New (Sickly) Kākāriki!

[Teddscau]

Hey everyone! I finally got that pair of kākāriki from the Humane Society! I spent 5 freaking hours in the car yesterday to bring them home.

Anyways, they're bigger than I was expecting, especially the male. They're yellow colour mutation red-crowned kākāriki, and they're around 2 years old. The female suffered from eye problems and an upper respiratory infection. She was on antibiotics for 45 days. I know what you're thinking–psittacosis. Yeah, I'm slightly concerned, so they're seeing my go to guy (Dr. Morris) on Monday at 1:30. As per the norm, they're being quarantined for at least 30 days on a completely separate level of our house. As per my usual, paranoid CDC-esque protocol with new birds, I'm doing surgical scrubs at least 6 times during and after looking after them.

Ria (female) seems to have conjunctivitis in her left eye, and was sneezing more than I'd like on the trip home. I'm going to have a basic physical done on both of them, along with maybe crop swabs, fecal floats, and fecal cultures (and gram staining). I'd also like to have their nails trimmed, and maybe their beaks as they seem a bit overgrown. I'm thinking of asking him to cut their leg bands off.

I feel bad for them because they're in a tiny flight cage (suitable for parrotlet and budgie quarantine, but not for kākāriki), and they're quite restless, doing laps in the cage (climbing all over the place). At the Humane Society, they were in a small cage (their tail feathers are dirty and frayed), eating a horrific diet. The food they've been eating is a mix of peanuts, roasted soy beans, chickpeas, buckwheat, wheat, cracked corn, sunflower seeds, dried (and likely sulphured) papaya and raisins, and some sort of generic pellet. I mixed a bit of that into the food I'd already put in their cage, but I think I'm just going to throw out the rest. I'll just be giving them sprouts, Goldn'obles, TOPs, organic millet, lavender, chamomile, crushed Brazil nuts, goji berries, mulberries, sunflower seeds (sparingly), mash, that Goldenfeast fruit pudding, and that Goldenfeast seed mix that Ju is allergic to. I also want to get some pine nuts for them since they eat a lot of those in the wild. I'm going to try giving them some spinach today. Their poop is a bit off, but I can't say if it's due to illness or the antibiotics and subpar diet.

They've been eating and drinking (I'm paranoid about their kidneys because they drink a lot more than my other birds), and Tiki's been vocalizing a bit. They seem to be pretty settled in, as they'll eat, drink, and preen while I'm watching them. They're a bit freaked out by our dogs. They can hear the birds in the aviary through the vent, and they definitely seem interested.

When we finally got home, they wouldn't go into the quarantine cage on their own, so I had to grab them (is there a better word than "grab"?), and they were actually pretty good about it. They put their beaks on me and pinched me a bit, but it didn't hurt very much and they didn't break the skin. They only bit me when I initially grabbed them, then they quit. I'm used to having my fingers shredded, so this is a nice change of pace.

For some reason, we aren't allowed to see their vet records. I mean, I understand doctor patient confidentiality, but I'm their guardian now, so you'd think it would be in their best interest if I knew their medical histories. Anyways, Morris is having the records sent over from the Humane Society, so I'll ask him about their medical history when we see him on Monday.

 

[GaleriaGila]

Wowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww...
Thank you for rescuing them!
You're a hero...

 

[Scott]

Thanks for rescuing a beautiful couple desperately in need of a great home! Seems they subsisted on a pathetic diet and haphazard medical care, something you and your AV can rectify. Hopefully proper diagnoses will ensure a return to health. Kakarikis are charming birds and should acclimate nicely!

 

[Teddscau]

Thanks you two! I'm hoping Ria just happened to have a respiratory infection and eye infection, and that it isn't anything serious (I'm praying it isn't one of the dreaded parrot diseases). Anyways, Tiki seems to be fine.

The names they originally had kind of sucked. The male, now known as "Tiki", was originally called "Kiki". The female, now called "Ria", was originally "Coukie". Yep, I came up with the names several weeks ago. Thought I'd go with Maori names in honour of their heritage. Most of the Maori names I looked at were really weird. No, I'm not being culturally insensitive. The web results were mostly names of mythic warriors, rivers, deities, and mountains. None of them seemed to be "typical" names the Natives would give their children. It's like if you wanted to find a good Japanese name, but all you got were names of various spirits, demons, and legendary warriors and yokai.

I gave the pair some mash this morning, but I don't think they've tried any yet. I'll toss it at 1, then give them some sprouted millet, lentils, mung beans, and chickpeas. After that, the Goldenfeast seed mixes Ju has problems with, and some dried fruit, flowers, and crushed Brazil nut, with some Goldn'obles mixed in.

