cockatiel advice please help

[sophiebabez888]

Hi i have a cockatiel who has been sneezing and finding it hard to breath through his nostrils and has to keep his beak open in order to breath. i think he caught a chill so i took him to the vet and they gave him ornicure which i beleive is doxycycline the antibiotic. He has it in his water but has not improved much after 5 days. I have moved him near a heater where it is very warm.If i take him to the avian vet is there anything different they can do? i do think it is a respiritatoy infection. He is eating, drinking and playing fine but he does sleep more and his breathing is very heavy. I am very worried about him and dont want to lose him.I am hoping he will recover by the time he has finished the antibiotics. Please help. Thank you

[sophiebabez888]

yeh. i dont think i will be getting another one. he cannot b replaced he had so much personality and its like losing your best friend. the house is so quiet i can hardli believe hes gone :(
thanks for all your help and advice :)

[ireneo]

It's true psittacosis can be passed on but so can many others like salmonella, coccidia, candida and campylobacter (I had that one, no fun). Just because you don't get it doesn't mean the animal doesn't have it. I deal with sick animals all the time and have been fortunate not to get sick (except that one time). Mostly, be careful if you want to get another bird. Wait a few weeks, bleach the cage or better yet, get a new one. Give yourself time to get past this.

[sophiebabez888]

i kno iv buried him now though. That disease you mentioned is passed on to human though? noone is ill in our house and hes been porely 3 weeks and probably more due to birds masking their symtoms.
his nostril had blood in when he died. not sure what that was maybe he banged it not sure. .
jacko is actually a girl but we didnt know until 2 years after getting him so we never changed his name. Sounds funny saying 'he' but he layed eggs for a while. i read somthing about egg binding and that eggs can become stuck inside. do you think it could be anything related to that as not layed any for ages.
its all happened so fast im so sad

[ireneo]

I'm so sorry it ended this way. You could still take him in for a necropsy to find out what was going on. It would be helpful to know especially if you're thinking about getting another bird. It's good to know what he had so you can disinfect properly. Years ago we had an outbreak of psittacosis and that was a very bad mess not to mention heart breaking.

Take care.  Irene

[sophiebabez888]

hi my jacko passed away on the way to the vet :( he died in my hands. ~He was gasping for breath. i believe the trauma killed him as he paniced. I am so sad hes was such a brilliant bird. i will never know what was wrong with him. i think his lungs gave in. i wil never forget him. thanks for all your help. my mum thinks the vet would have put him to sleep when we arrived but im glad he died with me. i think he may have waited he held on so much. bless him x
thanks again

[ireneo]

True - if he's not feeling good, he needs to be kept warmer. Green poop could be a sign of parasites or starvation. You mentioned that he's still eating but it's hard to say if he's getting enough calories each day, especially during his illness. Let us know what you find out on Friday....

[sophiebabez888]

yes im taking him to the avian vet on friday this is he only opportunity i have for transport there. i have an old budgie cage to take him in which is loads smaller. he is looking better tonight eating and driking still but green poop?
i av no choice but to keep him warm i obiovusly have no access to incubators and its either keeping him warm or leaving him cold. id rather he be warm to be honest.

[ireneo]

OK, I sent a brief note to your question on the birds forum but I'm very concerned about your cockatiel. No, it isn't a good idea to use saline drops on him. He's having trouble breathing as it is and could very easily aspirate the drops as they trickle through. Again, keeping him warm without extra humidity is a concern. When I put a bird in an incubator on a lower temp like 75, I still make sure there's water to humidify the enclosure.

I understand your concern about the car trip to the avian vet and the stress it might cause but I'd say he's pretty miserable and stressed now. You can put him in a covered cage or a box to reduce the stress and transport him. He should be checked for fungal infections as well as parasites that can affect his throat and ability to breathe.

[sophiebabez888]

do you think i could use normal saline drops on him? to help his stuffy nose. ?

[ireneo]

OK then. Here's hoping. . . .

[sophiebabez888]

hi. yeh if they swabbed and found it was a respiritory infection i heard they jst give antibiotics anyway and hes already on them. he seems better near the heater and is drinking fine so keeping dehydrated. I have been reading up and if your cockatiel is not eating and always at the bottom of the cage then its time to worry. but as i said he is eating drikin and playing fine. Im hoping he will just kick it off after some heat and rest.

[ireneo]

I think it's time for an avian vet to take a look. Bird physiology is quite different because of all their air sacs and respiratory system is so different from cats and dogs. Did you know birds have no diaphragm? Anyway, see about contacting an avian vet tomorrow. They may want to examine the choanal slit and swab it for testing (the slit in the roof of the mouth).

[sophiebabez888]

no they didnt do swab tests. she just said that it could b bacterial, fungal or somthin else and she could only do the basics for him by givin him antibiotics. if he doesnt get better then go see an avian vet. but im not sure what they would do.
i dont kno what to do for the best. :(

[ireneo]

Just wondering - did the vet do a swab to check for fungal infections too? I don't know if keeping him near the heat is the best since that would dry out the air around him. When we put a bird in an incubator to stay warm, we also make sure we keep the humidity up to avoid dehydration. Then again, that is in the case of a debilitated animal. Just rambling...