Sickly Budgie

[LydiaMinx]

I took in a budgie around a month ago that is constantly sickly. He has all flight feather missing on one wing that are slowly regrowing and he was very thin but is now gaining weight.

He is totally wild so flips out if I go near his cage, and this is what is confusing me.

I've noticed recently his tail bobs constantly, more so then my other budgies (housed separately), seemingly with each breath. He also sometimes clicks, but very rarely. However I have to be very close to notice either of these things, so I am puzzled as to whether its an infection or mites or if he is simply still terrified of me being close to him.

Since getting him I have been giving him mutli vit/mineral drops.

I don't have the money to take him 30 miles to the nearest avian vet, so any help is gratefully accepted!

[BudgiesBuddy]

Check the Budgie Taming section. You will have to be patient and persistence to make him firendly.

I'll ask Barrie to advise about the other issue.

[Bird Junky]

Hi You make no mention of his normal diet. If he's getting
the right stuff. Additives shouldn't be needed....B.J.

B.J's. BIRDS AFRAID OF PEOPLE.

Your birds future home should be made ready. Half the cage top, the back & both sides should be covered with a dark towel. They also prefer a cage against a wall or in a corner of a room, allow a couple of days for your bird to settle down. Such fearful birds do not like to be looked at through the cage top, keep down
to their level & don't make direct eye contact like a predator.

Provide a basic seed mix, water, iodine block & cuttlebone.
All other foods that birds enjoy, ie, fruit, veg, hard boiled egg, nuts, biscuit etc..Can be used as treat food & are used in the taming, training process.

Once you know which treats are your birds favourites, note these to be used later as special training treats.
Feed the treat foods one at a time in small portions, by placing them on the top of the cage.
You should then retire to a distance your bird is comfortable with. This will allow him to settle down & eat.
At each treat feed, sit a little closer, read or watch TV while he eats. Take your time, the closer you get, the longer you give him to get used to it. Change the type of treat at each visit so your bird gets a good mix.
The smaller the treat portions, the more often the visits. ,This will show your bird that your visits, mean nice things to eat.

Don't allow yourself to get impatient your bird, he will sense this & will react accordingly..

When the time finally arrives, that you can sit quietly by his cage as he eats his treat food your can offer him treat foods through the bars. If this scares him use tweezers or chopsticks for a few feeds. Then try again feeding by hand. When finally he's happy to eat from your fingers, your both ready next step in this bonding process.
From now on talk softly to your bird at every opportunity.

When hand feeding treats inside the cage use a hanky fixed to the bar above the door with two clothes pegs to act as a safety curtain to prevent your bird escaping via the open door.
Offer him a favourite treat food by holding a small piece between your finger & thumb so your bird can reach it.
If he appears in anyway disturbed. Remove your hand & allow him to calm down.
Your aim is to build up a strong bond of friendship & trust between you.
After a day or two of successful hand feeding. Your bird should be ready for step-up..
For their own safety birds should be confined to their cages until step-up has been mastered.
Chasing & catching a bird can undermine any bond built up between an owner & bird......B.J.

[LydiaMinx]

He only eats seed mix, I rescued him and he obviously hasn't been given fresh food before because he is terrified of it but I will keep trying and he does have a cuttlefish bone and iodine block but thus far hasn't touched them.

I was told he was about 3 years old and has clearly had no previous good care but I will continue to try to tame him without scaring him too much!

[LydiaMinx]

Does anybody know if one box of Beaphars Budgie Anti Parasite spot on is enough for two budgies? I want to treat all 3 of mine just incase he does have Air Sac Mites

[BudgiesBuddy]

Do you already have it?

I would prefer Ivermectin 0.1

[LydiaMinx]

I will buy some for future purposes and does anyone know how long it takes for Ivermectin to work to kill air sac mites? I applied it last night to the back of his neck and now he just has greasy looking feathers but no improvement

[BudgiesBuddy]

Preventive dosage is every six months.
Treatment in case of mites is different. Normally 3 dosages after every 7 days, more depending upon the condition, if not cured. Follow the instructions on the box.

[eve]

Nov 29, 2012 12:17:30 GMT LydiaMinx said:

He only eats seed mix, I rescued him and he obviously hasn't been given fresh food before because he is terrified of it but I will keep trying and he does have a cuttlefish bone and iodine block but thus far hasn't touched them.

I was told he was about 3 years old and has clearly had no previous good care but I will continue to try to tame him without scaring him too much!

Lydia, I had much the same problem about three years ago with a budgie my husband found in a field......he was a baby, almost dead, but terrified.

