Sick Canary?????

[krazy4birds]

Harley....my 5 yr. old Canary (at least when I got him in 2001 they said he was 1 yr.old but they were not reliable sources) is not acting himself. He is eating and drinking good and he was singing for a short time yesterday, but he seems to sit alot more than normal and acts like he is cold. I know he's not because where he is at is one of the warmest spots in the whole house. He will sit at the end of his perch by the bars of his cage and fluffs up real big and I know that is not a good sign. My avian vet is gone right now so that is no help. For those of you who don't know this, I live in a very very rural area where even to go to my vet is 180 miles round trip so based on that you realize my options to find a different vet are slim to none. Our cats vet is nearby but I have no idea how much bird knowledge she has. I am putting vitamins in his water and putting a cover over part of his cage during the day and all the way over it for the night. I don't know what else to do if there is anything. Just thought I would post this to see if anybody has any ideas on what to do. :(

[jonesy zoo]

Ok this is what I do when I have a bird that is off colour...Wet a towel & ring it out so it is damp (ie not dripping). Place the bird in the tank & drape the towel over the top of the tank so the tank is completely covered. Direct a desk lamp down onto the towel so the heat from the light warms the damp towel & humidifies and heat the tank

hope this works

[jonesy zoo]

also if you dont have a fish tank spare a plastic storage bin is ok what we are trying to do is create something like a humidifier...so all it needs to be able to do is old heat also put in seed and water....

[krazy4birds]

I will try this today....Thanks

[Snow]

I really do not think that the damp towel is the best idea in this case.

When a bird is fluffed it mean it is trying to insulate itself and keep the heat and warmth in. The humidifier if you have one would be a good idea though.

Remember when they start getting fluffed and not eating, lose their balance, look and act sleepy all the time, are not interested in playing, you need a VET involved it does not take long without treatment from this stage for a bird to succumb to whatever the illness this is, with treatment from a VET your bird has a chance of pulling out of the infection. Any and all of the above signs indicate YOUR bird is SICK. Any of these are a sign the bird is ill.

What you might want to do about the VET is talk to the Avian VET that is so far away and to the VET that is local see if they will do a phone consult with each other to go over results and tests. I can tell you what tests you need to have the VET run. You need a CBC, a gram stain, a fecal, a culture, and for good measure I would throw in a metal panel. The test results are actully very easy to read as they give what the high and low normal is on the sheet that comes back and what the # is to each test that came up with each item for you bird. As for the meds they need to give you this may be where the phone consult is needed with the Avian vet.

Some sites on ill birds things to look for
http://home.ca.inter.net/~dhansen/dropping.html
http://www.geocities.com/operaghost88/sick.html#gia

Have you checked the droppings of the bird??
Are they loose, runny, watery looking??
If so then your bird has an infection and needs to see a VET.

Keep in mind that when a bird starts to get like this then they have been sick for sometime. NO matter how WARM it may be in the area you have the bird in, this may not be how the bird got ill.

Bacterica in the water, something unclean about the cage, eating some food that was spoiled even seed that has been around to long are all ways that a bird can become ill. A slight draft can cause this also.

Think like this when you are ill you want to sleep, stay warm, and usually do not want to eat.

What you can do for the moment til you get to the VET

Take the cage you have your bird in put a towel around it with a area to get fresh air. Then take a towel wrap it around a heating pad on high place it under the cage. Lower all the perches so the bird is near the heat, the fluffing up is trying to give itself heat and keep its self-warm. Make sure the bird has access to food and water; move them down to the birds level if they are usually up high.

Stay away from meds that go in the water as 9 out of 10 times it will detour them from drinking the water they need cause the taste is awful. Things added to the water can be a bit on the bitter side and a big turn off for the birds to drink.

If it must go in the water you can try to mask it with a bit of Orange Tang this will help your gamble some that the bird will drink a bit more then before but it is a 50/50 chance unless your bird was brought up drinking things other then water.

I would measure the amount of comsuption of the water your bird may drink since if this is added in, barring of course any bathing they may do out of the water dish.
Not only this what if you are giving the bird the completely wrong meds for this then you could be harming instead of helping.