Hopefully they'll be given a clean bill of health, because then I could train them and eventually teach them flight recall without worrying about plague germs being spread everywhere. I'll still quarantine them, but it will be less "Zombie Apocalypse", and more "slight case of the sniffles" level of paranoia. My poor nerves can't handle it!

Anyways, their care was very sad, and I didn't like the fact that they just had them out on display in the small animal section. It was especially disconcerting, as they had a python (or was he a boa), in the reptile quarantine room near their cage, and people would freak out in front of the kākāriki when they saw the snake. The snake didn't pose any danger to the birds, but the panicking humans would've been stressing them out. Geez, he's just an unwell little snake, held in a terrarium, in a completely secure room; no need to yell "yuck!" or flail dramatically in front of my poor kākāriki.

Honestly, the cage they were in was small. It made Noah's "big" Amazon cage seem, well, adequate. Man, what's with people keeping birds in unsuitable cages? I get it that they're a non-profit, but at least get them one of those A&E or HQ flight cages. It doesn't even have to be the double-flight model! It looked like it might've been a wrought iron cage, sans powder coating. Ugh, and I almost had a stroke when they showed me what they've been eating. I noticed some of their feces was red, so I was praying they were being fed that blechy Zupreem Fruit Blend. They weren't. I'm praying it's from the dried papaya. They haven't had any red poops in their new cage.

Man, peanuts, cracked corn, and roasted soy beans? I'm surprised they haven't been giving them abestos to play with. Okay, I might be overreacting a bit, but please, why? Why couldn't you just settle for the soy, cracked corn, and sulphured fruit? Why did you have to put peanuts in the mix, too? I'm going to start giving them the liver detox from BirdsRX (or whatever it's called), and put them on probiotics.

Morris isn't exactly an avian vet, but he has decades of experience and a great deal of knowledge in working with both "regular" animals (dogs and cats) and "exotic" animals (rats, hamsters, birds, fish, ferrets, hedgehogs, pythons, tortoises, frogs, etc.). I trust him, and I also have quite a bit of avian knowledge, so we share our knowledge and decide on the best course of action. Also, it isn't like he only works with exotics once in a blue moon. He's the only qualified exotic vet within 100 km of here, so he's the guy dozens of people trust with their exotics. He also goes to other veterinary clinics because his expertise is in such a demand.

 

[LeaKP]

Oh thinking of you as you embark on this journey! Praying and hoping all goes well.

 

[Teddscau]

Thanks, we need all the hopes and prayers we can get. Ria isn't acting like she's all that sick, as she's climbing around, eating, and drinking. She seems alert enough, and isn't fluffed up or sleeping a lot (I could still hear the little goofs banging around in the cage an hour or so after covering them and putting them to sleep last night). I'm just a bit concerned that she had to take antibiotics for 45 days. Either she was harbouring some sort of hardcore superbug, or she wasn't getting the right dosage or type of antibiotics. It shouldn't take 45 days to treat a simple bacterial infection. I know respiratory infections aren't easy to treat, but 45 days of treatment, not just recovery after the treatment, has me worried.

Anyways, hopefully they only need to be quarantined for a month, then can finally join the others in the aviary, where they can actually fly and explore for what's likely the first time in their lives. I know most captive birds don't get to experience the freedom they deserve, especially the high energy kākāriki. They're considered to be the most active parrot, constantly flying from one place to another, unable to sit still for more than a few seconds. I find it disturbing that some websites actually recommend clipping their wings. Even worse, some websites suggest clipping their wings before they even have a chance to learn to fly, so as to keep them "safe" and so they don't "miss" being able to fly. Of all the parrots, these small New Zealand parakeets are truly meant to fly, and clipping their wings would be a tragedy. In fact, those who know anything about kākāriki recommend keeping them in at least a 10' x 6' enclosure.

I was worried I wouldn't be able to sex them, but my worries were completely unfounded. Tiki is significantly (relatively speaking) larger than Ria, his crown is a much richer red, his yellow plumage seems to somehow be even richer and more intense than Ria's, and he's the more vocal of the two. Honestly, he's a very big, handsome boy. I mean, the length of his tail alone! Even his feet are bigger than Ria's! Honestly, he's quite the stud. Man, he is one solid bird. Man, Pollo won't be able to control himself when he sees them. He has a thing for yellow birds, and gender doesn't matter, so I doubt species will matter to him either. He's going to be completely exhausted.

 

[GaleriaGila]

Really loving your narrative, Tedd!

You tell a good story.

