Advice needed for 10 year old budgie

[mintysowner]

Hi,

My budgie Minty who is ten years old now has been having diarrhea for the past week or so, it seems to have got a little better but he's still not himself. He has lost a lot of feathers on his breast and on examining him the other day I noticed part of his breast was blackened, not pink like it normally is. I've also noticed he has been pruning himself a lot more - I'm wondering if he could possibly have mites or something? I can't get to take him to an avian vet for two weeks (that's the soonest he can be seen) so wondered if anyone had any advice for me in the meantime to help him.  He's generally not in the best of health he has two bad feet and just manages to get by in his cage and also enjoys sitting out of his cage on top but doesn't fly much as he gets very worn out - so even taking him to a vet will really stress him out (he gets out of breath v easily).

Any advice would be greatly appreciated as I'm not sure what to do in the meantime - he is thankfully still eating and drinking which is one good thing!

Thanks in advance.

Becca

[mintysowner]

Also meant to say he had lost breast feathers before this year but they grew back and now they've slowly been going again the past couple of months.



He's literally just pooped this to give an idea of the 'diarrhea' he is having, it comes out like water... the second photo is after I had cleaned his other diarrhea so it's a little hard to see.

[Hezz]

Minty is doing well at 10 years of age. Congratulations both of you. But his droppings are of concern. I have no clue what could be going on with his chest that you say is black - a photo would be best for us to see what you mean. Minty's poops to me seem to be indicating problems with his internal organs, unfortunately, particularly given his age and that this has been happening for some time. I know you say he is eating but make sure he is still eating as much as normal; you can give him some milk thistle, dandelion, aloe ..... all of which are good for liver detox as his liver might be feeling the strain after all this time, at this stage it would be better to find a good liver detox supplement rather than feed him the raw greens. You can get alcohol free milk thistle drops on line quite easily. Probiotics are good as well if his guts are upset - helps to re-establish the good gut flora. I am not sure what you can do if his kidneys are affected - is he drinking more than usual?? There is also the possibility that his pancreas is not functioning as well as it should. Keep him warm, keep the humidity up, no greens or fresh foods but seed and millet, if you have any of the above mentioned supplements, or Guardian Angel, add this to his water. Two weeks is a long time to have to wait to see a vet. I would have thought that an avian vet would realise the importance of speedy diagnoses and treatment for the bird fraternity. If he goes down hill any more take him in anyway, as an emergency patient. Even if you don't have an appointment, they should be able to check him out and start treatment if needed, rather than make you wait two weeks.

Good luck with Minty. Please let us know how you get on; fingers crossed for you both.

[stace]

I'm surprised you'd have to wait that long for an avian vet, but it could be they are just visiting avian vets available only on certain days?

The poop isn't good. Hezz has pretty much covered everything you can do at home without meds.

[mintysowner]

Thanks so much for the replies. I managed to get Avipro Avian Probiotic, have given him one scoop in 100ml and will keep him on it until I can get him to the avian vet. The avian vet only works closer to me (Southampton) every couple of weeks on a Friday. I did text him with how Minty was and he said to keep him warm and encourage drinking water... if he does decline I will have to take him to a local vet but they aren't avian vets. I'm concerned even taking him to Southampton because he gets so stressed out even just coming out of the cage - apart from keeping him in his cage with a towel over the top of it is there anything else I can do to make him as comfortable as possible to get to the vet? I will also look into the liver support ideas - I really appreciate your help, I'm v worried about him :-(

[milliej]

Ah it's hard they are such tiny creatures that melt our hearts so quickly and are part of our family. Hezz gave me some good advice when Mischief seemed to be 'poorly' a few weeks ago but she seems better now, sadly age is a factor my Mischief is 9 'ish' and I can see the changes in her but she's still going along so we can only try to keep them as comfortable as possible. My thoughts and prayers though as it is hard!

[mintysowner]

Thank you so much Millie <3

I just filmed Minty having some food and his water with his probiotic in (he actually likes it a lot!).

View My Video

The past couple of days just above his cere he's lost some feathers.. this isn't the start of mites is it ? I also am still unsure if he is a boy or a girl, he used to have a blue cere, then it went brown, but as you can see from this photo it's got a bit of blue again :/ his cere always looks like it needs scraping or something... is this normal?!

Bit of blue cere:



Feathers missing above cere:

[Hezz]

Becca, regarding the loss of feathers above Minty's cere, well you can see he is in the middle of getting new feathers, and in that photo it does look as though some news ones are coming through. Don't be concerned too much about it; they should grow back and honestly, there isn't much you can do if they don't.

