Constant Sneezing

[Nostromo]

Hello guys,

I've got a 10 yo BH Pionus female who sneezes... a lot. We've had her two years and she's been sneezing on and off for that whole time. It gets better and worse; sometimes she'll have months of almost no sneezes and other times, like right now, sneezing constantly throughout the day. Occasionally there's discharge, but it's always clear if so and usually the sneezes are dry. Normal appetite and activity. No tail bob or other signs of respiratory distress. I've taken her to two different avian vets, and although we haven't done the more expensive blood tests etc they both said she sounded totally normal on exam (a year apart) and appeared to be in excellent health. They suggested dust as a cause and doing more cleaning. I clean the cage pretty often, have a HEPA air filter for her and give her frequent baths... and she still sneezes constantly! She's been sneezing more the past week or so. We're in California - so maybe the wildfires affecting air quality? Can parrots have allergies? Do any of you have Pionus that are sneezers?

 

[Karen]

Parrots can have seasonal allergies. I would consider having your vet do a sinus flush. The vet can send the flush debris to be cultured if he/she is suspicious of the content. What is her diet? A diet heavy with seed would be deficient in Vitamin A which can contribute to sinus issues.

 

[Nostromo]

@Karen Thanks for the reply! She's had a sinus flush before but didn't get it cultured. Her diet is Roudybush with lots of fruits that are high in A, so I don't think it's that. Her nares look healthy too.

 

[Nostromo]

I'm fairly sure now it's the wildfire smoke making her sneezing so bad not much we can do... we have the doors and windows closed and the air filters on, but it's still thickly smoky outside, the air is orange and smells of smoke... it's obviously impacting her respiratory system.

 

[sunnysmom]

So sorry about the fires. I hope everyone will be okay.

 

[Nostromo]

Just an update for anybody who is interested... I went ahead and bought a very fancy, very expensive greedy air purifier and set it up near my parrot's cage. She'd had one next to her cage since we got her, but this new bad boy is good for up to 1200 square feet (bigger than our whole bungalow) and has HEPA and activated carbon filters etc etc. Well, lo and behold, one week on and her sneezing is down by probably 80%. So it was clearly the bad air. Probably better for our health too!

 

[Dartman]

Lurch would occasionally have a discharge and sneeze but fairly rare. It turns out they can have allergies just like we do so if she's doing better keep an eye on her and take her in if it gets worse again. Dobby has been fine and we're in the fire and smoke areas too but living area seems to be pretty good. The bedrooms are a different matter but he doesn't spend time in them much.

 

[Nostromo]

@Dartman Yeah Z is just a sensitive soul when it comes to her respiratory tract. She sneezes a ton and gets discharge fairly regularly. Vets aren't concerned and seem sure it's air quality. Admittedly our air quality right now is bad-bad... ranging from 150 AQI to 200, so firmly in the "unhealthy for all people" range, not to mention sensitive wee birds.