 

[Anna0303]

:11: :smile015:

 

[Teddscau]

Well, Ria must've fallen at least 20 times since going into the quarantine cage. Their large size makes it awkward to move around in such a small space, their muscles and balance aren't very good since they haven't been able to properly exercise, they're used to dowel perches, she's been ill, and her left eye is swollen and the sclera is red, so I doubt her depth perception is very good, either.

I bit the bullet (first time I've ever used that phrase), and mixed some of that garbage food in with the Goldenfeast mixes. I offered them mash twice today, but both times they wouldn't touch it (they stood on the dish looking at it, but didn't try it), and they wouldn't eat the sprouts. Tiki poked at the sprouts a little, but I think the moisture grossed him out. They're definitely drinking well. I'm a bit worried about their droppings, seeing as the urine is very green. So, we're probably looking at something bacterial, or their livers are dying. Or their droppings just enjoy being green. They're pooping, so I guess that means they're eating. I feel like a monster feeding them that garbage mix. I dare not imagine the levels of toxins in that food. Ew, I'm going to have to put them through a full system detox before putting them in the aviary. They're going to be shedding yeast like crazy.

 

[Kentuckienne]

Wow. You should pick a Maori-class warrior name for yourself.

 

[Teddscau]

Hey guys! Time for another update. They aren't as settled in as I'd like, but I think this is mainly due to the size of their quarantine cage. I think they're also bored, but even though they were somewhat interested in the toys when I first brought them home, they haven't really been using them anymore. I'm wondering if I should also maybe change the location of their cage to somewhere more secluded.

Anyways, they haven't been eating very much (I know they've experienced a lot of change recently, but I like to see new birds pigging out), so earlier I decided to put some various dry foods on a plate for them, then put it on the bottom of the cage. I know they're ground foragers and have a strong urge to scratch around like chickens in search of food, so I thought, what the heck. Anyways, as soon as I put the plate in, they were very curious. In less than a minute, Tiki hopped to the bottom of the cage, with Ria close behind. They've been eating for over 15 minutes, so I'd say my plan was a success . Hopefully with their instincts being satisfied, they'll start trying different foods.

I was definitely worried about Ria, since she seemed to be eating even less than Tiki. She's probably eaten less than a teaspoon since Friday evening, and she'd been ill for almost two months, so I want to make sure she's getting enough fat and nutrients to help her recover. As you know, she still seems to be sick, so it's definitely important to get her to eat.

 

[Teddscau]

Oh my gosh, I'm freaking out, now. Ugh, I'm having a hard time waiting until tomorrow's vet appointment. I have a bad feeling they may have aspergillosis. We've got frequent drinking (in my opinion), Ria's voice is significantly deeper than Tiki's, she's hardly spoken, a significant amount of urine, green urates (for a couple of days), she seems to be clumsy, and gagging. They'd been kept with a variety of different species, and I read kākāriki are very susceptible to disease. Furthermore, they were fed an inferior mix of dry food, consisting of animal-grade cracked corn and peanuts, both of which are known to carry deadly amounts of aspergillus. She was on antibiotics for 45 days, which is an extremely long time to treat an upper respiratory infection (perhaps indicating a fungal infection, rather than bacterial). Her nares were apparently quite red and swollen, too. This could also indicate psittacosis, especially given the eye infection.

Hmm, she was on doxycycline for 45 days. Fudge bunner! Apparently, doxycycline is given for 45 days to treat psittacosis! Oh my gosh, you'd think the people at the Humane Society could've told me she was being treated for psittacosis! In birds, doxycycline isn't usually used for anything but treating psittacosis! What else could they have been treating her for!? They said they couldn't give me their medical records due to doctor patient confidentiality or something stupid! They're under my care, so I need to know their medical history to properly care for them. Despite my super-sanitary, bordering on the paranoid, surgical scrubs of my hands and arms, have I possibly introduced it to my aviary? I didn't change my clothes after being near them! Fudge. Fudge! Aspergillosis and psittacosis are on my list of most feared diseases. Most of my budgies are immune compromised due to terrible genetics. Man, I'm freaking out! Please, the kākāriki can have psittacosis, just not my poor budgies! I care about and love the kākāriki, but my gosh, it would be an absolute tragedy if I've accidentally introduced psittacosis to my aviary!

My gosh, we're having every test known to man done on them! I want crop swabs, blood work, fecal floats, gram staining, tests for parasites, bacterial cultures–the works! My gosh, I knew this day would eventually come, I just didn't know it would happen so soon

Please, let it be aspergillosis! I've already witnessed dozens of my beloved fish die as a result of the incurable, unbelievably contagious, dreaded piscine tuberculosis! I watched for years as they suffered strange symptoms, forcing me to euthanize them one by one. I absolutely adored them, but there was nothing I could do as these highly intelligent, emotional beings died. I think I'm going to cry now.