What i did was that while talking softly in a high-pitched voice, which all animals respond well to, I backed up to the cage rather than to approach it in the normal way in order to not to frighten him more (this approach works for many animals that are fearful of people) , put a chair next to the cage, and then I would read to him.
Several times a day, at length.
At first, I never looked at him directly. Just walked backwards, read to him, and then I would tell him I was through and would leave. When I came back to do it again, I would announce from another room that I was coming so as to not startle him.
This went on for weeks until he finally settled down. He even seemed to look forward to it and began running up/down his perch, acting silly and knocking his beak on objects inside the cage.
I also ate snacks/drank coffee while sitting in the chair next to the cage, talking softly to him.
He responded well to all of this.
( Eventually, with work and patience we did get him to be fingertamed (about 3 mos) and was even talking (had quite a vocabulary)......but only in the cage, but he was too terrified to get out of the cage d/t all of whatever he went through before he was found. He was talking and playing by himself, but I wanted him to have a family. If it couldn't be us, then other birds. So, I rehomed more budgies. 7 in total. This is an old story for those that know me/LB from the previous site.)

Anyhow, long story, short. That method of backing up to him and then reading to him helped him calm down and accept human companionship.

[LydiaMinx]

I will definitely try that technique, thank you! He doesn't seem so scared by me being close to him as he was before, but has been a bit withdrawn since I noticed the tail bobbing and clicking, poor Edmund

I've used one pipette (10ug/0.01mg) of Beaphar Anti Parasite Spot on for Small birds with Ivermectin on the nape of his neck as one pipette was all that was recommended, is that enough to wipe out Air sac mites fully? It says it can be re-applied in 4 weeks and that's about all it says that's helpful, but I'm worried he will worsen in that time if it doesn't work.

I can still hear the clicking from across the room, so can the second pipette be safely applied to guarantee the mites are wiped out?

Also, if the given dosage is enough will it still work properly if it gets on his feathers too? I know I asked above but its haunting me! I'm so worried it wont work.

Sorry for all the questions guys, I've had my pair for 5 years and thankfully nothing has gone wrong so I've never really had to look into dosages and the like! Thanks so much for all the help so far

[eve]

The tail bobbing is definitely a sign of some kind of illness going on. The clicking sounds sure seems to be a sign of air sac mites or other respiratory problems.

Barrie sure is a good source of advice there. Sounds like you may have already gotten some advice, but here is some more advice for air sac mites:
www.officialbarrieshuttbudgerigars.com/airsacmites.htm

[Hezz]

The spot-on needs to be applied to the skin of his crop, Lydia, not the back of his neck, for airsac mites. I wouldn't have thought airsac mites would be able to be heard across the room though. BUT I have not had the dubious pleasure of these little greebles.

Two of mine would make a clicking sound with their beaks when I first started to get them finger-tame and they were still at the skitty stage. It may be worth just observing Edmund (without staring at him and seeing if it isn't something similar. Also don't forget the blinking with him. I usually close my eyes up and just squint at them when they are scared - so I can just see. Also try clicking back to him when you are near him - quiet litle noises similar to what he is making can make them feel more at home.

I am not disregarding the tail-bobbing, but without a vets consult, I wouldn't even think to tell you what is going on. Good luck with little Edmund.

[LydiaMinx]

It did specify to apply to the nape of the neck, although I will apply the second treatment to the crop in 2 weeks time, it does make more sense! And the only reason I suspect the tail bobbing is connected is because it is in perfect tandem with breathing and had become more pronouned as the clicking has grown louder along with a much more visible heaving chest, however I will see if this treatment works and if not I will take him to the vet Fingers crossed it does work, poor guy needs a break! One reason Air sac mites are a definite for me is that before I rehomed him here he was housed with finches, who probably hadn't been treated for mites - ever!

And yes I will try the squinting next time I'm close to his cage Thank you

[Hezz]

Yes spot-on is generally applied to the back of the neck. But for air sac mites (apparently) it is more effective if applied to the specific area of the crop. The recommendation I have been given for mite treatment was to treat every week, not two weeks apart. I am wondering what everyone else would do for air sac mites. I would be giving him another dose within a week, especially if the clicking is getting worse. I would be worried that two weeks would be too long ..........

[LydiaMinx]

That's exactly what I'm worried about too, I just don't want to risk an overdose! Although I think the amount in one pippette was relatively low so applying a second in a week should be ok, and this time I will try the crop to make sure it works as fast as it can Thanks for the information on that, fingers crossed it works better!