Thin bird, not thriving

About 3 weeks ago I got a bird from my rehabber friend. She had it for maybe 2 months. It had been xrayed and found to have an old fracture of the wing, non releasable. When I got the bird it was moderately thin. The bird was wormed twice.

Since then it has been eating well for the most part and has had normal poops. But there's something not quite right with it. It still feels thin and it's listless. It's alert in the cage but not very active and lays down often. It has access to calcium grit and a multi vitamin in the water twice a week. Yesterday some of the poop was a grass green (first time color change), then today they are the more normal olive color. Today it ate a little less than it usually does and there's less poop. The mouth and eyes are clear and no lesions or swellings anywhere.

I called to make an appointment with the avian vet this week but she's away until next week. I will be able do a fecal test tomorrow to look for coccidia. I hate to stress it but I was thinking I should start supplemental feeds because of the thinness and the fact today the appetite is less. Anyone have any suggestions? Should I medicate the bird?

Jen...I think treating the bird for coccidia would be very good thing to do. Do you have Albon oral suspension?

Quote :

Jen...I think treating the bird for coccidia would be very good thing to do. Do you have Albon oral suspension?

I agree.

Matilda wrote:

Jen...I think treating the bird for coccidia would be very good thing to do. Do you have Albon oral suspension?

Yes I have Albon, you use .6ml once daily, right? For how many days? Is the dose for birds higher? I know in dogs/cats it's .25 to .5 ml per pound of bodyweight.

Yes...that's the correct dose... one time a day...5-7 days.

Will be thinking positive thoughts that the little one begins to improve real soon, Jen.
Please keep us posted.

Hi Jen,

I'm intrigued that you said the bird was wormed twice. Do you know what with? I had a problem once with a pet that had a type of worm that the wormer didn't cover.

Hope he gets well soon.

Good point, Teresa. Worms don't always show up in fecal samples, either.

Teresa wrote:

Hi Jen,

I'm intrigued that you said the bird was wormed twice. Do you know what with? I had a problem once with a pet that had a type of worm that the wormer didn't cover.

Hope he gets well soon.

I use Moxidectin Plus. Go to this page and scroll down to the section on worms. The "Plus" is an added ingredient to kill tapeworms. You need to worm them twice at 3 week intervals in order to kill all the roundworms as they have a 3 week life cycle. I have had good results with this medication and no side effects. My rehab friend uses it too. I believe it is a chemical relative to ivermectin but it's newer and there is less resistance to it.

This bird did have a moderate amount of coccidia on the fecal test. I've been adding some shelled sunflower seeds and hemp to his food which he likes and he's eating fairly well.

Quote :

You need to worm them twice at 3 week intervals in order to kill all the roundworms as they have a 3 week life cycle.

Thanks for that information, it isn't on the bottle! I took a pigeon to the avian vet after treating it with Moxidectin Plus and she found round worm eggs when she tested it under the microscope. I wormed my pigeons this week and found a few roundworms , but was wondering how long to wait before doing it again.

Jenaka wrote:

I use Moxidectin Plus.

That would definitely have done the job! I've heard about the meds from The Australian Pigeon Company, if I'm not mistaken Moxidectin Plus is the only wormer that covers tapeworm as well.
Thank you so much for the information about the 3-week cycle, the instructions on the wormer I use say to repeat 4 weeks later. Now I know better.


Glad to hear he's eating well. Who can resist shelled sunflower seeds anyway? Not I!

OK so this bird finished his course of Albon. He seems to have a bit more energy and is eating better. Poops look fine. I'll get some photos up soon.

Glad to hear he's doing better, Jen.

Hi Jen, at least you have good news. This sounds really good.

This bird is finally putting on some weight and his appetite is more consistent. In one picture you can see his dropped wing. I think he may be a homer despite no band. His head kind of looks like one with a larger cere than I've seen on ferals around here. Also, when I put him in a pigeon hold he sits quietly like he's used to it. Not sure what color he is, perhaps an almond?

He's lookin' good, Jen.
Appreciate the update.

Just look at those colors. Really beautiful. Glad he is doing better.

Jen,


Its been sometime and was wondering how he is doing? He has very pretty colors. Updated picture would be great.