 

[Scott]

I am sorry you and your flock are under such stress. The humane society morally owes you FULL disclosure, not sure what the laws are in your province. Might you approach a supervisor, or perhaps your vet can intervene? Without a recent and preferably complete medical history of your adopted birds, it will be difficult to target treatment.

Asper is treatable, but timely intervention is crucial. Unless you have full confidence in your current vet, might wish to consider a second opinion?

Please let us know how the vet visit went when you are able.

 

[Teddscau]

Oh, thank goodness! We just got back from Dr. Morris. When we asked him about their medical records and told him that the people at the Humane Society wouldn't let us have them, he looked totally confused. When he came back with the records, he looked kind of ticked off and said what they'd told us about privacy and stuff was, "A bunch of bull." This is the closest you'll ever get to seeing Dr. Morris angry. He told us that there was absolutely nothing stopping the Humane Society from giving us their medical records, and that they were pretty much obligated to hand them over to us when we asked for them. Honestly he's the nicest, happiest, most compassionate guy you'll ever meet (he gives us a bunch of discounts whenever we come in, and he actually foot the bill himself once, paying a lab in PEI out of his own pocket for some test results). The fact that he was upset(ish) when we told him we weren't allowed to see their medical records and it was some sort of confidential thing between vets...

Anyways, I told him that we knew absolutely nothing, except that Ria was given doxycycline for 45 days for some sort of respiratory infection, and that I was really worried it was psittacosis. Immediately, he told me it wasn't anywhere as serious as that, and that she had sinusitis. He'd read the medical report and assured me that it was sinusitis, which is unusual. Anyways, apparently sinusitis is fairly common in humans and other mammals, but that it's quite unusual in birds. Apparently, in mammals, you have a lot of mucous and discharge, but in birds, they get this huge build up of clay-like pus which is quite painful.

He confirmed that she was still suffering from it, and prescribed some antibiotics to administer for at least 2–3 weeks. He told us it was extremely unlikely that she had psittacosis, and told us not to worry (but to still quarantine).

He also finds it very unlikely that she's suffering from aspergillosis, and that she should be completely better after her sinusitis clears up. He spent several minutes checking out her eyes, and he said that the bruise on the left side of her beak is probably from crashing into something, which is what likely what caused her sinusitis. That, plus vitamin A deficiency and/or low humidity caused the mucous membrane in her nose to dry out, allowing an infection to form from what should have only been a relatively minor injury.

During their physical examinations, he noted their muscles were quite small and weak, and was a bit concerned about their weight. We told him about the conditions they were kept in at the Humane Society and concluded that they should gain back their strength and fatten up under my care. I think he was disturbed with the description I gave as to their care at the Humane Society.

While I was there, I mentioned their leg bands didn't seem proper or safe and asked him to remove them. He had me hold them while he used forceps to gently pull them apart. He said those definitely weren't proper leg bands, and that they were just some sort of temporary green strips of metal with a number stamped on them (he found the bands really strange). He agreed that they weren't safe. Honestly, those bands were weird. Here's what they looked like, but theirs were thinner (and without the bolt going through it, because this picture is obviously an o-clamp for motorcycles): https://www.amazon.co.uk/Chrome-Universal-Motorcycle-Exhaust-O-Clamp/dp/B001TJ0HOA

Dr. Morris is very knowledgable and would let me know if he wasn't comfortable coming up with a diagnosis. I trust his findings and his opinion, so I'm super relieved. I honestly thought I'd have to have them euthanized, but it turns out there's just a clump of pus hanging out in her sinuses. Difficult to treat, but not contagious.

The kākāriki were pretty good for us while we handled them, although they did nip a bit (they spent most of the time just laying still in our hands and not putting up much of a fuss). They didn't seem scared or traumatized at all, and forgive me for manhandling them. I'm so glad they forgave me so quickly. Honestly, they seem to understand that I didn't mean them any harm and that I wasn't trying to be disrespectful. When I put them back in their carrier, there actually went right over to the side to see me, and they weren't shaking or hyperventilating at all. They were calm and wandered around, preened, and were trying to peek out of the carrier.

