BIRDS 101

This is the primary reason birds also need veterinary attention:

       “Small size + high metabolic rate + rapid deterioration”  

 

Sonia M. Hernández-Divers, DVM, DACZM  World Small Animal Veterinary Association World Congress Proceedings, 2005

I  have my share of bird patients being brought at the clinic for examination. Based on my experience here in Saudi Arabia, caged pet birds are also increasing in numbers, especially in the Psittacine group which includes the African Grays. 

 

Some symptoms exhibited of sick birds

• Weakness - bird spends more time at the bottom of the cage. 

• The presence of blood / bleeding

• Neurological symptoms

• Musculoskeletal signs
  
• Decrease food intake

• Inflammation of the eyes and discharges from the nasal passages

• Respiratory infection: Tail bobbing or labored breathing

• Ingestion of foreign objects

  

  Common foreign object obtained is feeding tube for young birds accidentally swallowed

FEATHER PICKING OF BIRDS

       Common in parrots.  The is more of a behavioral issue as well as a nutritional.  Sudden changes in the environment and hormonal issues can be a factor that triggers the bird to chew off feathers that can lead to trauma.  Investigation by your veterinarian to rule out medical issues is recommended.  Elizabethan collars are the first line of protection that can be given to prevent further feather damage.  Sizes of this collar will vary depending on the type of parrot.  Click the link to see bird collars.  Make sure you get the right size to be effective in preventing excessive chewing.

IMPORTANT REMINDERS FOR BIRD OWNERS

Get the best food for your bird.   Diet is very important for captive birds, unlike with their wild counterparts, they can support their nutrition thru various food sources.  Poor nutrition and related nutritional diseases are at the root of most problems in caged birds.                      

Hypovitaminosis A, or Vitamin A deficiency affects almost all  cells forming the protective linings of the respiratory, urogenital and gastrointestinal tracts. This results to poor feathering and altered coloration. Reproductive performance also affected. Chronic infections, especially respiratory signs will be present. Renal and Hepatic diseases in birds can occur as well. 

 

Captive bird nutrition basically depends on what food is available for them.  Supplementation is recommended to decrease occurrence of disease and stress.  Products are usually in liquid form and powder form.  Known products to address this are produced by Nobby Cede Multivit and BioBio Multisol vitamin.  Click the link to check out this Vitamin A products for birds

 

      Sunflower seeds are not nutritionally good for African Greys or for other parrots as well. I always see that is the staple food given to these birds. The Greys are classified as frugivores  - meaning fruits and seeds are their main diet. Variety of veggies and fruits should be provided.  Feather parents should research and study the food they can give for their specific pet bird.   

      Some vegetables that can be offered to pet parrots are lettuce, cucumbers, bell peppers, pumpkin, carrots, cooked corn kernels and celery. Some fruits that can be offered to parrots are melons, apples, pears, nectarines and bananas.  

      Some specialized feed company for birds offer pelleted diets now. The main advantage is pelleted diets are formulated for the specific bird needs.  Seeds are never enough for these birds. Specialized birds needs more balanced diets more than ever.  Zupreem bird food is one known brand to offer such products

CHART OF COMMON BIRDS OBSERVED SEEIN IN THE CLINIC AND APPROXIMATE BODY WEIGHT

C

Bird	Description	Average Body weight
Zebra Finches	Seed eaters, treated as                flocks	10 – 17 grams
Canary	Seeds, fruits, veggies	13-40 grams
African grey parrot	Seeds, fruits, veggies	300-600 grams
Blue and Gold Macaw	Seeds. Fruits, veggies	1100-1500 grams
Cockatiel	Seeds, fruits, veggies	65-110 grams
Cockatoo	Seeds, fruits, veggies	200-900 grams
Conures	Seeds, fruits, veggies	90-120 grams

           Water: they say is the second most important element aside from air. Water is important especially for birds not on their own environment. Parrots are primarily found at tropical regions.  Regular bathing or spraying is essential to prevent drying and deterioration of feather quality. Birds love humidity. Clean water should always be freely available. Always supply clean fresh water daily. 

     The addition of organic cider vinegar (one drop per 200 ml) helps to prevent overgrowth  of common potential pathogens like gram negative rods and yeasts.

      Environment: Birds are highly intelligent requiring continual mental and physic l stimulation for their wellbeing. They are social animals, mimic as much as possible their "home". Assign good location, this includes avoiding cigarette / cooking grease smoked area.  Get the biggest cage that you can provide and place perches of different sizes. Make sure they can stretch their wings.  I strongly advise that birds should not be placed near kitchen.    Regarding temperature, a chilled bird exhibits fluffed feathers and an overheated bird will exhibit an open mouth panting and feathers far apart from the body.  

     Rest:  Birds need adequate sleep as well: overstimulation can be as stressful as inactivity. Birds require 8 - 12 hours of sleep under total darkness.  Feathering problems usually observed when this requirement is overlooked.

Sexing Birds.  Sex determination in some birds can easily be done.  For the parakeets, it is all about the cere or the fleshy part of their nasal passages.  Brown color to white indicates the female while the white bluish cere indicates a male.  For the Indian ringneck parrot, we can identify the male  by the distinct black marking on its neck, Female Indian ringnecks have less distinct markings. 

 

Most parrots are sexually monomorphic

The African Greys in the other hand is considered monomorphic, meaning both male and female have the same features and no distinct markings can be used for identification.  DNA sexing is the one recommended to identify gender. Unfortunately it is only available at specialized laboratories.  

When a bird actually shows the symptoms of the disease and is unwell, it has likely been seriously sick for some time. 

“Birds hide disease symptoms”

"الطيور تخفي أعراض المرض"

Changes from normal activity and behavior should be taken as a sign of ill health and warrants medical attention.

عندما يظهر طائر بالفعل أعراض المرض وهو مريض ، فمن المحتمل أن يكون مريضًا بشكل خطير لبعض الوقت. يجب أن تؤخذ التغييرات من الطبيعي كعلامة على اعتلال الصحة وتستحق الرعاية الطبية.

Thank you for spending time reading on bird care guide. I will try to update this posting as much as I can. 

Thank you again.  

Dr Michael Cruel

SOURCE: BSAVA MANUAL OF PSITTACINE BIRDS

                  BSAVA MANUAL OF EXOTIC PETS 4TH EDITION

                  Johnson-Delany, C.A. DVM. 2008. Exotic Companion Medicine Hand book for Veterinarians. Zoological Education Network.

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