Weaning weaning baby has seeds in poop?

[Bea]

Hello, I was wondering if anyone else has had this experience with a weaning baby bird. He came to me feeding 2 times a day. He has a dish of roudybush crumbles as well as a dish of seed for parakeets. He has been going after the seed like crazy but his poop has seeds in it now. I am a nervous wreck think pdd and hoping it isn't. Any thoughts? Of course it is Sunday with my avian vet closed

 

[Bea]

Forgot to mention that he also is eating chopped apple without skin/grapes/peas/corn as well. Also offering brown rice. He loves the grapes and apple

 

[WendyN]

 

[Bea]

Thank you WendyN!

 

[Monica]

It could also be bacterial or fungal in nature.


Is there an avian vet in your area that could see him this week?

 

[WendyN]

Hope you can get him checked soon.

 

[Bea]

I took him in to our vet this afternoon, their office now has Sunday hrs from 12-4. The doc that was on this afternoon just said he is so young that it could just be he's not digesting due to the 2 feedings a day that he is on, and to cut back to one and "wait and see". Not sure about that, he said that he didn't want to do bloodworm because of his size

 

[Bea]

He has some normal poop, but seeds come out whole. He scarfs them down like crazy, not big on his pellets, has been chewing on grapes and apple for the last hour. Very worried about pdd but the doc said normally wouldn't affect a 7-8 week old chick. I have other birds and terribly worried even tho he is in separate room.

 

[Monica]

As an alternative then, since the vet doesn't seem very helpful... can you try soaking the seeds overnight or sprouting them? Or if the seeds have dyes, veggies, fruits and/or preservatives, getting seeds to sprout and see if the soaked/sprouted seeds are digested better?

 

[Bea]

Yes, will try that! Thank you

 

[WendyN]

What kind of bird do you have?

 

[Bea]

A Linnie

 

[karen256]

He may be too young to understand he needs to hull the seeds first. Babies just beginning to wean often just swallow anything bite sized. If the seeds in the poop are still hulled, then I don't think there's anything to worry about, since it doesn't mean he's having any problems with digesting them - they are just naturally indigestible with the hulls intact.

However, I wouldn't cut back on his feedings like the vet said. I'd keep giving him his usual feedings, and some pellets and fresh foods and no seeds in hulls for now. When he's eating a little better on his own, you can try adding back a little bit of seed gradually and see how he does.

 

[WendyN]

Could he be fed hulled millet from the grocery store?

 

[Bea]

Thank you for your input, I will try that. Last night I pulled the seed, He is obsessed with grapes, lol. Such a sweet little guy, you have eased my mind a bit I really don't see any of the "shells" in the cage or dish so it does seem like he may be swallowing them whole. The vet said "most birds do and still digest them". I am not too sure about the doc that was in yesterday. It is an exotic/avian vet that I go to as I have many other birds big and small, and go to that office but my regular doc wasn't in yesterday because it was Sunday maybe. Thanks again for your thoughts. I have raised a couple clutches of babies before and never had this happen before.

 

[WendyN]

Sometimes I will cook hulled millet seed with some brown rice.
Wish you much luck with your baby.

 

[Bea]

That's a great idea, where do you find hulled millet?

 

[WendyN]

I got it at a health food store, in the bulk food section. It is good because I can buy just what I need.
A supermarket might have it with the barley and grains (Bob's Red Mill brand).