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Chronic respiratory infections in my Budgies

nikkibird

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9/13/20
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Nikki
Hello everyone,

I have 4 budgies that have chronic respiratory infections. They've been on multiple courses of different antibiotics which gets rid of the infection for a while but it always returns. I keep their cages & surrounding area extremely clean & disinfect their cage, toys ect after each bout of infection (I throw away any rope toys, wood perches ect that can't be disinfected).

Regardless, they keep coming down with respiratory infections. I had the same issue with my last batch of budgies (respiratory infections killed them all over the course of a few years). I'm only having this issue with my budgies (my 2 parrots, which I've had for 21 years, are unaffected).

My vet has no idea why my budgies keep getting sick & said that budgies just tend to be more susceptible to respiratory infections.

I'm so frustrated & don't understand why they keep getting sick! I'd appreciate any feedback.

Also, should I disinfect/replace the wood & rope toys while they are still sick/on antibiotics or wait until afterwards?

What's a safe way to disinfect food/water bowls? I usually just use vinegar (at full strength) as am extremely uncomfortable with using any type of chemical on something they eat/drink from.

Thanks so much!
 

BirdLady13

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It's true that because they're small they are more susceptible. How is the air circulation/ventilation where they are kept? Has your vet told you exactly what infection they have/had, or at least if it's bacterial or fungal?
 

sunnysmom

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I'm sorry your birds are getting sick. Maybe ask your vet about also giving them probiotics?
 

Lady Jane

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Where did you get the birds from? Has you vet testing your birds for viruses and diseases and blood work?
 

nikkibird

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Nikki
I got them at Petco. My vet says he can't do blood work as budgies don't have enough blood in their bodies to be able to survive the amount of tests it would take to determine if it was bacterial, viral, ect. He also said the added stress could kill them.
 

nikkibird

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Nikki
It's true that because they're small they are more susceptible. How is the air circulation/ventilation where they are kept? Has your vet told you exactly what infection they have/had, or at least if it's bacterial or fungal?
The air circulation/ventilation is good & I have multiple air purifiers in my apartment. My vet said he can't do the necessary tests it would take to determine if the infection is bacterial or fungal as budgies don't have enough blood to be able to survive the required testing. He also said the stress of testing could kill them.
 

sunnysmom

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Have you checked if there's any mold in your house? Check the duct work, etc? Maybe try an air purifier in the room that they're in?
 

clarousel

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What's a safe way to disinfect food/water bowls? I usually just use vinegar (at full strength) as am extremely uncomfortable with using any type of chemical on something they eat/drink from.
Do you have F10? Many members here use it for disinfecting :) Vinegar should be okay and you could also use steam to disinfect.

Just wondering, what do you budgies eat? Could there possibly be a link to diet?
 

webchirp

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I love F10. You can spray things down with it after cleaning and let it dry as an added step. Worth a try.
 
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