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My bird is addicted to Bene-bac gel?

Just Birds

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My Conure was prescribed bene-bac gel a few months ago for an infection, but that's besides the point. I give it to him weekly now to keep his bacteria in check. But he's literally addicted to the stuff. He'll scream for it, even minutes after I give him his dosage. Sometimes he'll pull the syringe out from the cup I keep it in and he'll "cry" until I open it for him. Of course I won't give it to him if he has already had his intake. The vet told me it wouldn't be hard to make him take because he would most likely like it, but I didn't think he would like it this much! I'm not too concerned about his obsession with it, cause I know how to control him (I'll just give him a millet and he's happy), but does anyone else's bird love this stuff?
 
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expressmailtome

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Bene-bac has a very high sugar content. The third and fourth ingredients are very strong sweeteners. Also, the first ingredient is sunflower oil. It is made to be easily accepted by birds. I would recommend offering fresh fruit instead when he wants it. It will give him more nutrition. I would ask your vet if it is something that he can have on a daily basis.

Matt
 

gibsongrrrl

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Is he a young bird? Maybe he's reminded of being syrinige fed?
 

Just Birds

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Bene-bac has a very high sugar content. The third and fourth ingredients are very strong sweeteners. Also, the first ingredient is sunflower oil. It is made to be easily accepted by birds. I would recommend offering fresh fruit instead when he wants it. It will give him more nutrition. I would ask your vet if it is something that he can have on a daily basis.

Matt
Thank you Matt for this information! I have asked my vet that in the past. He said he actually recommended a daily dosage, but I give it to him every other day just in case.
 

DQTimnehs

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Quack loves it; Darwin will eat it; Itsy didn't like it at first but now does.
It was prescribed for Itsy every other day while she's on long term antibiotics. I would think weekly should be often enough (or even less) for a bird not on medication.
I'm a bit confused though as you said you give it weekly, then "daily dose" then "every other day". :huh:
 

Just Birds

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Quack loves it; Darwin will eat it; Itsy didn't like it at first but now does.
It was prescribed for Itsy every other day while she's on long term antibiotics. I would think weekly should be often enough (or even less) for a bird not on medication.
I'm a bit confused though as you said you give it weekly, then "daily dose" then "every other day". :huh:
Quack loves it; Darwin will eat it; Itsy didn't like it at first but now does.
It was prescribed for Itsy every other day while she's on long term antibiotics. I would think weekly should be often enough (or even less) for a bird not on medication.
I'm a bit confused though as you said you give it weekly, then "daily dose" then "every other day". :huh:
Sorry for the confusion. I gave it to him daily when he was on medication. Now I give it to him weekly, but some weeks I give it to him every other day (cause his bacteria infection never truly went away). Until I get his culture test results back, the vet said to continue giving him the bene bac.
 

DQTimnehs

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I've never heard of it being prescribed to cure a bacterial infection. Antibiotics are usually prescribed while Benebac is used to put back the good bacteria that the antibiotics kill off.
 

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Just Birds

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I've never heard of it being prescribed to cure a bacterial infection. Antibiotics are usually prescribed while Benebac is used to put back the good bacteria that the antibiotics kill off.
That's weird...then why would my vet prescribe bene bac?? He called it an antibiotic. It was the only 'medication' he was taking.
 

DQTimnehs

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That's weird...then why would my vet prescribe bene bac?? He called it an antibiotic. It was the only 'medication' he was taking.
It's a probiotic.
 

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Is your vet an avian vet?
 

Just Birds

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Is your vet an avian vet?
Yes, he's a well known avian vet. But I already called another avian vet this morning and scheduled an appointment with him to see how good he is. I'm thinking of changing my bird's vet to him instead. Hopefully he can clear things up for me.
 

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It doesn't necessarily mean he does not know what he's doing. Maybe he just found he had too much bad bacteria in his fecal sample and figured that giving him good bacteria would be enough to balance things out (and it usually is if there are no other symptoms like diarrhea, weight loss, lethargy, etc).

