I think my bird gonna die...

[MaximeOuellet]

Hi !

My name is Max, im from Canada and 2-3 months ago me and my girlfriend adopted 2 Conures. A 4 yo male and a 2yo female.

The first day we see that both birds having kind of black spots on their feathers. We kind of ignore that at first because we didnt know that could be dangerous.

So, the female start being really sick. And by really sick I mean...REALLY. She suddenly stop eating, she having no balance and gradually start falling on the ground while flying. So we take her to the vet 3 times. We spend around 500-600$ on this bird, me did poop test and all and she finally died and we still dont know what cause her death! Now we still got our male, Mr. Zenky. But he's have black feathers too, since the beginning. He sneeze sometimes, at least 20 times a day. Im not a vet but i'm kind of sure that is not normal.

By doing some research we discover things like try new food, buy a special UV Lamp but nothing work. We also discover that we do no have a Vet for bird in town. The closest one is at 6 hours of road.

So I desesperatly try to find some help on this forum. Me and my girlfriend running out of solutions. We really dont know what to do and what's the next step.

I put some photo's of my bird to let you see his feathers.

Thanks for your help!

 

[noodles123]

I'm sorry things are not going well I really am. I hope my reply doesn't sound overly scientific-- I just really am throwing everything out there, and I am sure you know a lot of this already...so, I do support you and I am very very sorry for what you are going through.

When was the last time you took him to an avian vet (one that specializes in birds, not just exotics)? If no such thing is available within a few hours of you, an exotics vet could be an alternative, but they do not have the same training. That having been said, there are decent exotics vets out there who deal with a lot of birds and might be able to help of refer you to someone who could help. Even a zoo vet can often help with parrots. This sounds possibly contagious..like it may have come from your last bird who passed....and stuff like that lingers in a home for over a year in many cases (depending on what it is)...Which means future birds could also be susceptible just by sharing the air in your home (even in the absence of the sick bird).
Again, a seemingly healthy bird can spread very bad diseases to other birds without ever getting sick (much like people and COVID, but for 10 years to a lifetime in some instances). In this case, it sounds like both became sick eventually, but exposure to other birds or during boarding etc can impact them...and sometimes, it can take a few days, to 10+ years if they do contract a virus and symptoms show.


There are certain diseases etc that must be treated with prescriptions (e.g., bacterial infections and certain fungal infections). Others can be nutritional/systemic or viral etc, but the lack of eating/balance is very concerning.
Also, a bird can carry and spread disease without symptoms, and some can be deadly.
Chronic illness can cause symptoms of ataxia etc in birds, but you still need to know the root of the issue.

If anything should happen with your bird, a necroscopy will be essential to determining what went wrong and how to clean your home. I very much hope that it doesn't come to that, but based on your title, I can tell you are concerned. I say this because certain viruses can survive for a very long time in a home (carpets, air ducts etc)..So, in the event of a tragedy, you should not bring new birds into your home without getting to the bottom of things first. Again, I am hoping very much that it doesn't come to that...If it should, here is a link that talks about that (I am not trying to be fatalistic, but there is a procedure that must be followed if you choose this route following the death of a parrot) https://birdtricksstore.com/blogs/b...ecropsy procedure,the condition of the organs. Preservation details etc are listed in the link..again, I very much hope that does not happen, but you lost one bird and I am concerned that this may be related, so I am just posting that so you are aware.

Black feathers alone are not a death sentence (they can happen due to stress or diet etc), but the changes in appetite, plus balance and your concerns, plus the death or your last bird really concerns me.

Birds do tend to hide illness before symptoms show. If this is a disease, your current bird could be infected (bacterial, viral fungal etc), but testing is the only way to start figuring all of that out. Special and specific tests for viruses are needed- although a CBC can be a good starting point, it won't detect a carrier of a virus, the type if virus or, sometimes, a bird who has had an illness (fungal or viral) for a long time, as their white counts can normalize over time, even if they are very sick. 20x a day of sneezing is definitely abnormal. 1-2 sneezes a day COULD be normal, but most birds don't even sneeze daily.

Another thing-- are you using any non-stick pans (ptfe/pfoa/pfcs or Teflon) in your home or scented products, like standard cleaners, glade plug-ins, air fresheners, smoke, incense, fabreeze, fumes etc? Have you noticed any tail-bobbing when your bird is perched (like a bob per breath?) They have very sensitive respiratory systems and cannot be around that stuff...so even if you haven't noticed bobbing and are using them, you should stop. Although these things do kill birds, it sounds like you are dealing with a disease (bacterial, fungal or viral)--- that having been said, you want to reduce all stressors in the environment.

Metal poisoning is another thing to consider...Are all of their cages made of safe metals? Zinc, nickel, lead, certain types of iron, copper etc are not safe-- even if they just mouth them. Stainless steel is safe, and aluminum can be as well (not for a cage, but in general)...Powder coated steel can be safe in many cases, but not always...Rust etc is dangerous and certain metals below the powder coating may be unsafe if they flake. Similarly, the powder coating itself can be unsafe in some instances. Are food and water dishes 100% stainless or safe plastic? Does he play with coins or screws, or jewelry etc?


I hope you stick around and we will try to help as much as we can!! Again, so sorry you are stressed. I very much hope that you bird pulls through and in the meantime, I would just suggest seeking veterinary intervention ASAP if you can.

Also, look his vent (butt-hole) and see if it looks normal...see if there is any swelling or any poop sticking to it.
Does your bird in general smell normal (around his beak etc)?
Do his droppings have a scent?
What color is his poop? Does it have 3 parts (white stuff, the solids and liquid--e.g., urates, feces and urine) and what do they all 3 look like?

More questions (again, just trying to help):
What tests did they run at the vet?
Any blood work (cbc)?
Any PCR testing for PDD etc (special blood work)?
Any swabs of the throat area/crop etc?
Any Pssitacosis screening?-- Odds are, you would catch this too, as humans can, but just curious.

 

[Laurasea]

Hello,
So sorry for your loss.
Noodles really covered most everything, good job Noodles!

One if the most common chronic conditions is Pssitacosis, sbd is treatable. With usually doxycycline fir st least 2 weeks, sbd rechecks becai reoccurrence is common. If that’s what he had , obviously a vet would have to test for it, it is worth the long drive for an avian specialist. Most of have to drive an hour or more to an avian specialist but worth it.

If that’s poop under him in one of your pictures it looks scant. Like he isn’t eating enough. He should have food available st all times. Mine eat about 50% healthy seed mix, and the rest pellets and veggies and fresh greens, occasional nuts sbd fruits, scrambled eggs etc..
if birds dint eat pellets or fresh veggies they often are low in vitamin A , that effects their respiratory tract and immunity. Foods that have vitamin A are peppers, chili peppers even the dried ones still have vitamin A, sbd South America parrot species usually really like red chili peppers. Also cooked sweet potatoes are taken well , or cooked butternut squash, leafy salad greens also a great source of vitamin.

I do not feed citrus fruits to parrots, it contains citric acid that is linked with iron storage disease in birds. Citrus fruits evolve in Asia, and our South America parrots didn’t evolve eating it.

Stress bars happen when the bird is under physical stres, diet stress, illness , when the feathers are forming. So the cause was probably before you got the parrots.

 

[Scott]

Welcome Max and Mr. Zenky, excellent advice above! Whatever the illness, it has probably been present for a while. Please do your very best to see an avian vet, might be the only chance to restore his health.