Applecider for budgies?

[Amsterdam]

Hi guys currently i am using vitamine drops for my two budgies but ive heard they can be toxic so i want a more natural solution is it true applecider in drinkwater is good against bacterias and parasites? Can you wash a budgie with applecider too need your advice guys thnx

 

[EllenD]

It's true that you should never give your birds anything at all in their drinking water, not vitamins, not any medications, etc., because #1) You have no idea how much you are giving your birds, and #2) It contaminates your bird's water immediately.

Your birds should not need any type of multi-vitamin supplement as long as they are eating a healthy diet that includes lots of fresh veggies, fruits, a healthy seed-mix that is low fat and contains no sunflower seeds or nuts, and hopefully a fortified pellet. And if you insist upon giving your birds a daily multi-vitamin supplement, it should be one that is either given to them directly by mouth once a day and suggested by your Avian Vet, or at the very least should be an Avian multi-vitamin that is in powder-form, and that you sprinkle on top of your bird's staple food (either pellets or seed-mix) once daily, and that comes with a pre-measured dosing scoop, such as Qwiko Avian Multi-Vitamin...But never put anything in your bird's drinking water...

Now as far as your question about "apple cider", I'm not sure what your ultimate goal is, as you mention not putting a "vitamin drop" in their water anymore, which is good, yes, please stop using cheap vitamin drops and putting them in your bird's water; However, "vitamin drops" have nothing to do with "protecting your bird against bacteria or fungal infections" at all. So you're actually talking about 2 different things; the only reason you would want to give your bird's a daily multi-vitamin would be to ensure that they are getting adequate amounts of vitamins and minerals every day, which again, they really don't need if you're feeding them a healthy, well-rounded diet. But regardless, a vitamin has nothing to do with boosting their immune systems or protecting them against bacteria or fungal infections...

I think what you're talking about isn't "apple cider", but rather "apple cider vinegar", which is used in certain circumstances in birds to protect against fungal infections, for example, if you are hand-feeding a baby bird hand-feeding formula and the baby is having issues with yeast in their crop, slow-crop, or crop-stasis, you can add a few drops of "apple cider vinegar" to the hand-feeding formula to help the issue resolve itself...As far as just giving your bird apple-cider-vinegar as a daily preventative supplement against a possible bacterial or fungal infection in their crop/GI Tract, I've not heard of this being done unless the bird is suffering from an active fungal infection, and then they do this buy adding a drop or two of apple-cider-vinegar to the bird's drinking water (don't ever give your bird straight apple-cider-vinegar, as it is very acidic)...

I'm sure there are people who do put apple-cider-vinegar in their bird's water every day, but in my opinion you'd be much better off by instead giving your bird a daily Avian Probiotic, which will keep your bird's natural levels of healthy, normal bacteria throughout his GI Tract up, thus naturally protecting him against any type of fungal/yeast infection developing. I give all of my birds a Probiotic on their seed-mix every morning for this purpose, and none of them have ever had any type of GI infections. Probiotics are simply giving your bird the exact same strains of healthy bacteria that they naturally have throughout their GI Tract, or should have (if they are taking an antibiotic for a bacterial infection, the antibiotics will kill-off even the healthy bacteria in their GI Tracts, thus opening them up to developing a secondary fungal/yeast infection)...I use Qwiko Avian Probiotics, which is a powdered Probiotic you sprinkle on top of their pellets or seed-mix once a day, and which comes with a pre-measured dosing scoop. You can buy them at any Petco.

As far as having success from adding apple-cider-vinegar to your bird's daily drinking water, hopefully someone else can attest to how effective it is, as I've only used it during hand-feeding babies and by adding it to their formula to treat slow-crop....

 

[Amsterdam]

Thanks Ellen!! I dropped the vitamine drops and gonna try this for now

 

[GaleriaGila]

Thank you, Ellen.

Amsterdam, my wonderful world-class vet says that if there is a good diet, no supplements are needed unless there's a very specifically diagnosed problem, as Ellen said. I know you're in Turkey, so my usual list of mail-order pellets and vet lists won't help, but...

If you could find a source of veterinary input, and a good pellet staple to supplement fresh produce, I would be so happy. I don't guess cider can hurt...

I love how much you care and how hard you are trying. I'm just glad you're here in general.

 

[SilverSage]

Sometimes I just see that Ellen has posted and don’t bother reading anymore because she usually says everything I was going to say, only better! But I’ll chime in anyway this time lol.

1) yes, outing vitamin drops in the water is bad. Please stop. Those are completely unregulated and can lead to all sorts of problems. To be sure your bird is getting all the proper nutrients, focus on fresh and live foods, supplement with pellets, seeds, etc. research your species’ specific needs.

2) apple cider is a yummy drink with no medicinal uses. Apple cider vinegar tastes horrible and is great for treating certain problems, but can cause problems of its own if used all the time. Sort of like any medication; only use it when it is needed. The BEST way to combat bacterial growth is a good scrub with hot soapy water once or twice a day, and using a water dish made from stainless steel or ceramic with no inside corners for particles to get stuck in


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[LeslieA]

Vitamin supplements in water can cause your bird to stop drinking as much due to the odd taste.
"Apple cider" vinegar in Syria tends to be quite strong compared to here and may cause a significant weight loss in your birds. Although it's often used to control GI problems, arthritis and certain edemas here, you'll be putting your bird at risk, according to my new AV and AV Dr. Barb both.
( FYI, both insist that Hayat needs to be quarantined even after the SCALY mite problem is cleared. Assumedly, you got her invermectine application instructions re liquid treatment as well as future mite/lice infestation prevention techniques.) Both say there are better options if there are GI problems.

 

[Amsterdam]

Thank you, Ellen.

Amsterdam, my wonderful world-class vet says that if there is a good diet, no supplements are needed unless there's a very specifically diagnosed problem, as Ellen said. I know you're in Turkey, so my usual list of mail-order pellets and vet lists won't help, but...

If you could find a source of veterinary input, and a good pellet staple to supplement fresh produce, I would be so happy. I don't guess cider can hurt...

I love how much you care and how hard you are trying. I'm just glad you're here in general.

Yeah lol its hard to find here haha i have to ship it in wich takes years

 

[Amsterdam]

Vitamin supplements in water can cause your bird to stop drinking as much due to the odd taste.
"Apple cider" vinegar in Syria tends to be quite strong compared to here and may cause a significant weight loss in your birds. Although it's often used to control GI problems, arthritis and certain edemas here, you'll be putting your bird at risk, according to my new AV and AV Dr. Barb both.
( FYI, both insist that Hayat needs to be quarantined even after the SCALY mite problem is cleared. Assumedly, you got her invermectine application instructions re liquid treatment as well as future mite/lice infestation prevention techniques.) Both say there are better options if there are GI problems.

Yo leslie she is still in her own cage yes and you are right im gonna try to find it though since its better then the drops