Has my budgie got a respiratory infection?

[laurat]

Yesterday evening, after not having budgies for a couple of years, I went out and bought two new budgies from a man who had bred them and kept them outside in a shed and who had not tamed them.
When I got back home and put them in the new cage I had set up for them, I left the two sweeties on their own for just under an hour because I could tell they were a little stressed from the car journey and the big change. But when I came back to check on them and have a look, I noticed one of them (when looking at him from the front) had his wings out not against his body, he was breathing pretty heavily and he was making a sort of 'tapping' noise also his eyes kept shutting.
I thought maybe he was just a bit overwhelmed by it all, but it did seem odd because the other one was settling in okay, I kept them in my room last night and on and off through the night I could hear him making the same tapping noise! I Really hope he isnt ill!

If anyone knows what this is and how to treat it, please let me know so i can make him better asap!!!


Update: Now the other one is breathing a little funny, its like hes breathing through his mouth? his beak keeps opening everytime he takes a breath? what could this be? i dont remember my old ones doing that. Please can someone reply with some help!

[starlingqueen]

How warm is the room they are in? They could be hot. If they have been outside and are suddenly in a warm house the change could be hard for them. They have a winter coat on indoors. Try opening a window and see if thwy cool down.

[starlingqueen]

I always get so wrapped up in the question that I forget to say "welcome to the forum". Some pictures of your birds might help too.

[laurat]

I turned the radiator off in the room last night and kept the window open so they didn't get too hot. Maybe they are just too hot still? does it not sound like an illness to you? hopefully its not! thanks for the reply

I did try to change my picture to a photo of them but it said the picture was too large 

[starlingqueen]

It could possibly be an illness. But the combination of stress and being hot could be the cause. If you can eliminate that then see how they are. Can you cover the cage up a bit, maybe 3 sides to reduce what they can see, that could calm them down a bit. Give the breeder a call and see if he has any problems in his aviary.

[starlingqueen]

To upload a picture you have to use an image hosting site like photobucket and post the code here.

[laurat]

Yeah i'll half cover them with a towel and try and keep them a bit cooler then see how they get on from there. Thanks

[laurat]

just uploaded some pictures and a couple of videos of them!
s28.photobucket.com/user/laura_tanner1/library/?sort=3&page=1

[starlingqueen]

They look fine. The green one is very active which is a good sign. The blue one looks a bit more shy but he'll settle down. They are both boys. Have they got names?
The only thing I would watch is the one you said was clicking. Was it when he breathed? Keep an eye on it and if it continues or gets worse take him to a vet.
Can I also suggest you replace the sand sheet with newspaper. Sand sheets and sanded perch covers can cause bad foot problems, a condition called bumble foot that is very hard to treat and painful. Imaging if you were jumping around bare foot on sandpaper all day.

[Hezz]

I think the birds are fine. The tapping I have heard with new birds quite a lot; mostly as a nervous sort of thing. I think it is a kind of tapping of the beaks together. The ones I have heard this from have all been perfectly healthy. I think nothing to worry about.

Pretty birds too ..... I am going to say that; I have two very similar.

[omi2510]

Usually an irn makes a tapping/clicking sound by beak to warn you to keep distance or else he'd attack. My hand tame ring neck does that when not in the mood to be petted. So I guess is behavioral thing, not illness. Your birds may be dehydrated, use electrolytes for rehydration.

Also, provide them cuttlebone, natural rock salt, and calcium block. They seem healthy, but may not be in their best shape, that's why they are getting worked up pretty fast.

Sent from my C2105 using Tapatalk

[stace]

I think they are a bit freaked out by being in a new strange place. They've come from an aviary situation into a small cage, and it is probably scary for them.

Put some background music on for them, or the TV or something and talk gently to them when you are around them. Budgies don't like it when it's quiet. It makes them anxious as silence is an instinctive alert to them that a predator may be lurking around.