Tweetie Pie's a pig!

[tweetiepiesmom]

I've been working with my guys' new vet on why Tweetie Pie has been vomiting. She hasn't seen any abnormalities like an infection and no evidence of the AGY. She said if he had AGY, he'd be dead by now. She said he's gobbling up his food, overfilling his crop and emptying it. I have noticed his crop looking really full. Buddy will eat some food, then go play or groom and then go eat some more. Tweetie Pie just keeps stuffing his beak. Both boys are maintaining their weight. They have food available at all times and I give them different things throughout the day. I guess Tweetie Pie gets to the dish and eats his favorites before Buddy can get it. How immature and piggy! I'm going to slowly start giving them seeds again, realizing Tweetie Pie will gobble them up. 

[Hezz]

Some do seem to do this, I suppose they are just as diverse as people in their attitude to food. Bunji is a bit the same - doesn’t want to miss out - but I can understand his concerns having had to fend for himself for a while at one point.

Would it help to separate them for their main feeds so that Buddy gets a bit of everything, but good that Tweetie Pie isn’t putting on, or losing, weight.

[tweetiepiesmom]

Hezz Buddy doesn't seem to mind. He's the friendlier of the two. When Buddy sees me go into the kitchen and open the fridge, he'll fly over and sit on my shoulder. As soon as I finish dishing out the food, he jumps down to my hand onto the dish and starts eating. After I put the dish down, Tweetie Pie flies over to eat. The dish is large enough that they both can eat at the same time.

[Marianne Marlow]

Oh dear. Little piggy

I've had boys overeat when they have to feed hens and the hen has refused the food. George used to do this and sometimes threw up seed. He hasn't fed a hen for some years now though and so does not overeat.

Great that there is no evidence of AGY

[criswell]

It's great that your vet is helping to get to the source of Tweetie Pie's vomitting. It's interesting that there is such a difference in the eating habbits of your boys

[tweetiepiesmom]

What I find really interesting is that when Tweetie Pie vomits, its not very violent - he bobs his head and food "slips" out. He then shakes his head and the food goes flying. Sometimes Buddy would go over to him to get the food but Tweetie Pie nips at him and chases him away so Buddy doesn't do that anymore. My little pig is really a pig!

Sometimes when they are eating their sprouts, Tweetie Pie will be chewing on a sprout that Buddy likes. He'll reach over and grab it out of Tweetie Pie's beak. They don't fight and Tweetie Pie will just keep eating.

[ariella]

You have a great-sounding vet tweetiepiesmom and as Marianne says, good news there is no sign of AGY.
It’s hopefully reassuring that Tweetie-Pie has no other symptoms. I wonder whether it’s something similar to babies posseting. I know on occasion if I’ve stood up too quickly after eating I get a bit of reflux and some food has come back into my mouth as it hasn’t been digested.
It sounds like he’s emptying his crop before vomiting but I wonder if birds can get a form of reflux? Maybe from eating too much or eating too quickly?

[tweetiepiesmom]

I had wondered ariella if he had a problem with his digestive system. I guess there's no way to tell with such small birds.