Did you test for avian bornavirus?

I'm curious how many of you had your birds tested for bornavirus? I get the impression it's not usually done with the initial disease testing unless the bird is showing symptoms of PDD.

Apparently 1 in 3 birds will test positive. Although a positive test does not determine whether the bird will end up with PDD, it does make him/her a carrier and the virus can be spread to others in a multiple bird home. It sounds like one big recipe for disaster.

I'm curious how people usually handle a positive test. Would you isolate your bird long-term to protect the rest of your flock? Have any of your birds been diagnosed with PDD?

The reason it is not a standard test despite how common the disease is, is that even now the test is not as accurate as it could be. The organism which causes Bornavirus - PDD is complex. There are different strains of it, and they're still studying exactly how it works in hopes of having more of an accurate test in the future. From what I understand from my vet, some labs are more accurate? I don't know how that makes sense, but apparently the lab he uses has a higher accuracy rate, and he's a world known avian vet. At any rate, I would get the test. It is far more accurate now than it was even 5-10 years ago. Unless an avian vet is a true specialist or has really taken time to "study" this issue, unfortunately many are still ignorant of this being a priority!

I had one BW Pionus before I had Raven.... Her name was Adrion. She did succumb and passed at the vet's office. Euthanized when she was on her death bed. It was thought this beautiful bird carried the disease from birth. I got her from a bird store who got her from a broker, and who knows the story where she came from before that.

One day she started shaking her head randomly (and she didn't have a sinus infection). Then she had vomiting and diarrhea, weight loss... besides the head shake, once the symptoms started presenting, she was dead within a month and a half. I took her to an avian vet, and they just didn't know what it was that she had. I then took her to a specialist and he suspected right away.

What irks me is how SO MANY avian vets will do a new bird exam, and upon visual inspection only, say how healthy it is! No one truly knows how "healthy" a bird is without blood tests for a basic panel plus disease testing!!!
Anyone who has had a precious bird die of PDD knows that they LOOK like they're in perfect feather and are otherwise visually outwardly normal.

The 'good' news is, the Bornavirus orgsnism dies fairly quickly when exposed to air. It's not a hardy virus thank goodness, and is usually passed by direct contact or by dust from dried fecal matter or vomit.

Do get Merlin tested. Don't be afraid. Make sure they don't just do the swab. Make sure there is a blood PCR test also.

THANK YOU for taking time to learn about this disease that all bird owners should be informed about.

Thank you for such a helpful response. I'm so sorry about Adrion.

What RavensGryf said about new bird exams is why I always order blood tests. I do them from home through AvianBioTech because then I can afford many more tests than I otherwise could. Most of us who have had birds for a while can spot most of the outward signs on an unhealthy bird and wouldn't bring one home (though of course sometimes the stress of the move brings it out which is why we quarantine). It's the blood that holds the answers. It is also my understanding that this test is not that accurate, but my philosophy with tests is "if you're worried check it out" even if your bird "shouldnt" be sick.

I'm actually not sure if Kiwi was ever tested for PDD/bornavirus or not when we got him. I know they took blood and fecal samples and did "comprehensive" testing on them because he was displaying signs of being sick when we got him home. They ended up finding a low-grade respiratory infection he was treated for with antibiotics (and has never been ill enough to see a vet since). I do know for sure he was tested for chlamydiosis, as that is what they feared he had causing the respiratory symptoms, but he was negative for that. I'm not sure if bornavirus was tested for, as it was never discussed.

I know when we moved I was paranoid we'd get stopped somewhere and have him taken away in one of those horror story scenarios, so I took him in for a health certificate to be absolutely safe (yes, I was *that* paranoid lol). The vet who had treated him for years was out that day, so a brand new vet did the exam. All she did was look at his records, weighed him, looked him over and told him he was a good boy when he stepped on her arm. Then she gave us a certificate of being in good health without a single actual test:20: All I remember thinking is he could be harboring 67 different disease (not that he was) and she just signed off he was in perfect health...

Yikes! I had a similar feeling when I took all mine in for health certificates to come to Hawaii. The vet was not an avian vet (none of them were willing to do the quarantine for me) and he just kept going on and on about how pretty they were and how smart parrots are, and signed off. I am sitting there going "Um, I know Sam is underweight..." but didnt want to risk not being able to bring him with me. He has gained all he weight back as soon as we settled in, as I expected.

I don't bother anymore. Unless it's suspected. Here is why..

I brought home a hawkhead parrot back in February. He was a plucker, but other than that didn't seem *that* ill. (Pretty active, healthy appetite, talked, no runny nose, ect). Took him to the vet for a through exam. They suspected aBV Becuase of the plucking. So they tested him. It came back positive, and that shattered my world.

He died about a week later, as he developed several secondary infections.

I sent him down to Texas a&m for a full necropsy and any other tests. They did not find bornavirus in the usual spots, like the brain. His proventicus was also normal size. So.... WTF!?

They did state that there's been issues with the reliability of the tests. However, it's usually with false negatives, not positives. They are still doing other tests, so I still don't have an answer as to if he actually had AVB or PDD at all.

The vet I see now doesn't test for bornavirus unless there's a reason due to the confusion with it. Plus, as mentioned above, the tests available to us cannot differentiate between the 6 or 7 strains of the virus. Some birds can have multiple infections! However, only a few have been linked to cause clinical disease.

It's frustrating and scary. I just don't want to put myself through the anxiety anymore.