Zebra finch 7 weeks old Continuosly itching

[amber_d]

Hello!
I've been handfeeding a zebra finch that was kicked out of his nest. We had some sort of issue and had to put him on antibiotics for an unknown infection. He has been doing really well, but started refusing to take his medication, so we had to switch to another antibiotic (pill form which we crush up and dissolve in water, use it when mixing his formula as per our avian vet) We have been doing this for a week, and he has been itching moderately but the past 2 days he won't stop. he keeps biting his toes, he's preened his tail so much its ragged, and he has scratched so much he's taken off most of his feathers off his cheeks! I've had my birds for 2.5 years and don't have any insect issues, none of the other birds are doing this. I have an appointment tomorrow with him but I want to alleviate his discomfort, poor little guy is so itchy. I'm wondering if the itchyness is related to the antibiotics? Is there anything I can do topically to sooth his skin?

[Babs _Owner]

amber_d

You should be able to call the avian vet that prescribed the medicine and they can tell you what to do over the phone. They usually give phone advice if a pet has reactions to their medications.

[amber_d]

amber_d

You should be able to call the avian vet that prescribed the medicine and they can tell you what to do over the phone. They usually give phone advice if a pet has reactions to their medications.

Unfortunately, I did call but she was not in today. Guess she's on holidays and our appointment tomorrow is her first day back She's the only avian vet in this city. poor little guy is so itchy. I read about brewing Calendula flower, Echinacea and Hypericum (st John's Wort) and spraying it on him... but st Johns wort I'm not sure about adding, I've added the link to the page where I read about the topical spray. So far this is the only remedy I've come across.
http://www.ladygouldianfinch.com/features_itching.php

[cindy]

I would not use any herbs with antibiotics some can cancel out the effectiveness of antibiotics or it may make the issue worse... What antibiotic is it that you are using, I can check to see if it can cause an allergic reaction. If it is causing itching since he has been on that one not sure I would dose again.

[cindy]

how do you have her housed right now, are you using a washcloth that has been washed with a fabric softner, tissues with lotions in them? Birds can get contact dermatitis.

[amber_d]

the herbs were just for topical, brew it then spray. He mostly stays in his cuddle hut (at night), on his perch or swing or sometimes at the bottom for his food... he prefers to eat it off the cloth vs the dish. so I have started sprinkling some food on a paper towel. when I wash clothes I use non-scented color free sensitive skin formulation and same with the softner sheets. He is on apo doxy right now, He's been on it for about a week. He was on enrofloxacin, but he started refusing... and it didn't seem to be clearing up his infection (whatever it was). From what I'm reading it could be an issue of him not having enough good bacteria, obviously antibiotics kill off both good and bad bacteria, but I have been giving him very small amounts of pro-biotics... maybe the 5x is too much for the feedings with the medicated water? When we used the pill form last year it was always in our bird's main source of water so any time they drank they'd get it, they didn't seem to have any issues.... I'll have to see what the vet says tomorrow, we've got an early am appointment