Hey all! I'm semi-new to these forums. I've previously owned 3 Quakers and I've left my own nest, gotten married, and we just added one to our collection of 8 animals about two months ago. I got him from the pet store I was working at (in hindsight - very bad idea).

About 3 weeks after I brought him home, his eyes closed. Not swollen - just closed. NO other symptoms of any kind of illness. My husband and I drove 3 hours to the nearest Avian vet, had $230 worth of procedures done on him, and they were all inconclusive. We were sent home with an antibiotic and nasal drops. They did NOTHING to help his eyes. Instead, he developed a nasal discharge (clear) out of his right nostril. The other is completely dry. We called the vet, they switched our antibiotic, and we've been on that for about 7 days now. Still no improvement.

The vet said it could be Chlymidia, but she really wasn't at all helpful. After doing thorough research on my own, I've developed a theory that maybe he has a Vitamin A deficiency. At the pet store, a week or so before I purchased Marty, we switched all of our birds from pellet diet to seed.

I went to PetSmart and bought what's called PRIME. It's a vitamin supplement LOADED with Vit. A! He's moving around his cage a lot more, and he's started to call for me when I leave the room.

Does anybody have experience with any of this? Any opinions? I'm very interested in what you all have to say.

A bird with vitamin A deficiency may show any of the following
symptoms:
sneezing,
wheezing,
nasal discharge,
crusted or plugged
nostrils,
unthriftiness lethargy,
depression,
diarrhea,
tail-bobbing,
thinness,
poor feather color,
swollen eyes,
ocular
discharge,
lack of appetite,
gagging,
foul-smelling breath and
"slimy mouth".

-----------------------------------

There are no specific signs that are characteristic of psittacosis (Chlymidia). Some birds may show general sick, symptoms-lack of appetite; weight loss; depression and listlessness; watery, green droppings; discharge from eyes or nares; or even sudden death.

I would call your vet back and ask him if he 'thinks' its chlamydia or what tests he did this article will explain it in depth as well as treatments etc...
If you have other birds in the home I def would quarantine this one from the flock.

http://www.avianbiotech.com/Diseases/Chlamydia.htm

I would use caution in using vitamin suppliments because some overuse of certain vitamins such as D can be toxic. Although your fid appears better it might be the antibiotics are actually working. I would def ask the vet about vitamin A all the same.

If your vet isnt willing to give you the answers you might need to find another vet. You could always get a copy from your old vet of tests performed and results to save you some money.

Good luck

If it were me and you've already tried him on two different antibiotics...I'd be going to a different vet or something...I'm no expert by any means but it sounds like psittacosis.

Though it could also be wasting disease Not having ever had to deal with that kind of thing...(Knock on WOOD) I really don't know, but if you have a veterinary school near by, I think I'd be having your vet send the test results and treatments done so far to them for a second opinion.

In the mean time, keep him warm, and keep him hydrated and even if you have to syringe feed him with baby formula, if he isn't eating I would.

Poor little guy, Please keep us posted on his condition and treatments.

One other thing, make sure when you are handling him or his dishes, or cleaning his cage ALWAYS wear a mask, and be sure to wash well and change your clothes after dealing with him as to not spread what ever it is to any other pet or person and especially yourself.

Another reason I'm so confused is because I'm always all over him, kissing him, letting him snuggle against my cheek, etc. I'm not sick. Neither is my husband - nor any of my 8 OTHER animals. He's eating just fine (gnawing on millet right now, actually) and his droppings are normal.

Did the vet do a test for psitticosis? It would have been a blood test that probably was sent away to a special lab. If she didn't test for it and told you it might be... I would look for a new vet.

A natural way to get high quality vitamin A into your bird's diet without resorting to a supplment, would be to put him on a sprouted seed diet. The one I use for Twiz is from China Prairie. This is live food and Twiz loves it! You have to do some work sprouting the seed but I think it's worth the effort.

Be sure to offer your bird plenty of fresh veggies too.

Sounds like you need to find a different vet. The symptoms sound very serious- he could die without proper treatment.

As for why your other animals aren't sick- I think I see in your profile that he's your only bird- which would explain it. Not all bird diseases are zoonotic (able to be passed to humans/other species) and even if they are, the symptoms might vary drastically.

You can still get Psittacosis from your QP if you're not careful... I would do as suggested above and start wearing a mask whenver you handle your bird or clean the cage. Symptoms can range from a light cold to full on pnemonia so you might feel fine but still have it. You might not be sick now, but think about how many people you pass during cold season that are sick - you don't catch a cold from every one of them, but every so often one of those germs sneaks through.

I would switch vets and have more testing done... if the vet you took your QP to isn't an avian vet then I would find an avian specialist to take them to.

A lot of cockatiels in petstores have Psittacosis so it wouldn't be that hard for a QP to catch it from them.

The only problem I have with going to the vet is that a) the CLOSEST and ONLY certified avian vet is 3 hours away.. I just went to her and she didn't help. and I always think (from past experience) that they're trying to scam me and have me pay for expensive, unneccisary tests.

Right now he's on top of his cage resting with one foot pulled up. No discharge since yesterday morning. It's been a good day for him

I may be wrong here, but I had one of my birds tested for psitticosis a couple years ago and if I remember right, they just had to swab her vent. Maybe you can get a kit and send it out to a lab yourself, although not sure as I've never done this. Just an idea if there aren't any vets close enough by.

Hope she continues to stay well
tikileahsmom

Hi Alemiszki. We are going through treatment now of our Champ his blood work came back at 13 percent Hemacrit one of the lowest red blood cell counts seen around this particular office I am told and is usually fatal.The Parrot Fever is treatable ,the problem with the eyes your bird is having could be a biproduct of the disease weakening another system.If you are having problems finding a vet the advertisements in Bird Talk carry a few lab sevices.Our doctor took swabs from the crop as well as anal and bloodwork.Champ is fighting hard but has had some blood in his stool. He is back at the vets tonight and seems have a good initial report Hemacrit is up to 42 percent and 48 to 50 is normal. I would think a vet practising farm medicine would also be of some help. Good luck and God Bless ....Bob and Cristy and CHAMP

Antibiotics usally start making a difference in about three days so after 3 days worth of antibiotics the bird should be showing some improvment.
I would ask your vet to take a sample of the discharge coming from the bird and run a study on it. That I think would show something as to what is going on . I work in a hospital and have so for over 20 years not a nurse but in the nursing department . Animals are not that much different than people .
I also would isolate the bird from the other pets in the house and wash your hand real good before touching the bird and when your done handling it so as not to take a chance of spreading to other animals just in case its something bad
I really hope the little guy gets better .