine with this… and they enjoy making holes in the towel while I work on them.
Don’t let this video make you believe you can just throw your hand in front of a parrot or pick one up as I did Mimi and everything will be fine and dandy. They can give a good chomp in a split second, especially if afraid. I’m very familiar with parrot behavior, and there are times I back off, if for example I see a pupil constriction or if they seem up to something, and then re-approach. I try and keep everything as positive as I can so that they look forward to seeing me. 💚