Urgent Cockatiel has green nostrils?

[BirbBirdy]

Recently (over the past 3 weeks) I've noticed that my cockatiel has green matter in his nostrils, I tried to research this but nothing really came up. I did come across some advice to gently wet a cotton bud and move it around the nostril and then dry it. Nothing happened, and he still has these green nostrils. I'm quite concerned as he is only young, around 5-6 months old, and he did not come like this from the shop I got him from. He's acting healthy (I know birds can hide their illness though), his poop is healthy looking - and nothing is out of the ordinary. Although he has been sneezing one every few days.

I'm worried too as I cannot access any of my vets, they're closed for only urgent care and I rang up and they said they cannot see him. Is there anything I can do to stop this? Like an antibiotic, he can take to stop it? I don't know what the cause is and I would appreciate any help to identify what the issue is.

Thankyou.

 

[Birdbabe]

Could just be dirt or dust, can you moisten a QTip and gently clean it out?

 

[sunnysmom]

You can also try giving him a bath/misting him. It may loosen up on it's own. Or let the shower run so the bathroom is a bit steamy and sit in the bathroom with him for a bit.

 

[Tiel Feathers]

I actually can’t see anything unusual from the photo. I would try the bath or gentle misting first. If you do use a moistened Q-tip, be extremely gentle. You don’t want to do damage to the operculum, which is the part inside that is supposed to be there.

 

[Mockinbirdiva]

I actually can’t see anything unusual from the photo. I would try the bath or gentle misting first. If you do use a moistened Q-tip, be extremely gentle. You don’t want to do damage to the operculum, which is the part inside that is supposed to be there.

This exactly. I don't think you have anything to be concerned about from looking at your photos From this page back in 2016... I just copied the post that relates to what @Tiel Feathers is referring to, the link is to that page.

clogged nare help

when I got Piper it looked like both sides of her nose was clogged, I looked it up up a little and people said sometimes that's just how they look cus they have a layer in there etc. I took her in the shower with me and the one side came unclogged. so now i KNOW the other side is. it's kinda...

forums.avianavenue.com

"The maxillary rhamphotheca carries the paired nostrils or nares. Inside the nares of most parrots is a small, round, brownish structure called the operculum. Next time you take your bird out, closely examine the inside of the nostril, and you may see the operculum, which is quite obvious in the cockatiel and Amazon parrot. This may be mistaken for a seed or dried hand-feeding formula in the nostril, but the operculum is supposed to be there. However, if a bird is suffering from malnutrition or chronic sinus infections, a rhinolith (a mass formed of desiccated secretions and debris) may cause a physical obstruction to proper breathing, and it may disfigure the nares. Rhinoliths must be differentiated from the normal operculum found inside the nostril. In some birds (owls, parrots and pigeons) there is a fleshy band at the top of the rhinotheca that contains the nostrils or nares. This is called the cere. The cere is swollen, highly sensitive and may be feathered. In the budgie, the color of the cere in a mature bird may indicate the sex of the bird."

Excerpt from a long article on avian anatomy. I hope it helps!

 

[BirbBirdy]

I actually can’t see anything unusual from the photo. I would try the bath or gentle misting first. If you do use a moistened Q-tip, be extremely gentle. You don’t want to do damage to the operculum, which is the part inside that is supposed to be there.

In person it is quite green on both sides, it’s been green inside for a few weeks. I misted him and it didn’t remove anything. And I tried the q-tip gently again and nothing happened.

I’m quite concerned that it is an infection because he has some bad breath, and is sneezing a bit.

 

[BirbBirdy]

I actually can’t see anything unusual from the photo. I would try the bath or gentle misting first. If you do use a moistened Q-tip, be extremely gentle. You don’t want to do damage to the operculum, which is the part inside that is supposed to be there.

I’ve tried to get some images of him where you can really see the green inside the nostrils, you can see it on the right nostril in the first image. His nostrils are definitely not a healthy pink colour like they were before.

 

[sunnysmom]

@enigma731 ?

 

[BirbBirdy]

@enigma731 ?

I just did the shower technique where the steam is supposed to clear it. It worked with both nostrils and now they are back to their healthy pink colour with no more snot. Thankyou for your help everyone.

 

[enigma731]

Yeah, it looks normal to me, just stuck crud. Glad it worked.