This was not a good week!

[judy]

My new bird, Summer, had to be euthanized yesterday. I'm so sad for her.

I was putting water in their cage and she flew out. She wasn't flying very high at all, and landed on the floor. The dogs ran over and by the time I grabbed her, she was walking funny. This was on Saturday.

I decided to leave her alone and take her to the vet on Sunday if I had to. The stress of going to the vet might have been too much that day. I had to wait until Monday because my vet doesn't take birds. He sent me to a wonderful vet. She looked her over and she had a broken leg. She got a bandage, which acted like a cast. I separated her because the vet said she was very thin, and maybe Skye was dominating the food. I didn't think so because until I took her out, Skye did not leave her side.

I went out Tuesday and when I came home, hours later, she was on the floor with her beak caught in the bandage on her leg. I felt terrible for her. I was going to either mash up some food and water and syringe it into her mouth, she was so weak, or I was going to really overdose her on her pain medication and put her down.

She perked up though, and ate and drank, and I noticed that she was using the foot of the broken leg. What a little trooper!

I brought her in yesterday for a check up. The vet looked at her, her poop, and at how very thin she was and told me she had psittacosis. We discussed treatment, and I said, no - I don't want the poor bird to suffer any. The vet agreed. Most of the time, the meds don't work and the bird just wastes away.
I felt that she deserved a better ending than that. I held her for a while, and then they gave her a shot, and brought her body back to me in a little box.

I really am so sad. I spent about 7 days with her in the house, but gave her medicine and looked after her so much. I was so proud of her for not fussing over the bandage and eating and drinking, even though it was hard for her to get around. What a sweet, tiny little creature.

She wasn't meant to be here for very long, and I'm glad that I got to share some of that time with her.

Skye is very sad. She hasn't been singing since I took Summer out of her cage.

[Emmsmom]

Poor thing! I am sorry to hear about you new little one.
I think maybe you should find a new place to buy birds from.

[Marilyn]

Judy, so sad this is happening. :( Perhaps you should wait until after your move to get another bird. The stress of the move may affect them.

[judy]

I told the pet store bird expert. Now she's panicking because she took home a bird a few weeks ago! No more Petland birds! She's not buying any more either.

I found a breeder who is still getting eggs hatching. I don't know if the birds will be old enough to take home before I move.

Marilyn, I didn't think of the stress of the trip. Maybe I will wait. There are some bird rescue places upstate. Maybe if I get a bird that was strong enough to survive whatever it had to be rescued from, it will stay alive in my house!

[Gina]

Aww Judy I am sorry to hear this news about Summer poor little bird :( I agree with Marilyn wait until you move. I hope Skye cheers up..

[Tink]

Judy, I'm so sorry you've had such a tough time with your birds!
I hope things improve for yu after the move so you can enjoy your critters without all the worry.

[jrsygal37]

I told the pet store bird expert. Now she's panicking because she took home a bird a few weeks ago! No more Petland birds! She's not buying any more either.

I found a breeder who is still getting eggs hatching. I don't know if the birds will be old enough to take home before I move.

Marilyn, I didn't think of the stress of the trip. Maybe I will wait. There are some bird rescue places upstate. Maybe if I get a bird that was strong enough to survive whatever it had to be rescued from, it will stay alive in my house!

Hi Judy. I'm very sorry about your bird. What kind of bird was he or she? I have an umbrella cockatoo. I had always wanted one and for my 20th wedding anniversary my husband took me for a long drive where we pulled up to a house and I had not idea but he did. LOL. Out came Boo who proceeded to pull my sunglasses up and say hello. She's a little over 2 now. PLEASE DO NOT BUY a bird. I learned about buying and would never do it again. PLEASE got to a parrot/bird rescue. Just like puppy mills there are bird mills and this is why your little one was sick. Pet Stores get their birds from mills just as they do dogs. The bird mills are just as bad or worse then puppy mills. I hope you find a new healthy baby. Elaine

[Dobie]

I'm sorry about the new bird! I wonder if there could be some type of bug/virus in your cage that Skye is resistent to but it making the new birds sick.

[Janet]

Judy, I'm sorry you had to put Summer down. Your post is such a sad story. It makes me wonder about what the Vet said....about Skye eathing most of the food. Maybe that's what happened to the others...they just got weak and passed.

I t does sound like a good idea to wait until after you move to get another one. How much longer till you move? I hope Skye won't be too lonely until then.