Honestly, these guys are amazingly calm and curious. They are a bit skittish, but they weren't at all nervous and actually seemed really curious while we were at the vet. Tiki got quite bored at one point and thought about chewing his way out of the carrier. Honestly, when I have to grab them to put them in the cage or carrier, they're a bit upset because no parrot wants to be in a hand, but they're very calm when I put them in the cage or carrier. Heck, I've had to grab them three times now, and they didn't break the skin once. Well, Ria gave me a nasty bite while I held her while Dr. Morris was removing her leg band, but considering we'd been handling her for well over 5 minutes, that's amazing. They honestly don't seem to hold grudges.

Oh, I forgot to mention something. He printed out their medical records and gave them to us, commenting that he'd give them to us even if the Humane Society wouldn't, and that it was important that we knew their medical histories *wink* *wink*

 

[DerTier]

I'm sorry but your humane society sounds like it is being completely mismanaged. You shouldn't have been able to come home with animals still being treated for illnesses for a variety of reasons, and not getting past records is beyond insane.

These poor birds are so lucky to have you...I'm so sorry its such an extreme case you are dealing with! As a fellow rescuer I'm honestly in shock that your hs is like this

 

[DerTier]

Best wishes for you all <3

 

[Teddscau]

Thanks, DerTier . Don't worry, it's not my local Humane Society. It's actually a far better equipped, much larger Humane Society in a major city more than two hours from here. Man, doesn't that just make things better? Sarcasm alert!

I agree, it's really stupid. Apparently, she was "all better". Well, if she's all better, why did I immediately noticed her left eye was swollen when I put them in the quarantine cage? Honestly, it's like these people don't have eyes. Anyways, she's going to be taking antibiotics for a while yet, and she spat out the first dose we gave. It's going to be a long month.

Honestly, it's such a relief that it's "just sinusitis". I understand it's a miserable thing to have, but I think we can all agree that it's preferable to having psittacosis or aspergillosis. Man, no wonder she's so shy and quiet! Can you imagine having so much pus in your sinuses the it's making your eye stick out? But, I was so happy when he told us that's what it was. I honestly thought we'd have to consider euthanasia. I never give up on an animal, but it would just be too dangerous to have a bird with psittacosis.

I'm going to work hard on getting them to eat from my hand so I can eventually start training and letting them out to fly. They're adorable, sweet little things who have received completely inadequate care up to now, and I want to give them the best life possible. In Ontario, having a companion parrot is like having, I don't know, a deer as a companion animal. Like, it's just such a foreign concept to most people. Like, when I talk to someone about my birds, they'll say something about how they had a budgie once. Is it like that in America (I know, a big generalization)? Also, most of the people who I know who've kept "exotic" animals (hamsters, budgies, etc.) had their animals die completely preventable deaths! Like, pretty much all of them are killed by cats within three months. It's very disturbing to me that humans don't realize that cats eat small prey animals.

Anyways, they're in good hands with me. I just need to convince my stupid aunt and uncle to surrender their pair of budgies to me. Legit, several years ago my mom found one of their lovebirds dead on the bottom of the cage and told them about it. Apparently they knew about it, and the bird had been dead for at least two days! The other lovebird was forced to watch as their mate lay rotting on the bottom of the cage! My gosh, how hard is it to take the corpse out!?

 

[BeatriceC]

If she's having issues taking oral meds, consider asking your vet to teach you how to give injections. My vet taught me back when Cookie first needed pain control meds, and I'll never go back to oral meds if I can avoid it. It's sooooo easy to give shots to birds and so much less traumatic. Plus you eliminate the worry of not getting the whole dose in the bird because she's spit it out. It's a win for everybody.

And thank you for taking such good care of her!

 

[Teddscau]

Hmm, if things don't go well when trying to medicate her orally, I'll have to take your suggestion and ask about injections. All I know is that it's a pain in the butt trying to stick the syringe in their beak and get them to swallow. They either spit it out, have it drip out their beak, or aspirate on it.

I hope nobody thinks poorly of me that I was preparing myself to decide whether or not to euthanize. I truly care about the two of them, but it wouldn't be safe if they had such a deadly, contagious disease. Plus, it would be extremely difficult finding them an experienced, bird-free home for them. I mean, we're not talking about a simple case of scaly face mites. Luckily, it's just good old sinusitis.

I hope she isn't in too much discomfort. I know having a regular sinus infection is a nightmare, let alone one that involves pus trying to force your eyeball out of its socket!

 

[BeatriceC]

Sometimes euthanizing is the humane choice. If that's what it had come to, then I don't think anybody would have thought badly of you for making that choice.

And I really cannot say enough good things about injections vs. oral meds. If it's at all an option, go for it. It's super easy to learn how to do; far easier, actually, than injecting a human. There's certainly some discomfort, but all things considered, I think it's less traumatic and far more precise than trying to give oral meds.