Hey all.

I introduced Hemy last month, when I started to doubt his gender but was assured he was a male.

I got Hemy back in December after Chevy passed away. We got Hemy from a breeder and picked the

most active, good coloured bird. "Arlene" said that she's been breeding budgies for 20+ years and

she definitely knew her stuff.

 

However, when we got Hemy home he doesn't act like the typical budgie.

He has terrible balance. Like he'll be preening himself, and he'll lean too far forward and fall.

At first when I mentioned this here, it was suggested that maybe he wasn't yet used to having clipped

wings, or I thought perhaps he still needed his full tail feathers to grow in.

Now Hemy is around 5-6 months because his eyes aren't as dark as when we got him and he's beginning

to start chattering occasionally.

As well, he freaks out way too easily, like we'll come out to his cage. Sometimes he's fine, but other times

no reason still approaching cage normally, he'll freak out and actually jump out of his cage.

He doesn't seem to really grip- any thing at all; his perch, our shoulder, etc.

 

The other thing he does, is he is CONSTANTLY eating! When he's not with us, he's at his food dish. And

when he's not eating at his food dish, he just sits there. (It's the only place where he doesn't fall)

 

We have used this to our advantage. Take the food dish away and instead he gets to eat out of our hand

which is tremendous with hand taming him. We also have put millet spray and lettuce in his cage so that he actually has to sit on the perch to eat it.

 

He seems off. and I know that it could be a sign of something much more serious. But he gets right back

up when he falls and does climb around his cage. And he eats, and his poops are normal, vent clean and he preens= good health observably

 

I've been so patient but he's made only a little improvement since we got him.

Has anyone had anything similar or any ideas?

he sounds like he has rickets. Rickets is a weakness of the feet caused by a lack of calcium in the diet when developing as a chick.

You can often tell if its rickets by their toes turning inwards when perching.

Have you any photos??

he sounds like he has rickets. Rickets is a weakness of the feet caused by a lack of calcium in the diet when developing as a chick.

You can often tell if its rickets by their toes turning inwards when perching.

Have you any photos??

 

He does have a cuttle fish/bone/rock - but he treats it like decoration.

He feet look normal- though we did trim his nails because they were soooo long and it did seem

to help a bit.

To be honest, I've never heard of Rickets, but my parents probably have.

What do I do if that is the case?

You mentioned his eye being lighter, so they look cloudy? I have had two birds go blind on me. Both times their balnce is off, when they find the food they just sit on the food dish all day and do not move. Also they are quiet as they can't see anything so quiet is a good thing (flight response). Also sometimes they are find then they will catch a bit of movement out of the area that they can see and BAM they flip.

 

If you can I would get him to the vets or post come pictures of his feet and eyes (without a flash)

Liv suggestion is a good one and what I was about to say. Sounds like weakness in feet and legs.

Dont hold any faith in cuttlkebone as a source of calcium as they play with it more than ingest it. You will need a liquid calcium supplement ( Calcivet is good ) and add it to his drinking water or a drop to his beak each day until you see some improvement.

Lighter eyes might be just you seeing him now with iris rings ?

Edited January 21, 200916 yr by KAZ

I'll get some pictures posted then.

He's definitely not blind. I meant to suggest that he's not a baby anymore.

As the breeder couldn't tell me the exact day he hatched, so I'm going by

his behavior etc. His eyes are dark, not cloudy- def normal, I'll post pics soon.

 

I did a little reading on Ricketts, I'm not sure if you're right though.

He definitely doesn't grip strongly nor firmly. And when he's on the floor he doesn't

walk in a perfectly straight line, but he doesn't woddle or go in circles either.

That's what's got me so frusterated.

 

Is this just his personality or is something actually askew with him?

What you have described in consistent with lack of calcium as a baby in the nest. Weakness in legs and feet and why he falls off balance when preening as his grip isnt all that good.

I wonder if he has cerebellar hypoplasia, which is part of the brain. Just throwing it out there. I don't know what diseases can cause it in birds, but it can happen. A hypoplastic cerebellum, means that the cerebellum is small and almost absent and since the cerebellum is the centre for movement control, animals with it have a very ungainly walk. They can still move and such, but their movements aren't fine and controlled as they would be in a normal animal.

They are born this way and stay like this their entire life. But they are very efficient at adapting.

In cats it is often caused by the queen becoming infected with feline panleucopenia (parvovirus) when she is pregnant and all resulting kittens have hypoplastic cerebellums. In cattle it can be caused by bovine viral diarrhoea virus during the cow's pregnancy. It can also happen just from developmental issues. Like the cerebellum doesn't develop properly and you end up with an animal that is a little unco-ordinated in their movements.

Here is a video about a cat with cerebellar hypoplasia:

Charley

 

If you want to try and find out what is wrong with him, take him to an avian vet

Edited January 22, 200916 yr by Sailorwolf