The cere is another issue altogether. You say he used to have a blue cere; was this a bright blue or a pale more baby-blue? This can be an important diagnostic tool. Unfortunately I don't have any good news ........ the cere on a cock can turn brown to resemble that of a hen (the crustiness of the cere is just what happens with hens when in condition as well, just leave it be) when they are not producing enough testosterone. Sometimes this happens if you have two cocks together and one takes on a dominant role, then the more submissive cock takes on the role of the hen, but this isn't going to be the case with Minty. Given his age, and the quality of his poops, the cere colour change, my thinking is going towards a testicular growth/tumour, unfortunately. Keep that vet appointment that you have made. I may be very wrong, and I hope for both your sakes that I am. I have lost a budgie to this type of thing, as there is very little that can be done. All I can offer is what I did to help Blue, my budgie, to the best of my ability, and a lot of that is what I have already mentioned. Bluey's kidneys and liver were enlarged due to being compromised by the internal growth, and while I could do very little about that, I did set out to help his liver cope as best as possible - this is where the liver detox supplements come into play.

skysmum is currently following a course that she found that possibly shrinks tumours in budgies; hopefully she will be able to let you know what this entails, if this is Minty's problem. Her fellow is an older bird as well, but with a lipoma (fatty tumour) which is different to a malignant tumour. skysmum, can you help us here, please??? I am sure you would be prepared to try almost anything to help Minty. Look after your little man, and I hope I am wrong and it is only a minor set-back that Minty is experiencing. Let us know how you are both getting on, and if there is anything else we can help with. xxx

[mintysowner]

Thanks so much for the reply Hezz. It was quite some time ago that Minty's cere was no longer a light blue but there is definitely some light blue starting to show through again - so not sure if he is actually just a she... so confusing. Obviously I hope it isn't a tumour but he really isn't too great today.. he's going up to his food bowl and looking at the seeds pretending to eat it and he seems confused, same with his drink, he's not wanting any drink now. He's fluffed up on his ladder with head in wing so I've put a cover half over his cage with a heat pad underneath it - I'm with him all the time so I'm watching him at all times to make sure he is ok and also not overheating. The avian vet can't see him until 31st October :-( and to be quite frank I'm not sure if he would even survive the trip because he is so easily stressed. I will see how he goes and hope he picks up on the eating and drinking front (got the probiotics in the water). Would a normal vets be able to do much for him? I did contact our local one before and they've said they don't have much experience of birds but would be happy to see him... thanks again for all of the replies x

[starlingqueen]

In the last picture I can just see his feet. They look a bit crusty, can you post a clearer picture of them?
I think he may be a she and the large poop looks like one a hen would produce before laying an egg. If she is in breeding condition she could possibly have an egg in transit or even stuck. Does her bottom look enlarged?

[mintysowner]

Hi Starlingqueen - I will try to get a photo soon but he's (she) isn't good right now so don't want to disturb him. Now and then he keeps wanting to itch/prune his bottom but can't seem to?? :/ (not explaining it v well!). I don't believe his (her) bottom is enlarged no.. it's like he doesn't quite know what to do with himself at the mo, keeps pretending to eat then looking confused. Could a 10 year old budgie still produce an egg then? Thanks for your reply x

[mintysowner]

He also had been straining when passing a poo - it was foresty green colour and now it's a pale green, sometimes just pure water he is passing x

[starlingqueen]

Yes a 10 year old can lay eggs. If she is straining it could be she's trying to pass an egg. An egg bound hen will not eat. I would take her to any vet available as if there is an egg stuck it will be slowly poisoning her system and killing her slowly.

[milliej]

Now this may seem like a really stupid question but .....can hens (or female budgies) lay eggs if there's no male (I've heard some chickens can?) or was someone having me on

[mintysowner]

Oct 20, 2014 15:38:32 GMT starlingqueen said:

Yes a 10 year old can lay eggs. If she is straining it could be she's trying to pass an egg. An egg bound hen will not eat. I would take her to any vet available as if there is an egg stuck it will be slowly poisoning her system and killing her slowly.

Thanks so much - I've felt him (her!) but felt a pea sized lump?? Either way I've rung the avian vet for advice and just waiting for them to call me back. I don't think he'll make the 1 & half hour journey to see the avian vet but hopefully will be able to get him into our local one. Will let you know what the avian vet says - v concerned :-(