Be careful also cause some drugs will cause bad side effects.

DO NOT allow the VET to give your bird BAYTRIL/CIPRO as this can either give your bird bad side effects (like respiratory system problems) or kill your bird ask for OTHER ALTERNATIVES. A vet that offers BAYTRIL/CIPRO to me is not a VET worth going to. DO NOT be afraid to ask what the VET is doing and why!!

Although this drug is a wide spectrum antibiotic it is also one of the that I know that has killed and brought on many bad side effects that birds will live with the rest of their lives after using this drug.

Hope some of this can be of some help to you.

[krazy4birds]

Got an update....I already did the recomendation from jonesy before I read your post snow. And it did help.....he was acting better and was singing more than he had been.

I had stated that my avian vet was gone.....like not in his office. If he had been there then I would have already been there and back. His secretary said he was gone due to family issues??? I hope he comes back...LOL......anyway my point here was there was no one for my cats vet to confir with on the phone. Harley has never stopped eating and his appetite is really good. He is drinking water too but I will keep a measurment on it tomorrow. I have kept an eye on his poop too and it is normal. When he sits still though he still puffs up like he is trying to keep warm...so I put a heavier cloth over him tonight and will see how tomorrow goes.
Thanks to everyone for their help :)

[jonesy zoo]

Wonderful....I know Snow doesn't agree with the wet towel over the tank but all I can say that it has always worked for me and let me tell you I have had people deliver some very sick birds to me and this has saved them....the way I always try to help people is with things they can use at home. something that will help the bird until they can get to theirvet...but each to his/her own...

[krazy4birds]

I think we have made great headway here with Harley!!! He took a bath in his water cup today :D That is very very good.....I think we are on the mind :)

[jonesy zoo]

thats is wonderful news...very happy that Harley is on the mend

[Frankie]

Ok this is what I do when I have a bird that is off colour...Wet a towel & ring it out so it is damp (ie not dripping). Place the bird in the tank & drape the towel over the top of the tank so the tank is completely covered. Direct a desk lamp down onto the towel so the heat from the light warms the damp towel & humidifies and heat the tank

hope this works


Hi jonesy, I am glad I came across this site and your words. My 7 year ols Canary became sick yesterday, and not having a vet close by that handles exotics, I took your advise about the wet towel. My bird has similiar symptions as "krazy's", and I'm hoping my little girl comes through the same. Thanks for posting this, and again, wanted to say that i'm glad I found this forum.
-Frankie

[kipe]

hi sorryfor my english, i have a canary bird and he now is becoming sick, his head is pluming, and i dont know some medicine that he needs, before 1 week he was good and now he eats but the head is still pluming,,becoming big,and his eays are not good are with teers almost all the timei m waiting some answer. thank you.sr albania

[LadyLynn]

Kipie, if you have an Avian vet, hopefully certified, please take your canary in as soon as possible, don't wait.

I think your bird may have a disease. I can't remember the name of it, it's complicated to spell, it's something like psetti, I'm sure Macawpowers58, or Dlaura may know for sure the proper spelling

but the chances for it to live are slim if it isn't taken care of it immediately.


a qualified vet can probably properly diagnose your bird, and treat it with the medicine that it needs.

Good luck to you in Albania

[sunny11]

Hi there, I have a wee canary, over the last week or so ive noticed he is spending alot more time on the bottom of the cage, sleeping heaps and is no longer blessing us with his pretty tunes. He IS eating fine,drinking too. He does puff himself up regularly as well. I know that I sould take him to vet but is this something that will pass?? :rolleyes: I have two babies & so finances are a tad tight to spend on him at the moment..?! :eek: Please help if you have any HOME REMEDIES!!! :confused: THanks so much

[LadyLynn]

unfortunately, there is no home remedy. Not taking your bird to your trusted Avian certified vet is putting his life literally at risk

call your vet to see if he/she will make some financial arrangements with you. If not keep calling others.

There are a number of us on limited incomes, and some with more than two birds......

Most home remdies are very risky as it is.

good luck.