Introducing Yuri! Ona’s New Sister!

[onamom]

We got the results back. And we are devastated. Yuri is ABV positive

Still figuring things out and talking options with the vet. We are leaning toward keeping her and not letting her and Ona ever have direct contact and practicing good hygiene Hard, hard day. She is already quite bonded to me.

 

[nkrbkr]

We got the results back. And we are devastated. Yuri is ABV positive

Still figuring things out and talking options with the vet. We are leaning toward keeping her and not letting her and Ona ever have direct contact and practicing good hygiene Hard, hard day. She is already quite bonded to me.

Awe, I’m so sorry. May I ask why they did an ABV test? Is it one they typically do?

 

[onamom]

Awe, I’m so sorry. May I ask why they did an ABV test? Is it one they typically do?

Because of her foot. And I also wanted her tested regardless to keep Ona safe. But, her foot issue is from ABV

My husband and I are talking about ways to make it work and keep both safe. I have lots of great resources to help with my avian vet tech friend. It’s really hard and disappointing but we want to give her a good life.

 

[nkrbkr]

Because of her foot. And I also wanted her tested regardless to keep Ona safe. But, her foot issue is from ABV

My husband and I are talking about ways to make it work and keep both safe. I have lots of great resources to help with my avian vet tech friend. It’s really hard and disappointing but we want to give her a good life.

I’m a Patron of The Green Bird Brigade on Patreon. I also follow Jen on Instagram. A lot of people know her bird that went viral, Auggie, the “bacon pancakes” Quaker. She has a parrot rescue in Texas, & has I think nine birds of her own. Her beloved Macaw, Aurora, has AG from ABV. There’s a highlight on her Instagram account that has some useful information regarding it. You could probably also try reaching out to her, if you’d like more info on how she manages the disease with her flock. I’ve spoken with her personally, & have done a consultation with her. She’s a very kind person & is focused on helping people & their parrots.

 

[DonnaBudgie]

Awe, I’m so sorry.

I am so sorry Loren! How tragic for poor Yuri and your family. I wonder if my budgie Mariah has it because she's had mobility issues, stumbling, falling on her back and being unable to right herself
She recovers at least partially but if she's infected she will possibly infect my entire flock assuming budgies are susceptible.
This infection has not been on my radar screen and perhaps it should be.
Again, my very deepest condolences. I hope little Yuri can enjoy somewhat of a normal life.

 

[DonnaBudgie]

I’m a Patron of The Green Bird Brigade on Patreon. I also follow Jen on Instagram. A lot of people know her bird that went viral, Auggie, the “bacon pancakes” Quaker. She has a parrot rescue in Texas, & has I think nine birds of her own. Her beloved Macaw, Aurora, has AG from ABV. There’s a highlight on her Instagram account that has some useful information regarding it. You could probably also try reaching out to her, if you’d like more info on lly, & have done a consultation with her. She’s a veryhow she manages the disease with her flock. I’ve spoken with her persona kind person & is focused on helping people & their parrots.

I follow the Green Bird Brigade, too, and have a lot of respect for the work they do.

 

[rheashard2]

Sorry to hear this. Glad there's resources for you to use.

 

[DonnaBudgie]

Loren,
I just read a very interesting short article entitled Avian Bornavirus in Clinical Practice from the MSPCA-Angell website www.mspca.org about the virus and PDD. Angell Animal Medical Center is the premier Avian medicine hospital in Boston.
Was Yuri tested by PCR and serology? They say to confirm positive PCR tests with serology.
Yuri is so young. Do they think she was infected from her mother (vertical transmission) vs horizontal transmission from direct contact?
I feel so bad for all of you having to face this illness.

 

[onamom]

Loren,
I just read a very interesting short article entitled Avian Bornavirus in Clinical Practice from the MSPCA-Angell website www.mspca.org about the virus and PDD. Angell Animal Medical Center is the premier Avian medicine hospital in Boston.
Was Yuri tested by PCR and serology? They say to confirm positive PCR tests with serology.
Yuri is so young. Do they think she was infected from her mother (vertical transmission) vs horizontal transmission from direct contact?
I feel so bad for all of you having to face this illness.

Yes she had both tests.

I’ve been doing LOTS of researching and speaking with my vet and others who have birds with ABV. My vet believes as high as 50% of birds in the US have or have been exposed to ABV. That high. They say 1 in 4 has it. However, just because a bird has it does mean they will have symptoms or be impacted by it at all. The majority are not my vet says.

I believe we will be letting Yuri and Ona finally meet today. Symptoms are not contagious and there is mixed research about horizontal spread of the virus. The most recent research out there is actually saying it’s rare for it to spread from bird to bird and most likely they are born with it. It can lay dormant in their system for years or decades before showing any signs at all. If it ever does. That being said, we are heartbroken, but we are committed to providing the best life for Yuri and getting her the care she needs. We are also committed to ensuring a good quality of life for both her and Ona and will not isolate them. We will practice very good hygiene and cleaning as a precaution but I will let them meet.

