What (if any) are good ways to get iodine in to my budgies' diet. As a few of them have had breathing issues (and were brought to the avian vet). But all the tests have come back negative and they really dont look nor act sick. My vet mentioned that sometimes iodine deficiancy can cause a swelling of the thyroid gland which can push on the esophagus and cause a wheezing or clicking.....but its kind of rough with her because with out the back up of a test(that would show a positive for any peticuar disease) shes real reuctant to diagnose anything with my birds as she keeps citing that Budgies are notorious for hiding illnesses and even harder to diagnose. Its all kinda frustrating because i cant afford to keep bringing them back for every single sniffle to be told it could be anything and then to get put on a broad based antibiotic and not really get any effect. I mean dont get me wrong im thrilled none of my flock have the dreaded psittacosis (or any other bacterial probs w/ all the antibois they have been on) but i would like to know what to do for them to get em breathing o.k, because being a person who had severe asthma when younger i know exactly what its like to have issues breathing and wouldnt wish that on anything...

There are Iodine bells in most pet shops, they are the pink ones. I don't recall seeing any sort of iodine additive for water. But if you wanted to you could crumble/shave some of the bell into their food bowls or fresh food for the first little while if you don't think they will nibble on it themselves

can I ask what type of food (seed, pellets, veggies?) they are eating now? A lot of this can come in form of combination of different type of foods which is good especially for those who don't touch the block of iodine like mine :oliveb: Another thing that can lead to respiratory issues is low Vitamin A. I don't think it is one thing according to this article that can lead to poor respiration. I have been reading up because my budgie Pretty passed away 2 weeks ago of a respiratory infection that was undetected until it was too late.

 

Here is a link on respiratory information http://www.birdsnways.com/wisdom/ww45eiv.htm

Edited March 30, 200718 yr by Elly

There are Iodine bells in most pet shops, they are the pink ones. I don't recall seeing any sort of iodine additive for water. But if you wanted to you could crumble/shave some of the bell into their food bowls or fresh food for the first little while if you don't think they will nibble on it themselves

 

 

Are you refering to the standard mineral blocks or even the cuttle bones with the mineral suppement around them....??

 

 

can I ask what type of food (seed, pellets, veggies?) they are eating now? A lot of this can come in form of combination of different type of foods which is good especially for those who don't touch the block of iodine like mine Another thing that can lead to respiratory issues is low Vitamin A. I don't think it is one thing according to this article that can lead to poor respiration. I have been reading up because my budgie Pretty passed away 2 weeks ago of a respiratory infection that was undetected until it was too late.

 

Well my guys n gals get a basic seed diet with about 25% pellet mixed in and daily purple leaf lettuce and what ever else i can get em to munch on broccoli, carrot tops (but they wont touch the orange part for some reason) assorted sprouts i.e alfalfa, bean and thats just in their main feeders in any little mirror dishes or smaller dishes they get a vitamin + mineral enriched blend (by 8 in 1 i believe its a moulting blend)......

Edited March 30, 200718 yr by Nerwen

Here in Australia we can get a pink or white bell, the pink is iodine the white is calcium and charcoal. These are different from a mineral block and the cuttle fish with coloured stuff around them (the pink on them are just a color not meaning iodine I believe.)

I use 2 drops per litre. Get it from some Pharmacist who is worth their weight.

Take particular note of why it is used. This below gives a fair idea.

Where I originally picked this up was out of a book called "Every Bird"

When I used it before I had no problems and now its working fine again well it appears to. Almost no infections now but there's the odd occasion alone

The Thyroid, Iodine & Disease Prevention

The role of the thyroid gland has been understood for some time now. Although conventional medicine places emphasis on its contribution to regulating the body's metabolism, an equally important role is its contribution to the immunological health of the body.

