Urgent my budgie's chest seems swollen

[zeer]

my female budgie (blueberry) chest is swollen and her stomach area seems to be skinny or sunk in.
few weeks back she had some breathing issues like heavy breathing and breathing with open mouth and after treatment it was back to normal.
now I started noticing that her stomach area is going inwards and her chest area is protruding.
she is not fully tamed, so today when i tried to hold her to examine her she ran here and there and she again started breathing heavily with open mouth so I didn't disturbed her and afterwards she was back to normal.
there is no difference in her activity level she's fully active but she seems to eat less than before, i rarely see her eating. And this is the first time i had added a breading box in their cage.
And she also sometimes open her mouth and do a weird thing. I don't have access to a vet in my city, please help me out and let me know if it's something serious.

 

[Lady Jane]

This could very well be an emergency or not. Please take this bird to an avian vet.

A big chest can merely indicate that your budgie has puffed up its feathers. However, it can also mean that your budgie has developed swelling in its chest. There may even be lumps and growths that make your budgie’s silhouette look odd. If your budgi developed a big chest, it may have ruptured one of its air sacs.

 

[zeer]

actually I don't have access to an avian vet or even a normal vet in my city. One of my friend suggested me to dilute 5 ml of Apple cider vinegar with 500 ml water and provide her .
She's breathing heavily and she's regurgitation sometimes but not throwing out anything

 

[Lady Jane]

What city are you in? Your bird is suffering and could die . The Apple cider vinegar will not help.

 

[zeer]

basically its a remote village in India, its my grandma's place. I'm here for my research work since January 2024.
And my city is bhadohi where they have vet for dogs and cats no avian vet is available there too.

 

[zeer]

my friend couriered me a medicine which i gave her in water and now she seems fine. The swelling is gradually reducing and her rapid breathing is gone

 

[Pixiebeak]

I can't tell for sure,but looks to be swollen crop? It's also possible it's something else.
Possible cause of gas filled crop is yeast , tho that's just one possibility of it is indeed the crop and nit another mass. Some bacterial infections in crop can also cause swelling. Or it could be some material is blocking crop.

The poops I see also don't seem normal ...they look runny and mushy . Budgies poops should be a formed circle of feces with a white urates center.

Diet and nutrition play a big role in supporting immune system and fighting off infections. A seed only diet is missing many vital nutrients and vitamins. A good way to improve diet is to offer leafy greens , like Swiss Chard, romaine lettuce, human grade dandelion greens, kale, mustard greens, water cress and such . My Budgies took quickly to greens , and those greens have vitamin A and other great stuff. I offered in several ways , punching a leaf on a stick and dangle over a perch, stuffing in cage bars , offering on a flat dish on bottom of cage . Just because they reject new foods at first doesn't mean they won't eventually eat and absolutely love them !

Other good veggies to offer are sweet potato, both cooked and mashed up and sliced if raw are great. All peppers are great , even hit ones. Yellow , orange and red bell pepper and let them eat the seeds too! And red chili peppers are favorite here. By the way, any of these foods I'm mentioning my Budgies eat and love! They always have their seed mix available but they come flying to eat their veggies and greens! The leafy greens and peppers will go a long way to providing needed nutrients. Mine also eat broccoli, carrots, squash's, thawed frozen peas, green beans a nd more.

I also offer a little boiled egg a couple times a week .

You can also sprout seeds for them sprouts unlock and change the nutrients of seeds.

I myself use plain Greek yogurt to help.soet minor gastric imbalances.
I haven't used apple cider vinegar,but many men ers here have and do. It is thought it can help with yeast overgrowth. I get the same great results from Greek yogurt so that's what I use .


My Budgies are 9 years old , I really believe the nutrition has played a big role in their long healthy life. Plus I have them out and flighted , and exercise is big for health as well. Prober husbandry and cleanliness

Sick birds need veterinarian care. And all of the above isn't a cure. But it is supportive to their bodies and immune system. And proper nutrition and husbanddry goes a long way in preventing many health issues. While things can still happen,

 

[zeer]

the poop on the perch is from finches

 

[zeer]

yes it is crop related issue, yesterday the swelling was almost gone and today i can see some swelling again

 

[zeer]

her poop is normal

 

[zeer]

i tried apple cider but it didn't work

 

[zeer]

but the medicine improved her breathing (meriquin and azithromycin pet oral solution)

 

[zeer]

today i somehow held her to examine, i touched the swelling area gently. Her crop seems to filled with fluid

 

[Lady Jane]

Sometimes a regular vet will treat a bird. Wouldn’t hurt to ask if you haven’t already.

 

[zeer]

here at my grandma's place there is no vet available in the village.