All you wanted was to hear their beautiful songs....and you've had to endure all this. I'm sorry girlfriend.

[Mandy]

Awwwww no!!! I'm so sorry this happened Judy. You did all you could, she had a good life while she was with you.

Hugs!!!!

[DianaB]

Judy, I'm so sorry to hear that you had to put your new bird down. How sad.

I looked up what psittacosis is and I suggest that you throughly clean your cage with an antibacterial soap and keep a close eye on Skye. You may want to check out what the symptoms are so you'll know what to look for in Skye. If it's caught early then antibiotics can treat it. Again, I'm so sorry.

[judy]

Skye seems to be fine. The symptoms are pretty clear. The thing is, they either get the disease or are carriers. I don't think the other two had it. Their poop was fine. They weren't losing weight either. Those are the 2 main symptoms.

I am soaking the cage and some of the things I'm keeping in an antibacterial solution that is used by hospitals, and have Skye in a new cage. I threw out the toys. She's happier. I moved her to where she can see us a lot.

"PLEASE got to a parrot/bird rescue. Just like puppy mills there are bird mills and this is why your little one was sick. Pet Stores get their birds from mills just as they do dogs. The bird mills are just as bad or worse then puppy mills."

Elaine - you are so right! The woman who works at Petland told me not to buy from them for a few months. This batch is probably sick. The first thing I thought of was bird mills.

Thanks for your sympathy guys! I know who to come to! Again, I have learned
the lesson that love doesn't come free! It takes a lot of work.

[jrsygal37]

Judy I see you got your bird at Petland. Please, take a look at this. Elaine

http://www.petstorecruelty.org/index.html

[Emmsmom]

If you can adopt from a rescue it is a good thing. Altho just like with dog rescues certain conditions will apply. I looked into one bird rescue and found out that becuase I have dogs I wouldn't be able to adopt one. I bought our cockatiel from a local petshop that hand raises them. I saw Memphis when he was little and still being handfed. She was with her other brothers and sisters in a HUGE glass cage. The bottom was filled with shavings made for birds, tons of toys, and it was always clean! I think that you can buy a healthy bird from a petshop. You just have to be very careful when you do it.

[judy]

How awful! Thank you Elaine for letting me know!

I did some more reading, and it seems like I might have to put Skye on antibiotics for 45 days, although she isn't showing any symptoms. I'll call the vet on Monday.

Preventive measures
Once psittacosis has been diagnosed, it is important to treat the birds and their environment. Remember that healthy birds may be harbouring the bacteria as well. Treatment suggestions include:

Avoid unnecessary handling of sick birds.
Avoid breathing in any dust from dried bird droppings, feathers or cage dust.
Isolate sick birds from the rest of the flock.
Treat infected birds with appropriate antibiotics for at least one month.
Clean cages with appropriate disinfectants, since the bacteria can live for several months in shed feathers and droppings.
Wear masks and gloves while cleaning the cages to prevent infection.
Clean the cages regularly, using plenty of water to minimise the risk of floating dander.
Always wash hands thoroughly after tending to birds.

Skye is in a new cage, with new dishes and a disinfected swing. Their big cage has been disinfected and packed up. I won't take it out for a few months.

It's also contagious to dogs! This is really scary. Their symptoms would be:


Dogs

Cough
Fever
Lameness (what is lameness?


Humans can also catch it, but I would know if I got sick. It's got a lot of symptoms for humans.

I have plenty to say about these pet mills, but we've all said it and heard it.
It is my fault that I bought birds from a pet store.

However, the government really has to become involved. What if a newborn baby caught it? Or an elderly person, or someone like my daughter who has MS. Her immune system is compromised because of it.

But, who do I contact, and how do I make them care?

[jrsygal37]

Judy, what kind of parrot/bird do you have? I have a U2 (Umbrella Cockatoo) A really cool forum to go is www.mytoos.com. It's like Yorkie Talk is all about the species in which case is cockatoos / cockatiels but really everyone is on there that has birds. It's really informative. Elaine

[judy]

They are parakeets Elaine. Thanks for the website. I'll check it out.

I'm going to have to make sure that Skye can't infect another bird if she is a carrier. There are a couple of rescue places upstate, and there are private breeders who you can trust to have healthy birds.

In the meantime, she is lonesome. I have to get her a mirror so she thinks there is another bird around.