We love our pet birds, I personally have a paralet and when they fall sick, we feel sad about it. We share in their agony, and ensure they immediately get back to health. To protect and guarantee the health of our birds, we should recognize and address any sign of illness immediately the disease strikes. This early recognition is going to allow for more effective treatment plus quicker recovery. When you recognize the following signs of a sick bird in your pet, make sure you immediately call a vet.
1. Sitting at the cage’s bottom
A healthy bird normally sits on a perch and moves around throughout the cage at day time, before locating some spot to sleep during the night. When your bird is spending a lot of time at its cage’s bottom, this might indicate it is not feeling well.
2. Tail bobbing and difficulty balancing
Another sign of a sick bird is when it has difficulty maintaining its balance when sitting on the perch, or when its tail is bobbing a lot with each breath it takes.
3. Change in appetite
Knowing the amount of food your bird normally takes each and every day is going to assist you in gauging whether it is feeling well or not. This may not be easy with a cage which has several birds. However, you should try your best to see the amount of water and food is ingested every day. When the appetite of the bird decreases, or it is making movements to eat but basically is dropping more than it is eating, have the bird seen by a vet. These are also symptoms of a sick bird.
4. Change in droppings appearance
Normal droppings of a bird is going to have some white portion that is urate, some clear portion that is urine, plus a colored area that is the fecal portion. When you discover any alterations in the droppings of your bird when it comes to consistency or color, have the bird seen and examined by a vet. Also you should look out for undigested food and blood in the droppings.
5. Unkempt appearance
A healthy bird has clear eyes which do not have discharge, or signs of irritation and redness. The beak and nails should be the usual length, since rapid overgrowth may indicate malnutrition or illness. Also, the nose should be clean, without any discharge. Look also at the feathers. They are normally clean and smooth in a healthy bird, while a constantly ruffled appearance might indicate a sick bird.
Bottom line
By having some basic knowledge the behavior and looks of a healthy bird, you are going to be able to spot early symptoms of disease, and get it the necessary treatment needed to recover. When you spot the above mentioned signs of a sick bird, do not hesitate to immediately call a vet to treat it.