advice needed RF parrot finch

[ruler]

somewhere on this forum i did make a post referring to ths but things have gotten worse and im kind of panicing.
my RF parrot finch has been to a vet but they didnt know what was wrong with her but did treat her for worms but before i go into what treatments she had i will explain the problem...

before xmas she was fine but over a period of time she got unstable on her feet and began moulting and her flying got clumbsy. anyway now she cant fly that well at all and she cant stand still without wobbling and is constantly fluffing up her feathers. she keeps trying to plume her backside from underneath and from her sides but cant reach which seems to make her frustrated. i took a quick look at her belly and breast but her belly looks yellowish so not sure if its normal. there is clearly something serious wrong with her as she cant sit still for a second and is also constantly flapping her tail feathers then she ruffles up her feathers. quite often i see her force her backside in a downwards motion. at first i was told it was a calcium deficiency so i bought loads of the stuff to treat her. she has layed about 4 batches of eggs almost in a row but all were infertile. she has been seperated from the male now for about a week as he was constantly trying to mate with her. there arnt no aviam vets near me and i have no transport so you can see why i am desperate for help with this one. im going to take a short video clip of her soon to post so people can get a rough idea what she is doing.
any advice is welcome, thanks

[L in Ontario]

Other than the calcium "stuff" what other treatments has she had? I trust you have a heatlamp on the cage for her. I'm glad you separated her from the male - that's good.

[ruler]

i dont have a heat lamp here at all. no other treatments have been given appart from being wormed by the vet. i dont think her problems are heat related though i think its the male trying to over breed her but im not sure yet.

[kenny66]

constant egg laying can cause problems with her egg laying area. Doesnt sound like worms at all. Two things seem of note from your post. (1) Her constant attention to her back end with the tail bobbing could indicate an unpassed egg. If this is the case an oral dose of a water based soluble calcium supplement, undiluted, may help considerably. It is unlikely that she would consume enough if it is just put in her water, to make a difference. If you dont know how to do this get somone who has administerd fluids to a bird orally before as it can be tricky.I use calcivite plus administred at 3 drops direct orally. Secondly the unsteady feet and inability to fly is indicative of toxicity of some form which may be caused by the unpassed egg as a type of toxic shock. It is very difficult to offer advice remotely but on those symtpoms, that is what I would do. This breed is renowed for prolific egg production. The other point you mention (2) the yellow breast area is indicative of obesity, another trait of this breed where they eat too much and dont get enough exercise.. Infertile eggs and trouble passing eggs are a feature of this problem as well. Administer the calcium-keep heat available by the simple method of having a lamp with a 60watt bulb next to the cage she can get away from if she gets too hot. and when she is well put her on a diet. I would not put her anywhere near a male for 6 months. Check the vent to see it is not dirty or wet. But if she i the only sick bird it is unlikely to be coccidiosis. keep me posted

[kenny66]

one other point is tha there may be some low grade infection internally above the vent. I would trry the calcium before resorting to antibiotics.

[ruler]

ive been putting calcuim (Zolcal-D) into her only source of water and wasnt sure if this would overdose her with calcium? ive been giving her 10ml per 1ltr as stated on the bottle so i hope im doing it right. she was on calcium concentrate for 4 days prior which is a similar thing. when you say administer orally i take it you mean put the drops into her mouth using a dropper? also ive been giving her millet spray in her cage which i keep topped up, should that be removed? and lastly what would the best diet be for her in this condition? thanks and sorry to be a pain

[ruler]

ive uploaded a short video on youtube of her, she isnt fluffing herself up anywhere near as much as she has been all day but you can see something is wrong from the video. just thought seeing her might also help in identifying the issue. i might also take a shot of her tummy and post it here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=By_3_RgU ... e=youtu.be

[Diamond Sparrow]

I ahve always been told you should not give birds calcium in water unless you suspect they are egg bound.
The birds have not choice but to drink the water.The can over dose if given to much.
You are better off to provide shell grit,Cuttlebone,cooked eggs shells and mineral powder.The birds can choose what the want and need.
You must always ensure the birds are receiving the right type and correct amount of lighting.

