Ask An Expert: Dr. Brian Speer, DVM

Answered by Dr. Brian Speer, DVM:

Any direct or indirect contact with feline saliva and your bird, including feathers-only, should be followed by immediate veterinary physical examination and probably broad spectrum antibacterial treatment. At this point in time, if your bird is alive, you are fortunate and have dodged the bullet this time. Pasturella multocida infection and sepsis is a very very nasty problem when it happens, and I would advise that if there is another event in the future you immediately contact your local veterinarian for assistance.

Answered by Dr. Brian Speer, DVM:

Car motion sickness can cause regurgitation in parrots. However, your bird is 19 years of age, and I would most definitely recommend a proper physical examination and diagnostic foundational workup if this is not current at present time.

Answered by Dr. Brian Speer, DVM:

Ideally, a pet parrot should be purchased fully weaned. With this, many of the health risks and behavioral problems that are encountered with the purchase of an unweaned bird can be avoided. Assuming that you are using a wet formula for handfeeding that is commercially manufactured, the same company should have a pelletized product available in your area. The diet you mentioned seems to be quite high in emphasized fruits, whereas we will generally recommend a combination of a commercially manufactured pellet with vegetables as the primary base. Cheese is generally not recommended as a daily portion of most parrot diets. In the absence of available commercially manufactured diets in your country, low-fat content seed mixtures, combined with vegetable material may be a somewhat acceptable base.

Young parrot chicks, particularly when not fully weaned, should pass more urine than their adult conterparts. During the weaning process, it is advisable to offer a variety of the food items that we are teaching the bird to eat on a large flat plate, and to forage with the birds while they are exploring their environment and social interactions with you. Afterwards, offer a small amount of handfeeding formula, if the bird desires.

Answered by Dr. Brian Speer, DVM:

It sounds like you have done some good things for this bird's life.

The clinical signs you describe: Polyuria and polydypsia (increased urinary output and increased water consumption) can be potentially meaningful. When you had your veterinarian examine this bird and run some baseline laboratory values, what was seen? Some hepatic functional and/or renal functional disorders can be seen with these clinical signs, and they also can be seen sometimes for merely behavioral reasons. If diagnosed and treated appropriately in a reasonable timeframe, most conditions associated with causation of polyuria and polydypsea can be managed if not resolved, medically.

Your diet should be improved, however. With the still persistent diet containing primarily fruits (lots of simple sugars) and nuts, this bird is being bombarded with excessive energy in its diet, which can and will lead to a myriad of longer term medical problems, including but not limted to obesity, liver problems, cardiovascular disease, some kidney problems, etc. I would suggest that the diet be shifted to a predominately formulated base, with vegetable materials and limited fruits or seed as a general outline. Seed / nuts - if made available, should be used as environmental enrichments and positive reinforcers for additional behaivors, not simply dropped into the bird's food bowl.

Answered by Dr. Brian Speer, DVM:

Theoretically, the dust could be contributing to the problem, although I would be doubtful if the dust you describe is the primary causation here. Air filtration may help remove dust, and if dust is a contributor, may help reduce the frequency of flare-ups of the symptoms you describe. Other than the costs involved in purchase and setup of a filtration machnine plus the delay in time for diagnosis should there be other medical issues involved, there should be no direct harm posed by your proposed approach.

Answered by Dr. Brian Speer, DVM:

In experienced hands, a nasal flush should pose no significant risk to a cockatiel as compared to a larger bird. The purpose and therapeutic merit of such a procedure, of course, needs to be balanced with a good understanding of the systemic health status of the bird, its nutritional health, and the potential purpose / merits of the procedure.

Answered by Dr. Brian Speer, DVM:

Without physically evaluating your bird, it would be impossible to factually comment on what the causes of your observations are. There may be stressor(s) in the aviary environment generating anxiety, there could be environmental irritants that have a role in the augmentation of clinical signs, or there could be subclinical disease that is initially manifesting in this manner. Best recommendation: A good physical examination by an experienced and qualified avian veterinarian to rule out the latter categories, and narrow down the potential considerations of causation that remain.

Answered by Dr. Brian Speer, DVM:

Yes, there are many things to worry about. From your description, and considering the age of your bird, a good physical examination by an experienced avian veterinarian is a very good idea.