Open Mouth Breathing

[lnlovesorange]

Hi all. Quick question. One of my Zebs is open mouth breathing quite a bit. I don't have much more info than that, in as far as if he's making noises I haven't heard, but I'm not close enough to listen closely, it is a little warm in the bird room sometimes, there is plenty of water, but none of the other birds are breathing with their mouths open the way he is. Any thoughts? I will try to get more info (catch him and listen, also try to watch his behaviour for longer than an hour) Thanks all.

[lovezebs]

lnlovesorange

Hi Ellen,

How is our mouth breeder doing today?

Not sure what could be going on with this little one. Does he do this all the time?

[StodOne]

lnlovesorange
That can happen due to several things ..
1.He is scared and that is his defense mechanism.
2.He is dehydrated.
3.The room is too hot for him and he is cooling of (It is usually followed with wings spread a bit from his body.
I am not an expert on bacteria and viruses and I don't know if something like that can cause him to breathe that way..
Would be helpful if you posted a picture of him..

[slwatson]

lnlovesorange

I had two finches that started doing that once, and they were starting to fluff up too. I think they developed some sort of bacterial infection from drinking bad water. I put them in hospital cages with enrotex treatment (that's all I had at the time and I was grasping at straws) and added heat, but I couldn't save them. How's it doing today?

[StodOne]

Try finding propolis for inhalators , put a few drops in his drinking water it might be enough to kill off the bacteria ..
I used that on a pigeon once , it got more lively each day .. but that pigeon was egg-bound , still I think egg bound birds are prone to infection , propolis I think is good for that kind of stuff...
It might not be anything serious , try posting a few pictures of him or a video, I am sure someone can help you ..

[lnlovesorange]

Thanks guys... I caught him last night, and checked his chest (not great, as he got away) but it seemed ok, (I spread the feathers) and then I got real close to him an listened and couldn't hear any weazing or anything... but he's still doing it. Just randomly, I'll pop my head in and take a peak at all of them and there he is breathing with his mouth opened... I don't think his breathing seems labored.... and of course this is the only pic I could get... (I know, not helpful) but it's something. And of course being in the bird room.... I can't get much closer, Maybe I will try to get him into a cage, and keep a closer eye. But as far as the other birds not ONE of them is doing it.... Very strange. Anyhow here's the pic. I will try to gather some more info. Thanks all!

[lnlovesorange]

BTW, it's not after a long flight, or when I come in and they all take off and are scared.... Like in these photos he's just up on the window sill hanging out, far from my reach so he's not afraid... and just sitting there perched, and after a few seconds he just opens his mouth.... No wings lifted from the body like he's hot.... Just giving you all the info i have... thanks again

[Sir Bubbles]

lnlovesorange
That can happen due to several things ..
1.He is scared and that is his defense mechanism.
2.He is dehydrated.
3.The room is too hot for him and he is cooling of (It is usually followed with wings spread a bit from his body.
I am not an expert on bacteria and viruses and I don't know if something like that can cause him to breathe that way..
Would be helpful if you posted a picture of him..

For what it's worth, my female zebes used to do this all the time and still will do it occasionally. It's usually when they want space or they're in the process of laying an egg. When I moved them into a larger aviary together I saw them do this less. I assume because they had more space to get away from me if they felt bothered or scared.

I don't know about the viruses/bacteria stuff unfortunately so I can't help you there. Hope you find out what's up and I hope your birdies are okay!

[lnlovesorange]

Sir Bubbles Thanks, they are in a bird room... 7ft X 7ft with a 10 ft high ceiling, and all the perches and vines are up close to the ceiling.... He doesn't seem unwell otherwise, that's why I wasn't too worried, No fluffing, no odd beahvior, eating, drinking bathing... Not anywhere near my new birds who are in quarantine. but I keep trying to look into his mouth when it's open (i've heard if you see white that's like a bacterial infection like Thrush or something) and of course I can see white, but it's the normal wierd thing they have in their mouth...(pretty sure it's their mouth markings from when they are babies) So, I'm not sure. But thanks... Hows your little girl today?

[StodOne]

lnlovesorange Try watching him from a distance without him seeing you , maybe he is just frightened from you and he is trying to tell you "get away i will pinch your nose if you come any closer"

[Sally]

Could it be that he was just warning the other male to keep his distance? Was there any sound coming from him at all?

[Sojourner]

My little white Bengalese, Aunty Pyewacket, will occasionally do this as well, where she just starts panting and looking a little distressed.

It terrifies me every time she does it, which is fortunately separated by weeks at a time. I always think she's about to die. I think egg binding. I think airsac mites. But she's always fine after awhile.

She does not accompany this with any of the other warning signals of illness. She continues to eat just fine. She flies around and is chipper. She doesn't throw her head back or show signs of difficulty breathing. She's not loosing feathers inordinately. She's just scaring the holy b'jeezus out of me.

Your guy looks bright-eyed and chipper. As long as that's the case, I'd suspect what others have mentioned as far as fear reactions. You don't have to be within reach of a bird for him to be afraid of you. And some birds just never really get used to some people, so familiarity might reduce, but not eliminate, the behavior.

Heck, I've got a pair of budgies who distrust me so thoroughly that they don't like to climb down into the bottom of their cages even to get treats because the cage tray blocks their vision. If they can see me, they don't trust me - so when they CAN'T see me, they REALLY don't trust me, LOL!

[cindy]

Open mouth breathing can be a few things

Fatty liver...something has hit the liver causing it not to function well and the bird develops "fat pads". Fat pads can develop on the underside of the bird and look like thick yellow meringue under the skin.

parasites, thrichomonas (yellowish cheesy build up may be seen in the mouth) anything that looks like throat clearing??? Neck stretching up open beak like he is trying to get rid of something?

respiratory issues, ASM....put the bird close to your ear in a quiet room Listen for ticking (sounds like a clock/watch) or wet sticky sounds or huffing

yeast and fungals

You can do this catch him up and wet the feathers back on the belly, pushing them to the sides as shown in the picture...the area from the vent up is most important... take a picture and add it here.


Note (Baytril was mentioned) Enrotex -baytril can bring up fungal and yeast if using this treat with nystatin or medistatin to the beak... mix 1/4 tsp into 4 mls of water & give some drops to the beak it will work better. It's sensitive to light so the mix must be store out of the light or in dark bottles.

Did you do any preventative on him before adding him to your flock...Ronex 12% or ronivet S % ?