Get a jar of baby food (sweet potatoes, carrots, apples, etc) and feed it to him in the syringe. I, like Sarah, am of the opinion that he wants the comfort of the syringe more than what is in it.
 

Just Birds

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It doesn't necessarily mean he does not know what he's doing. Maybe he just found he had too much bad bacteria in his fecal sample and figured that giving him good bacteria would be enough to balance things out (and it usually is if there are no other symptoms like diarrhea, weight loss, lethargy, etc).

Get a jar of baby food (sweet potatoes, carrots, apples, etc) and feed it to him in the syringe. I, like Sarah, am of the opinion that he wants the comfort of the syringe more than what is in it.
I'm not ruling my current vet out, I just want to see how the other avian vet is. My current vet said he saw no bacteria in his fecal matter, and my conure was lethargic and was losing weight rapidly no matter how much he ate. So from what you're saying, the bene-bac wouldn't help all that much, correct?

I'll try the baby food- thanks for the suggestion.
 

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I don't think she meant it wouldn't help.
I'm not a vet so I don't know if Benebac is ever enough for a bacterial infection. My vet has recommended natural apple cider vinegar for bacterial and yeast infections but it probably depends which type and how bad it is. Benebac is also used after acv to replenish the good bacteria.
 

Just Birds

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I don't think she meant it wouldn't help.
I'm not a vet so I don't know if Benebac is ever enough for a bacterial infection. My vet has recommended natural apple cider vinegar for bacterial and yeast infections but it probably depends which type and how bad it is. Benebac is also used after acv to replenish the good bacteria.
I've heard of people giving their birds apple cider vinegar, but I was never sure how much to give and when. I want to try it out though- are there negative side effects? How much do you think I should give to him? Thanks for all the help!
 

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My vet recommended 1:100 acv to water by volume (1 ML:100 ML water). Give it for 2 weeks. You can then give it 1 week/month preventatively. The negative is it can kill all the good bacteria so I would use probiotic after. Not within a couple hours of the acv. Talk with your vet about it.
I would make sure your bird is drinking the acv water before leaving it as the only water source. When I tried to give it to Pogo he threw his water bottle on the floor which he never did before. After that he always fought/played with the bottle and I was constantly replacing them and trying to outsmart him to stop him emptying or breaking them. (Not too successfully) :rolleyes:
 

Just Birds

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My vet recommended 1:100 acv to water by volume (1 ML:100 ML water). Give it for 2 weeks. You can then give it 1 week/month preventatively. The negative is it can kill all the good bacteria so I would use probiotic after. Not within a couple hours of the acv. Talk with your vet about it.
I would make sure your bird is drinking the acv water before leaving it as the only water source. When I tried to give it to Pogo he threw his water bottle on the floor which he never did before. After that he always fought/played with the bottle and I was constantly replacing them and trying to outsmart him to stop him emptying or breaking them. (Not too successfully) :rolleyes:
Okay, thank you so much!! I'll definitely talk to my vet about it.

It doesn't necessarily mean he does not know what he's doing. Maybe he just found he had too much bad bacteria in his fecal sample and figured that giving him good bacteria would be enough to balance things out (and it usually is if there are no other symptoms like diarrhea, weight loss, lethargy, etc).

Get a jar of baby food (sweet potatoes, carrots, apples, etc) and feed it to him in the syringe. I, like Sarah, am of the opinion that he wants the comfort of the syringe more than what is in it.
I bought jars of natural baby food earlier today- apple, banana, and sweet potatoes. I filled a syringe with it, and added just a dab of the bene bac at the tip so he would see the familiar green color and think it's full of bene bac and not instead baby food! He was skeptical at first, but then ate it, but when he got to the apple, he hated it. He shook his head, clearly not enjoying the new taste. How long do you think it'll take him to adjust to the baby food? Also, do you think it's safe to allow him to eat it every day? Thanks so much for all yours and everyone else's help- it's greatly appreciated!
 
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