This organ's thyroid cells are the only ones in the body capable of absorbing iodine, an important mineral nutrient and potent germ killer - (though 80% of the less than 25 mg. Of iodine in the body is found elswhere, primarily in muscle and bone, extracellularly - the thyroid has a concentration of iodine that is over 1,000 times greater than that found in muscle tissue.) In terms of immunology, the thyroid gland acts as a gatekeeper: every 17 minutes all the blood in the body passes through the thyroid, where this gland's secretion of iodine kills germs that have come into the body (through absorption of food in the digestive tract, skin injury, respiratory intake, etc.) Pathogenic micro-organisms, the primary causative agent for disease in the body, are made weaker during their passage through the thyroid gland. With each "17 minute passage" they are made still weaker until most are killed, provided the thyroid has its normal supply of iodine.

We know from clinical study that few people have anywhere near enough iodine in their body for the thyroid to function optimally. Three disturbing trends initiated in the 20th century made this collective deficiency inevitable: (1) the introduction of chlorine - another halogen, like iodine - used in drinking water, pools, and as a ubiquitous cleaning agent in industry, etc. - which displaces iodine (see far left sidebar), (2) the alteration of the Western diet to reduce natural food sources of iodine, and (3) farming practices designed to increase crop yield which have lead to reduced iodine content in many foods. Aggravating this diminishing source issue is the fact that the body does not conserve iodine the way it does iron. We must receive a regular dietary or supplemental intake in order to maintain optimal health.

 

 

 

 

A History Of Lugol's

Lugol's Iodine (also called "Lugol's solution") was first developed by the French physician, Jean Lugol, in 1829. It is a transparent brown liquid consisting of 10 parts potassium iodide (KI) to 5 parts iodine to 85 parts of (distilled) water. It is an effective bactericide and fungicide and, in fact, was, for the better part of a century, a common antiseptic - (though it has laboratory uses separate and apart from any medical application). Lugol's and similar iodine solutions probably fell out of favor in the last half of the 20th century due to combination of economics and esthetics: first, it is so cheap to make that it cannot compare to "cleaner," value-added antiseptics with more marketing muscle; and secondly, it will stain clothes and will even temporarily stain skin when used topically to treat a wound. The internal applications of various iodine solutions have been published and discussed for well over a century.

 

Treating Candida Mycoplasia & The Aftermath Of Antibiotic Usage

Many alternative physicians will use Lugol's for these conditions -- just 6 drops, 4 times daily (24 drops per day). (Read Dr. Orian Truss). Precautions: Lugol's, like bio-oxidative preparations, is oxidative. You should avoid taking anti-oxidant supplements (Vitamin A, C, E, selenium, glutithione, etc.) for the duration of your "higher-than-normal" usage of Lugol's. You should also follow high usage of iodine products with Microflora Restoration - or similar products to replenish vital intestinal flora.

 

More info for you. I only use 2 drops per litre and not as much as these people say but after awhile you birds will pick up. Oyster shell will help but hmm who knows.

 

Therapy and Prevention. Goiter can be treated successfully using either iodine or levothyroxine. Iodine can be given by injection to obtain rapid improvement or orally for mild cases or preventive medicine. Lafeber (1965) recommended daily injections of 20% sodium iodide, 0.01 ml in chronic and 0.02-0.03 MI. In acute conditions. Marked improvement may be obtained within 3 days. For oral therapy, Lafeber recommended adding one drop dilute Lugol's solution (2 parts Lugol's solution to 28 parts distilled water) to fresh drinking water.

 

Steiner and Davis (1979) recommended a solution of 1 ml 7% Lugol's solution in 14 ml water. Every day for 2 weeks, 1 MI. Diluted iodine solution is diluted in 1 oz drinking water. The hormone thyroxine is available in thyroid extract or as levothyroxine. The treatment is given orally in the drinking water, the dosage varied according to the bird's drinking habits (Rosskopf et al. 1982).

 

To prevent recurrence of the disease, the diet may be supplemented with iodine, finely ground oyster shell grit, or cod-liver oil.

Edited March 30, 200718 yr by Kaz

Just got back from this amazing new bird only store, they must have had over 200 birds there from finches to amazons! They set me up with an avian iodine solution so we'll hope it works! They had a huge selection of bulk seed, so im thinking about making up a blend any suggestions? ( if this question is off topic ill move it to the propper one )