This morning I woke up not only to the first day of school, but to my little brother's pet parakeet dead at the bottom of its cage. The day before it seemed fine. It was chirping away like always, but I did notice it sitting at the bottom of the cage puffed out. That was the only weird behavior I saw. In its cage it's laying there with its eyes open and it looks like the claws are tucked away under his feathers. It looks like he just fell off the perch to me, but does anyone know what could've happened to him? Any strange bird diseases I should know about? There were barely no warning signs.
2007-08-27 08:14:31 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Birds
I'm very sorry to hear about your brother's bird, it sounds like you enjoyed its company too.
Birds are masters of hiding their illness since in the wild the youngest, oldest and/or weakest animals are generally the ones that are attacked by the other animals of prey. So, your bird was probably sick for a couple of weeks or longer and finally couldn't hide the illness anymore.
You don't say how old the bird is or where the cage was located or anything about the bird's breathing, eating or lack of eating, whether or not its droppings were normal. All of these are things you need to be on the lookout for on a daily basis, so that you know what is normal and what is not. The day you notice something out of the ordinary, you need to make your appointment for the avian (bird specialist) vet, or take the bird in that day if at all possible.
It was probably NOT psittacosis or salmonella as someone mentioned here - but neither is very common among budgies. There is, however, a disease called Budgie Wasting Disease which is caused by megabacteria found in the crop. For a better description but in normal terms, go to: http://www.petalk.com/megabacteria.html. If it was not this, then I would guess that the bird had contracted a cold by being in a drafty area and you may not have noticed any change in its appearance or behavior until it was too late.
If you decide to get another bird at another time, you might want to invest in a good book about budgie care and health so in the future you will know what to look for in a healthy bird.
Again, I'm sorry for your loss but CORRECT knowledge is the best thing to keep them in good health and you most likely won't find your answers here on this blog which consists mostly of people who have a few birds and like to share their experiences.
2007-08-27 08:54:14 · answer #1 · answered by Goody 2 Shoes 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A bird sitting at the bottom of the cage "puffed out" is a sure sign the bird is very ill. Birds hide illness,so your brothers bird was obviously ill for a while some time.The first sign of illness in usually noticed by the birds droppings,which tend to become abnormal ie, runny,change in colour...
2007-08-27 17:28:41 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I had a pet store once, it sounds like it died of natural causes.
Yes, birds do carry all manner of illness, and yes, everything dies of something. But the bottom line is i woulnd not be alarmed.
If you plan on getting another bird, lightly bleach the cage, then rinse it very well and let it air dry for a few weeks.
It happens, sorry to hear though.
2007-08-27 15:23:06 · answer #3 · answered by Joseph G 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sitting down and puffed out is the commonest sign that a parkeet is sick. He may have bad psittacosis, salmonella, or even a respiratory infection, although I think the first cases are more likely. Birds often have them as carriers, but suddenly they get sick and die. Sorry about your bird.
2007-08-27 15:21:50 · answer #4 · answered by cpinatsi 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
he might have been sick without your knowledge.
kidney disease comes to mind. he can be singing and bouncing around the cage but if he was in the bottom puffed he was cold.
probably cause he was sick. could have had a heart attack too. how old was he do you know?
2007-08-27 16:06:42 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