A morning perch weigh-in for your Senegal
A Senegal parrot is best checked two ways together: a number on a gram scale and a hands-on feel of the chest. Set a small digital scale on a flat surface, place a short T-perch on it, zero the scale with the perch in place, and let your Senegal step up voluntarily with a familiar treat nearby. Weigh in the morning before the first big meal, at roughly the same time each week, because a full crop after breakfast can lift the reading enough to hide a real trend. Most healthy adult Senegals sit in a broad range around the low hundreds of grams, but your bird's own stable baseline matters far more than any single published figure.
Feeling the keel without upsetting your bird
With your Senegal calm on a hand or perch, run two fingertips lightly down the center of the breast. You are feeling for the keel, the vertical ridge of the breastbone, and the pectoral muscles that power flight on either side of it. In good condition those muscles feel rounded and springy and the keel sits almost level with them, so your fingers cross a gentle, even surface. If the keel juts out sharply and your fingers drop into hollows beside it, muscle and fat cover have thinned. If you can barely find the keel under soft padding, your bird is likely carrying extra weight. Keep the check brief, use a hand your bird already trusts, and stop for the day if breathing quickens or wings flare — a stressed reading teaches you nothing.
Building a record you can actually use
Write down the weight, the time of day, what your Senegal had eaten beforehand, and your keel score in plain words such as flush, slightly prominent, or padded. Photograph the scale reading if your bird moves quickly. Over a month, that short log separates normal day-to-day wobble from a steady slide: a gradual drop across three or four weigh-ins, even while appetite looks normal, is the pattern birds are famous for hiding until illness is advanced. Pair the log with notes on droppings, activity, and any new foods, because a weight change alongside quieter behavior tells a very different story from a weight change after a molt or a switch in diet. Weigh weekly when your Senegal is well and more often, as your vet directs, during recovery.
When the trend, not the number, means a vet call
Contact an avian vet promptly if the weight falls steadily week to week, drops noticeably in a few days, or changes alongside fluffed sitting, tail bobbing, reduced droppings, or loss of interest in favorite foods. Bring the log rather than trying to recall figures in the exam room, and mention any recent diet change, new bird in the home, or missed meals. Do not crash-diet a Senegal who feels padded — sudden food restriction is risky for parrots — instead ask the vet to set a gradual target based on the keel exam. Keeping that weight and condition history in KinsLe through Pet Passport means the numbers travel with your Senegal's other records whenever a vet needs the full picture.