Posted August 6, 200817 yr Can "stress" cause diarrhea in budgies? I've been a member of this site for a few months now and have asked all kinds of advice from pairing, breeding, aviaries, mutations, etc... I have tried followin the adivce given with cage breeding vs colony breeding, but was having no luck. The two pairs I had put together seemed to want nothing to do with each other. I decided to follow advice of "stop trying so hard" and "let the flock just be a flock and don't force things".... so Long story short I had a "make shift" aviary and breeding cages that were okay, but not the best for my birds. I just built the new aviary I spoke about in my other posts and transfered my birds to it over the weekend. They all seem to be so much happier. Plenty of food dishes, water bowls, bird baths, wood toys, plastic toys, ropes, bells, mirrors, natural tree branches, ladders, cuttle bones, mineral blocks, bedding matterial and nesting boxes, not to mention lighting ventalation and seed now growing for greens to eat. The flock seemed to all adjust well, except my one female who was once again being too agressive. She would not allow any of the other nesting boxes to be entered. She patroled all 4 boxes I have in there now chasing any bird away for any of them and attacking any bird that even came near her. I have decided to remove her from the main aviary and the flock has seemed to calm down termendously. But now I have a concern......... My one female, that took some of the rath of my aggressive female, went from very active, dramatic head bobbing, and very interested in the nesting boxes to reserved, puffed up and diarrhea all around her vent area. I thought maybe it was the stress of the aggressive female keeping her from the next box, etc... but she doesn't seem to have perked up and now one of my males is displaying the same symptoms. He too is puffed up and has "poo" all around his "vent". If its not stress related is it possible that something I put in the aviary has gotten them sick? I did add nature tree branches from my home's back yard and I did use two bird feeders that were used for wild birds at one time (but I did clean the feeders first)????? Alot has happened for the birds lately, going form being alone in a cage or paired with a mate to an aviary flock again.... but all in all they entire flock seems to be so much happier and active... If the two birds do not perk up I am going to have to take them to the vet but knowing all I said above is there anyone that can tell me the possible cause for the diarrhea and puffing up??? Or what are the leading causes for it? Their diet has not changed (same seed, etc...) I did not buy any new toys (I used everything they already had). I can send a picture of what the birds look like right now if that will help in maybe telling what's wrong?
August 6, 200817 yr I would take the birds that have these symptoms and put them in a hospital cage. Runny poos at this point could be related to all of the above that you mentioned. The best thing you can do is get them to an avian vet ASAP & put them in a hospital cage until you can get them there. Here is how to make up a hospital cage in a jif http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/faqs/i...&artlang=en. Again, I encourage you to call an avian vet ASAP.
August 6, 200817 yr Author I would take the birds that have these symptoms and put them in a hospital cage. Runny poos at this point could be related to all of the above that you mentioned. The best thing you can do is get them to an avian vet ASAP & put them in a hospital cage until you can get them there. Here is how to make up a hospital cage in a jif http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/faqs/i...&artlang=en. Again, I encourage you to call an avian vet ASAP. Two questions.... can I put both the budgies that have the diarrhea in the same hospital cage or do they need to be in seperate hc's??? and the other questions is, do you have a USA wedsite I can go to to find avian vets in my area? All my pets go to Citywide Animal Hospital about 20 minutes from here but they are a dog/cat vet they don't do birds, turtles, etc... ?? I'll Google it now and see what i can find but if you have a better way, please let me know.
