Hi all, today i took my amazon Charlie to the vet as he was very poorly the vet said he was having convulions and advised to put him down which i reluctantly agreed to.

Last nite i noticed Charlie didnt look well, he was just sat on the perch with his eyes half closed and lookes like he had no energy at all. This morning when checking on Charlie he looked worse his wings were slightly parted, his eyes were closed and he was rocking slighty as if he could fall off the perch at any time. I rang the vets who said they would meet me there. On the way to the vets Charlie very carefully lowered himself off the perch onto the floor of his cage where he remained put was still breathing. For the last month i have noticed that Charlie’s eyesight had deterioted.

Can anyone please suggest what could have been wrong with Charlie?

Hi Dawn,

Thank you for your note and sorry to hear about your difficulties with Charlie. I am sorry for your loss.

I am not a veterinarian and can only offer you my comments based on many years of keeping birds. From what you have mentioned it is very difficult to know exactly what was wrong with Charlie as the symptoms could be applicable to any number of health-related concerns. The cause could possibly be related to the Charlie’s nutrition, his environment, a disease, toxicity or a number of other causes.  In my experience, birds that have been ailing for some time will look and act in a manner similar to what you have described, regardless of the cause.  In circumstances such as this, where no immediate cause was apparent (such as an injury, etc.) I have always requested that the veterinarian that I work with conduct a thorough post-mortem on the bird to determine the exact cause of death. As i have often kept several birds at once, I do this to ensure that the cause of death was not contagious or something that could occur in the others. Not all veterinarians are qualified avian vets, and therefor their understanding of bird related diseases will vary considerably. Wherever possible, I try to work with qualified vets and consult with them as soon as any birds are showing any sign of illness.

I hope that you may find some answers soon.

Sincerely,
Steve-