Post by anastasia on Feb 6, 2018 8:58:53 GMT
Hi guys, I'm excited and happy but also in a fluster to report my mum announced this morning she is bringing home ANOTHER bird from ANOTHER of her care home residents who can't keep them anymore - that's also how we got Biddy, my budgie and first and only pet bird, some of you might remember. This time it's an Indian Ringneck (at least, that's what she looks like from the photo - the man we're taking her from called her something else but I looked it up and there doesn't appear to be any such species name).
I'm currently on my way to work, and my mum is bringing the parrot, her enclosure, food etc. to our house early this afternoon, so I've got just hours in which to phone her with instructions re: introducing a bigger parrot species to a home that's already got a SICK budgie living in it.
Yes, Biddy still has respiratory symptoms that are still being treated with anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory medicine, and the vet still cannot give us a definitive diagnosis, we are just operating on the assumption that it's probably a fungal infection but might also involve plaques or something else. At the vet's instruction, I've obtained a nebuliser and nebuliser medicine, and am just awaiting the arrival of a plastic pet carrier I've ordered that has a convenient hole for a water bottle that I can put the nebuliser tube through. The plan is, if her symptoms don't go away after a course of nebulization, we have to decide if it's worth risky procedures like X-rays to get a diagnosis or if her quality of life isn't being impacted enough to justify putting her through it, and just carry on with the medicine regime indefinitely.
That's my number one concern right now - disease control. Can Biddy transfer whatever she has to a ringneck, or are they too different? The man has had the ringneck for only a few months, after getting her from a friend who sells birds - is that long enough for us to be confident she doesn't have any diseases herself that could be spread to Biddy?
If there is a risk of contagion, what measures do we need to take - is putting them in different rooms enough, or do we need to do more like wash our hands before entering and leaving the rooms they're in, avoid giving the new bird any of Biddy's old toys, or any other possibly necessary precaution I haven't thought of?
I have researched introducing birds to each other but this is a fairly specific situation - two different species, one with a known illness, the new bird having lived with somebody for months already without appearing ill - so I don't know how much of the generic advice is applicable.
Thank you very very much in advance, fingers crossed this will go well! :
I'm currently on my way to work, and my mum is bringing the parrot, her enclosure, food etc. to our house early this afternoon, so I've got just hours in which to phone her with instructions re: introducing a bigger parrot species to a home that's already got a SICK budgie living in it.
Yes, Biddy still has respiratory symptoms that are still being treated with anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory medicine, and the vet still cannot give us a definitive diagnosis, we are just operating on the assumption that it's probably a fungal infection but might also involve plaques or something else. At the vet's instruction, I've obtained a nebuliser and nebuliser medicine, and am just awaiting the arrival of a plastic pet carrier I've ordered that has a convenient hole for a water bottle that I can put the nebuliser tube through. The plan is, if her symptoms don't go away after a course of nebulization, we have to decide if it's worth risky procedures like X-rays to get a diagnosis or if her quality of life isn't being impacted enough to justify putting her through it, and just carry on with the medicine regime indefinitely.
That's my number one concern right now - disease control. Can Biddy transfer whatever she has to a ringneck, or are they too different? The man has had the ringneck for only a few months, after getting her from a friend who sells birds - is that long enough for us to be confident she doesn't have any diseases herself that could be spread to Biddy?
If there is a risk of contagion, what measures do we need to take - is putting them in different rooms enough, or do we need to do more like wash our hands before entering and leaving the rooms they're in, avoid giving the new bird any of Biddy's old toys, or any other possibly necessary precaution I haven't thought of?
I have researched introducing birds to each other but this is a fairly specific situation - two different species, one with a known illness, the new bird having lived with somebody for months already without appearing ill - so I don't know how much of the generic advice is applicable.
Thank you very very much in advance, fingers crossed this will go well! :
At least now I know what species to research for basic things like diet, lifespan and natural behaviour!
