Ask Lafeber

My red tail black cockatoo can’t fly

Hello i have an subadult female red tail black cockatoo that can’t fly at all as long as I tried and she only eats seeds or peanuts but she will not eat fruits at all which lead to poor body condition as per our vets
I’ve tried giving her food in a lot of different ways but yet she will only choose seeds , she’s very friendly and loves to be touched but other times she turns very aggressive. I am trying to improve her body condition and muscle but I don’t know how to make her fly or use her wings as she never flow before

Hi Fatima,

You can teach her to eat better, but it’s up to you not to give up. Any bird can be converted to a pelleted diet, but many owners give up too soon. You need to practive what we call tough love – you are in charge, not the bird. You might ask your vet if they would board her and convert her to a better diet. She is severely malnourished on a seed diet, and doesn’t have the muscles or strength to fly. Until you get her off of seeds, she can not improve her body condition and she will eventually die from the poor diet. We have several webinars on teaching a bird to eat the right foods, as well as webinars about exercising them. But do not work on exercises until she is no longer eating seeds and is eating a healthy diet of pellets, veggies and fruits.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda