Vet visit

[RinaDoc]

So I was wondering when I get my GCC if I should make the a vet appointment for the day I get her and then just take her up, or just take her home and let her get accustomed to everything and used to me first. I am getting her from Petco

 

[Laurasea]

Good question!!! Can't wait to see how everyone weighs in!!! Me I always wait, I don't want their first experience with me to be so traumatic, and stressful. I want them to know they can trust me. I want their first experience with me to be good good good!!! I bring them home, put them in the cage, let them get settled, I sit in a chair by the cage not staring at them, but reading, and talking. If they want to come out right away I let them but stay right next to cage. If they are afraid I let them be. I always wait.

 

[GaleriaGila]

I'm just happy you're being so conscientious about veterinary care.
In case you need links...

Certified Avian Vets
https://abvp.com/animal-owners/find-an-abvp-specialist/
If none are near you...
Avian Veterinarians
http://www.aav.org/search/custom.asp?id=1803
In my opinion, any of the vets listed here should be better than a regular vet.

 

[charmedbyekkie]

Our vet was fully booked for a week when we got Cairo. We picked him up on the Thursday, I waited the weekend to call the clinic, and they booked us for the following week. I think it worked out for us because Cairo warmed up quite quickly to my partner, so by the time we visited the vet almost a week after he joined us, he knew he could fly to my partner for safety away from the stranger (being the vet).

That being said, I know not all birds warm up as quickly as Cairo. He took to us surprisingly fast. So if your new fid doesn't warm up as fast, I don't know what I would do. But her health is definitely important, so I might just go for the vet visit just to be safe.

I'd definitely be worried with a bird coming from PetCo, though, so maybe pick her up, then book the vet at their earlier convenience.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

This is a tough one. I can't say either way is right or wrong. It really all depends on your circumstances. I do think getting your bird examined for health check-up is sooner is better (ESPECIALLY if there are other fids in the house; even though quarantine is always advised). But I do worry about the traumatic experience.


I waited for 3 or 4 weeks to get Skittles his first check-up. He actually took right to me, BUT he had been handled and tamed by the store clerk. I got mine from a local pet store, not a national chain. I do worry about birds from Petco, I've never seen them be very healthy. They always look 'sickly' to me.

 

[noodles123]

I had the same dilemma...
My re-homed Umbrella Cockatoo was totally freaked out to the point that I didn't want to push it and ended up waiting. I had originally scheduled her first vet appointment for the upcoming Weds (following adoption) and I had picked her up on a Saturday. Then I ended up calling to cancel, as there was no way in hell that was happening lol- she let me take her out of her carrier on day 1 and scratch her head a bit, but I think that she was just so freaked out after lots of traveling that, as a human, I was the most familiar thing---anyway, a few days later, she didn't want much to do with me until she finally turned a corner about 1 month later (3 months for dependable step up and 4-5 for easy travel in carrier). She took food from me, but that was about it for a long time.

I actually found a vet that did a home-visit within those first few weeks because I couldn't touch her lol, but they didn't do much because she was so stressed ( They didn't feel that it was wise). About 1 month after getting her, I got worried because of her poop/ some other issues and I took her in. It was very stressful for me and for her. She was given antibiotics for a possible respiratory issue and on a follow-up, they ran some other tests. When they first ran blood, she had some issues with her liver levels that are gone now (but she came to me with those).



Long ramble aside, the moral of the story is to get your bird checked ASAP, but feel it out- stress is hard on birds. If you wait and run into emergency health issues, you may have to towel her.


A word of advice, once your bird is settled in, work on taking him/her places OTHER THAN THE VET in their carrier. Otherwise, they will never want to get in. They need to also have positive experiences in there....if the travel cage is new, set it near the bird and try getting her to eat treats off of it to build familiarity when you are home.



Did you ask the vet? It is going to be harder for them to take vitals on a freaked out bird...but is yours a baby or an adult?

If it's a baby, I'm inclined to say go for it and take her in (unless she is going to have a stroke over it)....My preference was to step out of the room when the vet took blood etc so that I wouldn't be associated as much with the trauma...and because I didn't want my anxiety rubbing off..... it really is a tough call.

 

[RinaDoc]

She will be a year old in December. And I would go in and check out the birds a lot. The one I have my eye on is bright eyed and clear. She's alert and active and I was even allowed to hold her. But I had to wash my hands before and after she was VERY sweet and readily jumped on my finger. I didn't see any of the red flags I looked up to to look out for.

 

[noodles123]

If she jumped right up etc, you might consider just getting the visit out of the way. If they give you a carrier to bring her home in, then I would use that to take her to the vet the first time (right after leaving the shop)--that way, she doesn't associate the travel carrier that you have at home with that first visit...
Again, it all depends on how easily she goes into the carrier and how well she handles the car ride+ new environment. The vet will be a stresser either way, so if she seems fairly level, you might feel better knowing they had checked her out.
They probably won't run blood work right away, but they might. If they do, you will need to keep a close eye on her afterwards to make sure she is clotting etc.
Before you get her, I would buy some silver nitrate sticks offline---they look like long wooden q-tips with a ball of silver paint on the end. If a bird is bleeding from a wound, these cauterize the wound to stop the flow---they create a chemical burn when you repeatedly swab over the area with them (so you don't want to hit healthy skin).....Good in emergencies--- nice to have just in case.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

Well those are all good signs. Especially being alert and active. That's good to know. If she is taking right to you as she appears to be, I'd say go ahead and get the vet visit out of the way as well. Chances are she has already been tamed, based on what you've shared.


If the bird was untamed (or came from somewhere she wasn't treated well) then it would be much different. But I think taking her directly to the vet is not a bad idea.

 

[LeslieA]

Well, every bird is different. Personally, I say within the first week.
My Sun Conure and GCC went that first day, but the AV was on the way. Miss Bird, BCC, was already there, so she obviously went the first day. It would have meant me sticking the conure boys back in the transport cage and causing more stress.
Glenn, IRN, was there so same as Miss Bird. I got Sherman, WCP, on a Monday and she went with JoJo, budgie, for his early annual exam 1 week later. Tommy, budgie, went next day as his day cage was also his quarantine and transport cage.
All my birds except Tommy are rehomes or rescues. All are quarantined, so we make a pre- quarantine visit and a post-quarantine visit to let them get used to the AV, travel and to allow the AV to know their basic statistics.
Breeder baby contracts as a standard require "within 4 days." Petco may have the same. For the safety of you and the bird, I say within a week.
Seldom do you not know when the bird is joining your flock ahead of time allowing for appointments to be made. Big Charles, YNA, was scheduled to join us but died the week before moving in, so the appointment that was made was simply cancelled.

 

[RinaDoc]

Thanks, everyone! I went to Petco to buy some cage accessories to get that out of the way, and I was talking to the one associate who is said the bird I wanted was bought Saturday and actually returned this morning. The person who bought her thought just because she was tamed and was ok being handled at the store that she would be the same at home even though the lady said to give it a couple of days to a week. Especially since the store was all she has known. I talked to the associate and she said maybe it's fate that she was brought back so I could have her and love her. Fingers crossed!

 

[Sunnyclover]

I'd just like to weigh in on this Petco thing...I have gotten 2 of my 2 (Ollie and Paris) birds from Petco and they were both extremely tame and healthy when I got them. I literally waited no time to handle them and cuddled with them the same day. I do live in a pretty affluent area so that might have something to do with the quality of our Petco. We also have 2 or 3 other bird shops within 20 mins of us that sell birds of all types. So the bird I didn't get from Petco was a total disaster...not fully weened and probably not breed from the best parents and those of you know me and my birds... it's been an ongoing battle with the bird I didn't get from Petco (Finley).

I just wanted you say basically that not all Petcos are bad and some sell perfectly wonderful birds.

 

[ChristaNL]

LOL Appie has decided the transport-box (modified catcarier) is her favorite hang-out spot this year ...so she will climb up and in and sometimes closes the door behind her as well... so much for stressing them out...

so if you ever need to go on repeat visits - let them get used to it and make it a safe space for them.

Just get the bird - visit the vet - go home.
Then you both can focus on getting acquainted and work on your bond in peace.

 

[Laurasea]

Congratulations!!! I got my current GGC from the same place. She was healthy, friendly, it depends on the people working in the individual store, and the breeder who sent the bird.. I had a GGC already for ten years at the time, abd darn it they got me to impulse buy my pretty girl! I just was there getting stuff lol and made eye contact with Ta-dah, we were both smitten. I hope your just ad happy, can't wait to see pictures of your new baby!!!! Did you read the sticky bonding with your parrot?

 

[RinaDoc]

Congratulations!!! I got my current GGC from the same place. She was healthy, friendly, it depends on the people working in the individual store, and the breeder who sent the bird.. I had a GGC already for ten years at the time, abd darn it they got me to impulse buy my pretty girl! I just was there getting stuff lol and made eye contact with Ta-dah, we were both smitten. I hope your just ad happy, can't wait to see pictures of your new baby!!!! Did you read the sticky bonding with your parrot?

Thanks! I'm excited to get her. It will probably be next week or the following week as I'm still waiting in the cage to come in. But the lady from Petco assured me that their GCC's really don't sell all that quickly due to price. If I can't get the one I got my eye on I have another lined up. It was hard to pick. And no I haven't seen that, I'll have to check it out!!

 

[noodles123]

Sounds like it is a good thing that woman brought her back....ugh...obviously birds are going to be super stressed after a move and no, they won't act exactly as they did at the store...could be months before they are back to their old selves...She would have made a terrible bird owner if she was dissuaded between Saturday and today! I mean, yeah, some people click with a bird from day 1, BUT even those people don't see the real bird until the transition period is over.

 

[RinaDoc]

Congratulations!!! I got my current GGC from the same place. She was healthy, friendly, it depends on the people working in the individual store, and the breeder who sent the bird.. I had a GGC already for ten years at the time, abd darn it they got me to impulse buy my pretty girl! I just was there getting stuff lol and made eye contact with Ta-dah, we were both smitten. I hope your just ad happy, can't wait to see pictures of your new baby!!!! Did you read the sticky bonding with your parrot?

Thanks! I'm excited to get her. It will probably be next week or the following week as I'm still waiting in the cage to come in. But the lady from Petco assured me that their GCC's really don't sell all that quickly due to price. If I can't get the one I got my eye on I have another lined up. It was hard to pick. And no I haven't seen that, I'll have to check it out!!

 

[EllenD]

Just a suggestion, but why don't you put a deposit down on her so that you know that you'll get her? I only say this because it really does seem like you've formed a bond with this bird, or that this bird "picked you", and that's a special thing when it happens. And he's already been sold once and brought back, so if you're talking about waiting another week or two before you can bring her home, and this is all simply because you're waiting for the cage to be shipped, then you really should just put a deposit down or even pay for the bird in-full (if that is what Petco requires, I don't know their policy), and then they'll put a "Sold" sign on him and you won't have to worry about losing this bird that you've already formed a bond with...

I mean, just my opinion, but seriously, you're choosing the bird that you're going to bring into your family and that is going to be your close companion for 30-40 years! This isn't a situation where you want to "bring home the back-up choice"! It's a huge decision, and if you've already bonded with a certain bird, just reserve him so he's yours for certain...And I say this because otherwise I can absolutely guarantee you that if this bird is sold in the next week or two while you're waiting for the cage to come in, you're going to be regretting this forever and thinking about "what if" forever, even if you buy your "back-up" choice of birds...That's a horrible feeling to live with...

Also, on the Petco thing, I am very close to the Animal Manager of my local Petco, and we've talked at length about their hand-fed parrots, meaning the Conures and the Cockatiels (they won't sell any bird larger than a Jenday Conure since that Chlamydia-outbreak about a decade ago)...And as such, I can tell you that they do no any longer get their hand-fed parrots from "Bird-Mills" like they did prior to that whole situation (before the chlamydia outbreak that Petco, Petsmart, Petland, etc. had due to a handful of vendors that they all used, they sold parrots as large as Macaws and Cockatoos)...I can't speak for Petsmart (and I don't think that most Petsmarts even sell any parrots at all anymore except for Budgies), but as far as Petco goes, they only use a small number of smaller breeders for their parrots, they are checked/swabbed for disease, and the birds do all see a Vet prior to arriving at the store...So it's not the same awful situation that it once was...

The only thing that I don't like about the "vendors", as she calls them, that Petco gets their hand-fed birds from is that they don't actually "hand-raise" or "hand-feed" the baby birds, there are too many to do that...The babies are all pulled from the parents at 2 weeks old and put into very large Brooders, with each Brooder holding dozens of babies...But due to the massive number of parrots they breed, instead of "hand-feeding" and actually "hand-raising" their babies, they simply "Tube-Feed" them on a very strictly timed, assembly-line type of set-up...I don't like Tube-Feeding baby birds at all unless it's being done for a medical reason and it's necessary. When it's being done to save time, money, and manpower, well, it's just not cool. But as far as the babies being healthy, I don't think there is a problem with that any longer at all...

 

[RinaDoc]

Just a suggestion, but why don't you put a deposit down on her so that you know that you'll get her? I only say this because it really does seem like you've formed a bond with this bird, or that this bird "picked you", and that's a special thing when it happens. And he's already been sold once and brought back, so if you're talking about waiting another week or two before you can bring her home, and this is all simply because you're waiting for the cage to be shipped, then you really should just put a deposit down or even pay for the bird in-full (if that is what Petco requires, I don't know their policy), and then they'll put a "Sold" sign on him and you won't have to worry about losing this bird that you've already formed a bond with...

I mean, just my opinion, but seriously, you're choosing the bird that you're going to bring into your family and that is going to be your close companion for 30-40 years! This isn't a situation where you want to "bring home the back-up choice"! It's a huge decision, and if you've already bonded with a certain bird, just reserve him so he's yours for certain...And I say this because otherwise I can absolutely guarantee you that if this bird is sold in the next week or two while you're waiting for the cage to come in, you're going to be regretting this forever and thinking about "what if" forever, even if you buy your "back-up" choice of birds...That's a horrible feeling to live with...

Also, on the Petco thing, I am very close to the Animal Manager of my local Petco, and we've talked at length about their hand-fed parrots, meaning the Conures and the Cockatiels (they won't sell any bird larger than a Jenday Conure since that Chlamydia-outbreak about a decade ago)...And as such, I can tell you that they do no any longer get their hand-fed parrots from "Bird-Mills" like they did prior to that whole situation (before the chlamydia outbreak that Petco, Petsmart, Petland, etc. had due to a handful of vendors that they all used, they sold parrots as large as Macaws and Cockatoos)...I can't speak for Petsmart (and I don't think that most Petsmarts even sell any parrots at all anymore except for Budgies), but as far as Petco goes, they only use a small number of smaller breeders for their parrots, they are checked/swabbed for disease, and the birds do all see a Vet prior to arriving at the store...So it's not the same awful situation that it once was...

The only thing that I don't like about the "vendors", as she calls them, that Petco gets their hand-fed birds from is that they don't actually "hand-raise" or "hand-feed" the baby birds, there are too many to do that...The babies are all pulled from the parents at 2 weeks old and put into very large Brooders, with each Brooder holding dozens of babies...But due to the massive number of parrots they breed, instead of "hand-feeding" and actually "hand-raising" their babies, they simply "Tube-Feed" them on a very strictly timed, assembly-line type of set-up...I don't like Tube-Feeding baby birds at all unless it's being done for a medical reason and it's necessary. When it's being done to save time, money, and manpower, well, it's just not cool. But as far as the babies being healthy, I don't think there is a problem with that any longer at all...

The associate said something similar about where the birds come from. And I was actually thinking about calling them after supper and asking if they do hold birds.

 

[sweetpeamusic]

About the vet thing - I think I also waited a week or so before I took Nico to the vet… but my breeder was also a vet tech who'd obviously checked him before he came home. I agree with Ms. (? I'm sorry if I misgender) noodles123's advice on using the same carrier as the one the parrot comes home in, Nico now loves his travel cage since he usually gets to go to fun places with it (He's sitting on top of it right now, preening himself). When I went to my vet she told me that she didn't feel comfortable doing too many tests on such a young bird (Nico was around 9 weeks) so he hasn't had blood work done yet.