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Budgie with possible PDD

Birdmom99

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Has anyone had a budgie that was clinically diagnosed with PDD? I was wondering if anyone whose gone through something similar, what were the signs/symptoms that made you get a diagnosis for it. Currently awaiting official test results, and my budgie is showing signs of legarthy, vomiting, and an enlarged proventriculus but the other symptoms of PDD aren’t there. Google doesn’t seem to have a lot of information on this disease in budgerigars.
 

Hankmacaw

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Birdmom99

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This is so interesting! Thank you!

my budgie is considered old world and his symptoms are more geared towards the gastrointestinal symptoms of the new word. It gives me a small glimmer of hope
 

Birdmom99

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There is a free webinar on borna virus in case anyone is interested to attend. It’s tomorrow at 3 Eastern time.

 

Hankmacaw

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Thank you for posting that. I highly respect Dr. Orosz (she is a long time personal friend of my vet) she is so brilliant.

Having a PDD bird, I'm constantly grasping and searching for new and/or useful information.
 

Birdmom99

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same here! Happy to have helped :)

Thank you for posting that. I highly respect Dr. Orosz (she is a long time personal friend of my vet) she is so brilliant.

Having a PDD bird, I'm constantly grasping and searching for new and/or useful information.
 

Birdmom99

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Update: Oliver’s ganglioside assay test came back negative, which is great…but are false negatives common with this test? I have a follow up appointment with the vet next Tuesday to discuss further diagnostics. What questions should I ask? What other tests can be done? Oliver’s symptoms still involve GI motility issues, enlarged proventriculus and testicle, and lack of appetite. His weight is fairly steady and his energy and alertness are fairly intact but still not at 100%. I have noticed that he sits in one leg more often and gets aroused when the other birds are near and I believe that is due to the testicle enlargement, but the vet seems to be treating that as a separate issue. What other budgie illnesses can contribute to these symptoms?
 

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False negatives with this test are very, very rare.
 

Birdmom99

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that’s great reassurance! Can you still have PDD without the virus?

And thank you so much for all your advice. Your bird is very lucky to have you.

False negatives with this test are very, very rare.
 

Hankmacaw

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Birdmom99

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So did I! Dr Orosz’s enthusiasm was amazing and it made me feel less scared for a possible diagnosis. I will still continue to learn as much as I can so my birds can have the best life possible.

thanks so much!

There are instances where other conditions will cause PDD - although, very seldom. It alks about those instances in Dr. Dalhausen's paper.


Thanks for pointing out that webinar - I thoroughly enjoyed it.
 

Hankmacaw

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Dr. Orosz said she was having fun and I believed her. LOL Mybrain was pretty tired afterwards though.
 

Birdmom99

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Update: Took Oliver to the vet today to do furthur diagnostics. Vet said that even though PDD test was negative he will still treat him for PDD as it can be a false positive. Not sure if his approach is correct or not. He will come for another test in two weeks and in the meantime will be on anti-inflammatory medicine and is also doing another test for AGY.
 

Birdmom99

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Update: still waiting to get tested for borna virus for the second time. Vet believes his first negative result was a false positive and has been giving him Onsior. Last week Friday I took him to vet for a shot and he seemed happy and active in the car. Then I gave him over but when I got him back he seemed lethargic and sleepy, and kinda sick. Took him home and he was fine but on Sunday morning he threw up. Was a bit to himself, became very hyper active and started running around bottom of cage, hanging on the bars, tweeting and screaming for the other birds. He refused to eat out of my hand but went to his bowl to eat later. Threw up again last night. Very active again and seems pretty normalish. Except not eating so much. Not sure what to make of it. Are these PDD symptoms? Or side effects from Onsior or Reglan? Or some other disease we don’t know of. I feel awful because vet is talking euthanasia without getting a confirmed diagnosis and his hyperactivity is sending me a false sense of comfort knowing he’s not sleepy or lethargic, but it could be just as bad. Not sure what to do anymore.
 

Birdmom99

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Would also like to add that after he vomits his face seems to get extremely itchy. He starts rubbing his face on the stick trying to scratch. Never seen him do this before.
 

Raelo83

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Would also like to add that after he vomits his face seems to get extremely itchy. He starts rubbing his face on the stick trying to scratch. Never seen him do this before.
I have 2 very hormonal budgies which out of 5 isn't bad. At different points they have both thrown up of themselves and each other. Have you noticed this bird mating or overly affectionate with another bird? Also make sure he has an excessible bath or give a spray bath to help him clean up.
 

.........

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I have 2 very hormonal budgies which out of 5 isn't bad. At different points they have both thrown up of themselves and each other. Have you noticed this bird mating or overly affectionate with another bird? Also make sure he has an excessible bath or give a spray bath to help him clean up.
That's regurgitation, not vomiting.
 

Birdmom99

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Just sending an update here. Oliver tested positive for borna virus and negative on the anti ganglioside assay. Not sure what that means but he has classic PDD symptoms. Shouldn’t he have tested positive for both?
 

jeansie1988

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Thank you for posting that. I highly respect Dr. Orosz (she is a long time personal friend of my vet) she is so brilliant.

Having a PDD bird, I'm constantly grasping and searching for new and/or useful information.


Hi there,

My bird has just been diagnosed with ABV.
May I ask, do you have other birds and if so, how do you manage it? I'm desperately trying to seek answers. My vet told me it's okay to have the birds in the same room with others that don't have the virus because it is spread through fecal and urine. I just want to clarify this and see what others do when they have more than one bird.
 

Birdmom99

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Hi there!
Yes I do have other birds and they are all in the same room but different cages. It is true that the virus is hard to spread and doesn’t live long in the environment but I also take caution and feed the non-ABV birds first, make sure my hands are thoroughly washed when handling them, and I try not to make them have direct contact. Also you should note that having ABV does not necessarily mean a death sentence. Almost 40-60% of birds test positive for ABV which can lead to a disease called PDD, and the severity of it all depends on the bird.
If your bird is showing any nervous system signs or gastrointestinal signs then it would be best to test for PDD using the anti-ganglioside assay test. If not then I would say give your bird as normal a life as possible.

Also, I learned a lot from the following webinars:


This one goes into a lot of detail about how the virus can be maintained among other birds:



Hi there,

My bird has just been diagnosed with ABV.
May I ask, do you have other birds and if so, how do you manage it? I'm desperately trying to seek answers. My vet told me it's okay to have the birds in the same room with others that don't have the virus because it is spread through fecal and urine. I just want to clarify this and see what others do when they have more than one bird.
 
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