Smelly bird

I have a budgie with a bad foot, the other day she decided to land on a bown of strawberries and cream i was eating. She couldnt keep her balance and went straight into the bowl and got covered in cream :52:. She wasnt a fan of my hands then, so i didnt want to ruin the progress we had made so far, so i just wiped off the cream and let her clean herself.
Well, she ended up stinking, really bad, it smelled like someone had vomited in the room, i washed her a little bit with water two days ago, progress be darned, but she still smells quite a bit.

Any tips on getting rid of the smell, or does it just have to go away on its own? If not, i hope it'll go away at her first molt if nothing else.

That smell is soured dairy, which means bacterial growth. She needs a soaking bath, even a few until all the cream is off. And while I normally wouldn't suggest using it, I think using one of the SPECIAL DESIGNED FOR BIRDS shampoos may be in order here to get that stuff off! Something like this: Kings Cages Feathershine Shampoo Parrot Bird Cage Toy African Grey Cockatiel | eBay Typically, big petstore chains sell some variety of it, just be very sure it's designed for birds so it's non-toxic and follow all directions. Poor baby, I hope you can get her cleaned up!

Kiwibird said:

That smell is soured dairy, which means bacterial growth. She needs a soaking bath, even a few until all the cream is off. And while I normally wouldn't suggest using it, I think using one of the SPECIAL DESIGNED FOR BIRDS shampoos may be in order here to get that stuff off! Something like this: Kings Cages Feathershine Shampoo Parrot Bird Cage Toy African Grey Cockatiel | eBay Typically, big petstore chains sell some variety of it, just be very sure it's designed for birds so it's non-toxic and follow all directions. Poor baby, I hope you can get her cleaned up!

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Thank you for the fast reply! I work at the only pet store for miles, and we dont carry a bird shampoo. But i'll try and soak her in just water again, leave her in it a little longer. The smell isnt nearly as bad as it was earlier, but it cant be pleasant for her to have that smell in her face all the time.

I was thinking the same thing - spoiled dairy smell, which means bacterial infection could happen.
Don't worry about breaking progress. Budgies are very resilient, and do tame fairly easily with consistent work. Besides, this is sort of an emergency to have to handle and clean the bird in this situation. I agree that a good soaking bath or a few should do it.

RavensGryf said:

I was thinking the same thing - spoiled dairy smell, which means bacterial infection could happen.
Don't worry about breaking progress. Budgies are very resilient, and do tame fairly easily with consistent work. Besides, this is sort of an emergency to have to handle and clean the bird in this situation. I agree that a good soaking bath or a few should do it.

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Already done, and shes not happy with me But shes currently sleeping in a handcloth, relaxing a bit. The water i poured out after the wash smelled bad, so hopefully it removed some of it from the bird.

Dawn dishwashing soap may help as well. They use it to clean oil from birds caught in an oil spill.

Terry57 said:

Dawn dishwashing soap may help as well. They use it to clean oil from birds caught in an oil spill.

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No dawn dishwashing soap in this country, i dont want to test if the ones we got work instead.

I think a good daily bath for the next week or so should get the rest out and make extra sure she is nice and clean again. Is she smelling any better?

Kiwibird said:

I think a good daily bath for the next week or so should get the rest out and make extra sure she is nice and clean again. Is she smelling any better?

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She smells less at least, i have to put my nose right to her back to notice anything now, compared to before where i just had to be near her...