A Detailed Guide to Common Diseases of Budgerigars and Their Prevention and Treatment
The budgerigar is the most common pet bird in the world today. It has a gentle and fairly lively temperament, is relatively easy to tame, and nowadays people are pursuing a high quality of life. Keeping a budgerigar has naturally become the goal of many people, which has indirectly driven the development of budgerigar breeding projects. This can also be regarded as an emerging breeding project. Many friends do not know how to raise them, nor what diseases may occur, and even less what to do when they get sick. So below we introduce several common diseases and their prevention and treatment measures.
1. Colds
Colds are mainly caused by failure to take windproof and heat-preservation measures during the breeding process, so the parrot catches a chill. However, in recent years research has found that viruses can also cause colds in parrots. After catching a cold, the sick bird appears listless and dispirited, losing its usual vitality, standing still and breathing loudly and rapidly; with a severe cold, the nostrils become blocked by mucus, causing the parrot to breathe with its mouth open. Once sick, the bird should immediately be placed in a warm place to prevent it from being exposed to cold wind again and worsening the condition. Add an appropriate amount of egg yolk powder to the feed, add long-acting sulfonamide to the water, and if the nostrils are blocked, the mucus can be manually removed so that it can breathe normally.
2. Pneumonia
Pneumonia is mainly caused by failure to promptly deal with the sick bird after it catches a cold, so the sick bird is further exposed to cold wind and is not kept warm in time, which allows the cold to develop further into pneumonia. After onset, the parrot seems dazed, stares blankly, and tucks its head under its wing. Its body rises and falls with its breathing, its appetite is extremely low, and the mortality rate is also extremely high. When it has a cold, the sick bird should be moved to a warm environment to avoid further exposure to wind and cold. Feed the parrot glucose water, add an appropriate amount of oxytetracycline to the glucose water, twice a day, for one week as a course of treatment.
3. Enteritis
Enteritis is mainly caused by feed and water. Feeding parrots spoiled feed and water contaminates their stomach and intestines. After a parrot develops enteritis, it begins to appear listless. It defecates from time to time, and the droppings appear sticky, sometimes sticking near the cloaca; in severe cases the droppings may contain blood, and the sick bird's body rapidly becomes thin, with its weight dropping sharply. Do not give moldy feed or spoiled water to parrots. Change the water and feed frequently every day, and disinfect the containers daily as well. The water should be boiled water that has been cooled. For milder cases, an appropriate amount of medicinal charcoal tablet powder can be added to the water; for more severe cases, furazolidone should be added. In summer, black tea can be used instead of water to reduce the incidence rate.
4. Constipation
Long-term lack of fatty feed and fruit-and-vegetable feed, or failure to supply water in time, and some other reasons can all trigger constipation in parrots. Before onset, the sick bird's droppings are very dry and hard, and its feathers are also very loose. It is restless, irritable and cries randomly, and makes defecation movements but no droppings come out. A parrot's diet must be balanced to ensure that all needed substances are in place. If constipation occurs, a little vegetable oil can be dripped directly; if the condition is severe, an enema should be performed as an emergency measure.
These four are the most common diseases of parrots. The most dangerous is still pneumonia, which requires special attention. When severe, pneumonia can cause budgerigars to die directly, without giving any chance for treatment. Of course, these are not the only diseases; there are also conditions such as food stagnation and obesity. All diseases have a great impact on parrots, and if not treated properly, the consequences can be relatively serious. This article is for reference only, and we hope this article from the editor is helpful to everyone.