August 6, 200817 yr Yes, I believe you can put them in the same cage it would probably be less stressful then separated. Click here to search for an avian vet in the area. Some avian vets are not always listed so if you find an avian vet by you but not close you can call them and ask if they know of anyone closer to your area. This link can be used for all countries. It is important that you find an avian vet before your bird (s) become sick. When birds become sick they go downhill very quickly and if you don't have an avian vet that you know of you will go into panic mode. Be prepared! It may save your birds life. USA/Canada: http://aav.org/vet-lookup/ http://www.birdsnways.com/articles/abvpvets.htm http://www.lafeber.com/FindALocal/Vet/default.aspx Australia: http://www.vetafarm.com.au/avian_vets.asp UK/Other: http://www.theparrotsocietyuk.org/avian-vets.shtml http://www.parrotpassionsuk.com/Advice/Uk_Avian_Vets.htm
August 7, 200817 yr Sorry to hear you are having so many problems despite all your hardwork and research into making things just right. One thing I can think of is some of your birds are stressed and its making them ill. Perhaps the new aviary environment would have been better had there been no nesting boxes in it initially. Let them get used to the new space and dynamics of that new home before nesting boxes added to the issues. The new home means they will work out the heirarchy...the pecking order etc. Moving is stress conditions and so is breeding. A few dominant birds may well have upset others and stopped them getting their fair share of food. BUT anytime there is a sick bird, fluffed up, depressed, runny bottom....remove them immediately to a warm cage with lamp until you can get them to the vet. Quick action and warmth helps many a bird that can die without it. I would like to see pictures of your new set up Edited August 7, 200817 yr by KAZ
August 7, 200817 yr Author Thank you all for the advice. I was surprised to find BOTH my "ill" birds as if nothing was wrong this morning. Both of them are no longer puffed up, and they have cleaned their "vents" so well you could barely tell there was any diarrhea.?????????? I think KAZ may have been right about the stress and not being able to eat as well. It's been two days since I remove the aggressive female from the flock and EVERYONE now looks great. The two that appeared ill are hopping around playing with toys and are no longer fluffed up and lathargic. I brought the females male out with her because he seemed to want to be with her. THey were calling to each other and pulling at the bars of the cage and aviary to get to one another. I've put him in with her and all are happy now. I looked into the avian vets on the list provided and planned to take them today when my husband got home from work (he comutes and we only have one car), but when I got up this morning EVERYONE was fine. So it seems that the flock in the aviary is all in harmony now and the aggressive female and her mate are preening, feeding and exploring the nest box together. Thank you all for you help. I had a scare there for a bit but thankfully all seems well now. ) I would like to see pictures of your new set up I will send pics as soon as I load them from the camera....
August 8, 200817 yr Author http://i337.photobucket.com/albums/n400/ch...5a/DSCN3760.jpg This was Pearl when she appeared sick... http://i337.photobucket.com/albums/n400/ch...5a/DSCN3793.jpg This was Pearl this morning when I woke up.... Edited August 8, 200817 yr by **Liv** photo turned to link because it was over the size regulation of 640x480, resize before posting images again
August 8, 200817 yr She definitely had that sick look to her in the first photo. She looks a lot better now. I had a hen do that a week or so ago. She didn't have a poopy bum, but what ever was running her down quickly vanished. i hope they stay healthy for you now
August 8, 200817 yr I would make sure that the branches you put in there are clean and to clean the bird feeders that you used for the wild birds.
August 8, 200817 yr Author I would make sure that the branches you put in there are clean and to clean the bird feeders that you used for the wild birds. I removed one of the feeders and replaced it with some regular feed dishes they used before I also recleaned the other feeder. As for the branches, besides some boiling water, what do you suggest I use to clean them up better?? When the birds got the diarrhea I thought maybe it was the bark they were picking off the branches, but my one bird that seemed to be doing that never got sick... ?? I think KAZ was right and I just stressed them out too much with the move, the aggressive hen, and the nest boxes all at once. But still, do you recommend something particular to clean the branches better just in case?
August 11, 200817 yr Vinegar is a very good thing to use. Dilute it in some water, scrub your branches with it, rinse and then put the branches in the sunlight to allow the UV rays the kill the germs. Or you can bake it in the oven for 20 minutes, but I'm always afraid of causing a fire and I don't want branches in my oven. lol.
August 11, 200817 yr I have baked my branches in an oven that is what I do at 200F degrees for 20 mins, I stay in the kitchen and watch them totally for the very reason SW stated.
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