Yuri will be starting anti inflammatory meds Monday as soon as they get to my house. It is possible she can recover from this episode and never have another issue, though she will have the virus her entire life. I am hoping we can get her through it and she can go on without problems.

My vet says Ona likely has already been exposed but that doesn’t mean she has it or will get it. She may never get it.

ETA: Yuri is doing well. Happy. Eating well. Normal poop.

 

[nkrbkr]

I am so sorry Loren! How tragic for poor Yuri and your family. I wonder if my budgie Mariah has it because she's had mobility issues, stumbling, falling on her back and being unable to right herself
She recovers at least partially but if she's infected she will possibly infect my entire flock assuming budgies are susceptible.
This infection has not been on my radar screen and perhaps it should be.
Again, my very deepest condolences. I hope little Yuri can enjoy somewhat of a normal life.

Yes she had both tests.

I’ve been doing LOTS of researching and speaking with my vet and others who have birds with ABV. My vet believes as high as 50% of birds in the US have or have been exposed to ABV. That high. They say 1 in 4 has it. However, just because a bird has it does mean they will have symptoms or be impacted by it at all. The majority are not my vet says.

I believe we will be letting Yuri and Ona finally meet today. Symptoms are not contagious and there is mixed research about horizontal spread of the virus. The most recent research out there is actually saying it’s rare for it to spread from bird to bird and most likely they are born with it. It can lay dormant in their system for years or decades before showing any signs at all. If it ever does. That being said, we are heartbroken, but we are committed to providing the best life for Yuri and getting her the care she needs. We are also committed to ensuring a good quality of life for both her and Ona and will not isolate them. We will practice very good hygiene and cleaning as a precaution but I will let them meet.

Yuri will be starting anti inflammatory meds Monday as soon as they get to my house. It is possible she can recover from this episode and never have another issue, though she will have the virus her entire life. I am hoping we can get her through it and she can go on without problems.

My vet says Ona likely has already been exposed but that doesn’t mean she has it or will get it. She may never get it.

ETA: Yuri is doing well. Happy. Eating well. Normal poop.

These are all things I’ve read as well (vertical rather than horizontal spread, 50% of birds may have it, it comes in flares & may never flare again, etc.), so I’m very hopeful for you and your sweet birds. It seems stress & hormones can cause flares, so it could be entirely possible that she flared up from the change of moving to her forever home? I’ll have my fingers crossed that the anti inflammatory does the trick, & she never has problems with it again.

 

[onamom]

These are all things I’ve read as well (vertical rather than horizontal spread, 50% of birds may have it, it comes in flares & may never flare again, etc.), so I’m very hopeful for you and your sweet birds. It seems stress & hormones can cause flares, so it could be entirely possible that she flared up from the change of moving to her forever home? I’ll have my fingers crossed that the anti inflammatory does the trick, & she never has problems with it again.

I agree it’s possible that’s what caused the flare! I had the same thought.

 

[onamom]

Well, here it is! Not the instant click I was hoping for but we will see how they do! I won’t do much more today because it’s important to avoid stressing Yuri and not going to force it. Ona is very confident of course and like “hey! Come here!” Yuri is like “uhhhh you’re a lot idk” Now the beak thing Ona is doing is a learned behavior she does to play. We call it a “bonk”. So she isn’t being aggressive imo but she is being pushy and confident and Yuri is being shy.

Now the shoulder might become an issue with Yuri. She DOES get snippy with anyone trying to get her off my shoulder and she really just wants to live there. She got up there and Ona came up and Yuri did a “hey back off” gentle lunge. So that’s something to look out for. I hope they will become closer in time but for now most importantly keeping Yuri low stress.

 

[LaManuka]

Well, here it is! Not the instant click I was hoping for but we will see how they do! I won’t do much more today because it’s important to avoid stressing Yuri and not going to force it. Ona is very confident of course and like “hey! Come here!” Yuri is like “uhhhh you’re a lot idk” Now the beak thing Ona is doing is a learned behavior she does to play. We call it a “bonk”. So she isn’t being aggressive imo but she is being pushy and confident and Yuri is being shy.

Now the shoulder might become an issue with Yuri. She DOES get snippy with anyone trying to get her off my shoulder and she really just wants to live there. She got up there and Ona came up and Yuri did a “hey back off” gentle lunge. So that’s something to look out for. I hope they will become closer in time but for now most importantly keeping Yuri low stress.

Awwwwwwwwwwww that's so sweet!! I think they're gonna get along just fine

 

[onamom]

Awwwwwwwwwwww that's so sweet!! I think they're gonna get along just fine

Hopefully! I think they need some time to work out boundaries with one another.

 

[rheashard2]

They look cute. Nice video.

 

[onamom]

lol