Hi all

Dave, Claude's dad here

Claude is a girl and hasn't been well for about a week now, or hasn't seemed to be well

Seems to have lost the get up and go

Suppose a bit of a story would help

Claude is about three and a half and has always seemed up and running . Has the usual little bells etc in the cage and is quite happy playing etc with her stuff but never has been vocal or anything but has most of the local bird life down to a tee

Tame and will hop on the finger and onto on the shoulder and wander with you but has always had a real drawing back to the cage -- her "safe" place

 

Bout a week ago she seemed to be tired during the day and would sit half asleep or asleep and being the family works thought it just might be boredom so we upped the anti on the outings as anything new we have tried to put into the cage always ended in a Mexican standoff and she wouldn't have a bar of anything till it was gone

 

She has run with a mob of peaceful doves which come in to feed in the arvo's for the last couple of years and apart from a couple of altercations has had no dramas -- so has had contact with wild birds

 

She has had a mouse friend that has been visiting for a while and will sit on the bottom of the cage feeding with it which we thought was pretty cute but is this a good thing? We think not maybe and Mickey might have to go

 

She has never been one for fresh stuff ie veggies or the like but chows down like there is no tomorrow on the buffalo seed sprigs that crop up out of the lawn and have always been worried that this is not enough, but like i said wont have a bar of anything else.

Reading through here and for the first time today have noticed seed in the poo's that i have never seen before and would have as the shoulder gets a bit of a workout

 

She has always had trouble with it sticking round the rear end which gets unceremoniously removed much to her disgust but its got to be better than her putting her back out in the morning trying to get it out and once the hung up/ stuck stuff is gone has no trouble

Any help would be appreciated

Claude / Dave

She has had a mouse friend that has been visiting for a while and will sit on the bottom of the cage feeding with it which we thought was pretty cute but is this a good thing? We think not maybe and Mickey might have to go Mice feces have very harmful germs such as e-coli in their dropping and having mice and budgies together is a very bad idea.

 

Poos here and there sticking is okay sticky all the time is not okay. Her dropping should be hard with white around them and black or dark brown in the middle, sometimes if given veggies can be a little watery and dark green.

 

We are not avian vets here so here is the BEST thing you can do for her before she gets sicker, take her to an avian vet, they should do a gram culture and a poop smear to check for any germs that could be causing infection or anything else.

 

Also have you noticed if she has lost weight and is her keel bone sticking out?

 

Another thing, birds that are quiet, tired looking for long periods of time are sick, birds don't act lonely, they don't act depressed it is not in their nature when they change personality like this drastically they are sick.

 

Birds can go down quickly it is not like us we get sick and get over it they do need immediate medical care.

 

Please keep us update.

 

For now...also keep her very warm, either in a room where you can keep it 70F- 75F degrees or we have a post on how to make a hospital cage, warmth DOES and HELPS pulls them through sickness along with correct medical attention.

I agree with Elly... mice urine and dropping are toxic to a bird and mouse contaminated food and water can wipe out an entire flock over night!

Edited May 11, 200916 yr by **Liv**

Is mickey your pet or is it a wild mouse? Personally I wouldn't put a mouse with a budgie... even if it was my pet. I would take Claude to the vets to get checked out... keep us posted.

Oh, and the doves... not a good idea either... they are riddled with worms, lice, psittacosis, canker etc etc etc... not a good idea at all...

 

your claude needs to go to the vet and get treated, today please.

I agree with all previous comments.......and Claude may have contracted something from the doves and mouse. The need for the AVIAN vet is pretty urgent.

Thanks for the replys

The mouse isn't a pet just one that has found a place for a free feed -- will make it so he cant get to the cage and also make it so he dissappears.

Its warm here so keeping her warm isn't a problem

Don't have an Avian vet but there is a vet- vet in town -- will give them a call today

Thanks again and yep will keep you updated

Dave

Best way to keep her well Dave, is well away from rodents and wild birds

....................by the way. Where is the cage located that has allowed a wild mouse to get in the cage ??

Don't have an Avian vet but there is a vet- vet in town -- will give them a call today

 

Good luck at the vets. i really hope they are good. i took a bird to a vet today and i knew more than that dim witt, i had to tell him what was wrong with the bird - most vets dont know much (if anything) about birds.

good luck

Bit of an update

The vet was the same as Liv's vet -- it doesn't have fur or paws -- next possible Avairian vet is 10 hours south by road

Kaz -- the cage is sitting on a table just outside the back door as we try to keep her in the traffic zone at least to stop and say g'day on the way past

Speedy gonzales was climbing up the rendered wall then crossing over onto the cover on the table -- have moved the table away from the wall now and watched yesterday as he attempted the crossing -- and failed

Cage has had a good scrub out now (was clean anyway) just to get rid of all traces of the visitor

Eradication program has been swung into action with a near miss last night as the trap had gone off at this mornings check but no perpertrator caught

Claude yesterday arv seemed a little better as she was having a bit of a chew at a few things in the cage and climbing round on stuff

Going to have a good look at the reciepe's and try to knock up something to start getting the good stuff in

Yep well found a vet last week that knew birds and sorry to say Claude had a lump sort of underneath

Got diagnosed with some sort of cancer -- apparently the vet had seen it before

Asked weather it was a stuck egg but no

The vet said she was skin and bone and Claude had been eating flat out i suppose trying to get the weight back on but just sitting slightly fluffed up we didn't notice

Done the right thing by Claude as the vet said it would be unfair to leave her sit in the cage and just get sicker

 

Thanks for all the replies and the concern you showed

Awwwh. sorry to hear this.

I am very sorry to hear about Claude. Having just experienced some losses also, I understand how you feel. A great feeling of sadness washes over you. They worm their way into your heart, dont they

Edited June 5, 200915 yr by KAZ

I am so sorry to hear the diagnosis is not good.

Aww, so sorry for your loss xo

hugs, sorry to hear this