Water bowls

[SunnyTheConure]

I have had sunny my sun conure for about 6 months now and last month I started to wash his water bowl with soap and water. Before this I would just use warm water should I be concerned for his health or do you think he will be fine.

 

[noodles123]

You SHOULD use soap, but it needs to be safe soap...Warm water isn't enough, but antibacterial or highly scented soaps are also unsafe.

Classic Dawn is a safe option, as long as you rinse very well.

IF he had a bacterial disease from the warm-water only "washing", you would know by now (assuming his breathing, appetite, droppings and behavior are all normal), but, in the future, use safe soap.

 

[Scott]

All bowls should be regularly cleaned, particularly if Sunny makes "soup" in the water bowl with food, debris, etc. Some birds trash their water daily, others more cautions. A mild soap should suffice, important to rinse thoroughly and avoid potentially harmful residue.

 

[SunnyTheConure]

For the last month or so I have been using safe soap and water what symptoms should I look out for.

 

[noodles123]

For the last month or so I have been using safe soap and water what symptoms should I look out for.

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I mean, if your bird was checked by a knowledgeable, avian vet at some point, then as long as they were thorough in their exam/testing and the bird's behavior is still okay, I wouldn't worry too much, but if your bird hasn't been checked and you were never really sure what was healthy, then you lack a baseline for comparison----Things to look for: changes in droppings (color changes unrelated to food, increased bubbles more than a few times in a row, chunks of seed or anything weird in poop, smell--poop should be ODORLESS and it should have 3 parts, the poop, the pee and white strings/sprinkles--if these aren't white, that is something important to note-- the urine should not be neon green or neon red or any strange color--although sometimes if it sits on a towel, the poop will color the urine by default<- also, something like a blackberry can really change their poop color..same with beets etc), tail-bobbing when breathing but sitting still (if you picture a heart-beat, and you see their tail clearly moving up and down in a similar rhythm when they breathe --that's very bad), sounds when breathing, nasal discharge, decrease in appetite, reduced activity, hanging out on the cage bottom without a reason (bird do sometimes go down there to play etc), fluffed appearance, feather changes..strange odor from the beak, changes in personality (outside of those associated with puberty or adjusting to a new home), bulges or swelling and changes in poop size or water content long-term and straining to poop... <--these are all red-flags for underlying issues, but the key is KNOWING your bird ..a weird poop once in a while can be normal, but if you see changes that have lasted, you need to get him checked...and if he has never been checked, then you need to get him checked so that you have a baseline of health if he does get sick (or already is).

Oh- and sneezing and scratching--- A SINGLE sneeze is nothing to worry about within the course of a day (in most cases), but a bird that sneezes multiple times a day likely has something stuck in there, or an infection/disease. Also, if a bird is scratching any part of his/her body frequently-- more than a few times a day--that is something that could be a problem as well---especially if you see them scratching their nares (nostrels) often---YES, dust and other things can cause this too, but it can be a symptom of disease.

I want to emphasize that 1-2 weird poops in a day (EXCLUDING UNDIGESTED CHUNKS and/or visible blood---WHICH ARE ALWAYS BAD) are not necessarily things that should cause you to panic...but, if, say, poop were smelly, I would wait until the next dropping (maybe 2) and if it wasn't odorless, we would be going to the vet as soon as possible.

 

[SunnyTheConure]

I have had him checked by an avian vet and everything came back normal. He occasionally does bubbly poops mainly in the morning but its just one poop or so. The vet says as long as every poop is not bubbly and it's not a lot of bubbles than it should be fine.