[kenny66]

I ahve always been told you should not give birds calcium in water unless you suspect they are egg bound.
The birds have not choice but to drinbreeders who supplement their much.
You are better off to provide shell grit,Cuttlebone,cooked eggs shells and mineral powder.The birds can choose what the want and need.
You must always ensure the birds are receiving the right type and correct amount of lighting.

oral calcium for an egg bound hen is a preferred treatment along with heat. there are many opinions about supplementation with calcium, or anything else for that matter. I know breeders who supplement with calcium 2 or 3 times a week and some who do not. Both have breeding success. I do not supplement continually with mine but that is my choice. I try and keep things fairly natural. I have had canary hens though I would have lost without calcium supplementation.

[ruler]

ok ive taken her to the vet today and he took a couple of pooh samples and will be analising them this evening so by tomorrow evening i should get some results through. he said she was 15 grams in weight and was considdered a little under weight. he also told me her breathing looked fine and doesnt look as bad as he thought she was going to look after my discription over the fone.

he told me from a quick look at one pooh sample it looks like there might be some kind of parasite infection but needs to research it more to be sure what type it might be. she has been on a Zolcal-D program for about 5 days now and he told me to keep her on that course for a couple more weeks as it does take a while for any real improvemt especially since she has been laying eggs constantly without taking any vito's or calcium supliments. he also sold me some vitomins. he said vito A is very important and can be used with Zolcal-D treatment.
he checked for any eggs that maybe stuck and said she has no eggs stuck at all and her vent is perfectly clear she is also to be kept away from any other birds for several months (a) to prevent breeding and (b) to prevent any transfers of bateria/viruses and (c) to avoid any stress. she is to be kept in 8 hours of good strong daylight and to be kept warm at all times.

wow its a lot to remember and a lot of work for me to do but i think i can just about manage on her next visit he will take x-rays to see if there is anything wrong below the surface, he didnt want to do it today because he didnt want to put her through any more stress.

just thought i'd keep you updated

[finchmix22]

ive uploaded a short video on youtube of her, she isnt fluffing herself up anywhere near as much as she has been all day but you can see something is wrong from the video. just thought seeing her might also help in identifying the issue. i might also take a shot of her tummy and post it here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=By_3_RgU ... e=youtu.be

She looks like she is trying to reach her preening gland, but is unsteady. Something seems to be irritating her and she can't get at whatever that may be. Have you ruled out ASM or other skin irritations? Is her preening gland swollen or blocked? My other thought is neurological, which might be a side effect of an infection. I'd probably treat her with Amoxitex and Ronivet 12% together for a week. If she still doesn't improve, try Iverlux for mites, but there could a neurological problem that cannot be treated. I hope she gets better.

[ruler]

im still waiting for results to come back from the vets so at the moment i am still unsure what it might be, he said from looking at one of the pooh samples it does look like she might have a parasite present but he needs to research it a little more to find out what tye it might be first. i will post back with any new findings tomorrow hopefully.
if all else fails i will try what you have suggested. she is costing me a fortune lol

[Diamond Sparrow]

Has she been treated for mites?,
Give her a dish of water to bath in.Remove any greens.
Has she got access to grit and minerals,cuttlefish?
Provide a dish of soft food,fresh water daily

[ruler]

ah the vet has just called me to tell me he has identified whats wrong with her, he said he has found a parasite in her pooh and the parasite is known as cocksidia (if i spelt it right) and is now trying to decide which would be the best treatment for her. he will be calling me again a little later with the selected treatment and we will be treating both male and female. im so glad i finally know whats wrong with the little girl as she's been unwell for a couple of months now. thanksfor all the tips and advice everyone much appreciated
will post back with any updates

[kenny66]

coccidiosis is a bug that acts like a virus and is VERY Easy to treat. There are many tretments available such as coccivet and Toltrazural(Baycox-recommended) which is the best I have found. Unfortunaely the occysts (baby coccidiosis) do get into the environment and the residue does stay around. Stress and wet weather/humidity are the usual suspects for this bug. Unfortunately bleach and sanitizers are not very effective against the bug so you will need to remove any bedding on the floor and replace it along with the perches. and clean the cage/s. Cleanliness is essential with coccidiosis so water dishes should be thouroughly rised and cleaned each day-wash your hands thoroughly before handling anything in the cage especially water recepticles. I dont know your cage set up but this breed is active and likes a bit of space. so that is something to consider. let me know if I can help further. Baycox is administered 3ml per litre of water for 3 days.