Watery Poo and Breathing Problems?

[kade8325]

I just adopted a lovebird yesterday, JoJO, and was watching him this morning (he's sooo cute). This bird was rescued from a humane society and had hardly any feathers at all, so I think it's possible that he's just a baby. When I was watching him he pooped a couple times and it was like he was shooting water! My cockatiel never did anything like it. His vent looks like it might be red and irritated. His tail was moving very slightly while he was breathing, too, which makes me nervous.

So, has anyone else had water poo? Is this normal if he is just a baby? He seems to be eating and acting fine considering he had a long journey and a new home.

I'm making an appointment with an avian vet, but would appreciate any feedback. Thanks!

[Bill the Crocodile]

ok, 1st of all if you have other birds, you MUST quaranteen this one. If you already instroduced them, take your own bird to the vet as well.
featherplucking may be stress/behavioral problem, but also very bad deathly sickness as well (not to scare you but to let you know of possibilities).

Watery poo, though my own rescue Amazon had watery poo when I got him due to bad diet and stress, you MUST take him to the vet to run tests. breathing problems- I would be real careful. My own bird gets shnuzzels all the time, but they go away in the matter of 1/2-1 day. Since, it's not your "own" bird as in you don't know his halth history, you should again take him to the vet.
Quick water poo fix attempt: when my bird get's watery poo I give him minute rice, cooked to the instructions but without butter/margarine added. If I have wild rice- I give him that, but it take too long to cook it for medical purposes. Second solution: wheet berries, you just place a few like a 3-4 pinches in a dish and cover them 1 inch over the top with some water. Leave them for 4-6 hours, drain water, wash well. you can serve them now, or cover them with wet papertowel for 3-4 hours and serve. Make sure you do not leave this in the cage all day long- they can grow bacteria if left unattended. I wash mine well every 2-3 hours afterwards, but my bird genrally finishes them within 4 hours.

[kade8325]

Thanks for the reply. This is the only bird in the house, so I don't have to worry about anyone else. I have a vet appointment in a couple hours, so we'll see what he says.

I will try the minute rice solution remedy when we get home from the vet. Thanks so much for your input. My husband tells me all the time I worry too much about our animals, so I'm glad that my concerns are valid.

[Lovebirdfan]

His vent should not be red or irritated, and although stress can trigger abnormal poop, it should not be like water.. Keep him warm and take him to a vet.

Often the cages, perches and toys are not sanitized at all or not properly at the animals shelters, so he could well be sick with something contagious.

Please keep a close eye on him and get him into the vet ASAP. Let us know how he's doing too. Good luck.

[Bill the Crocodile]

Shelley, how did everything go?
Since you have only one bird- you are much better off. I got my rescue parrot and he had a lot of medical issues (nothing bacterial).
For the future regarding worries (I am just like that)
1. parrots are like human infants
2. parrots are proned to allergies, so snot may not be deathly, but just allergy type stuff, before colling vet wait few hours. I found the hard way that sometimes my bird wakes up with snot and allergies and it take few hours to clear off.
3. Watery nose might be your parrot tried to drink in the darkness and got water up his nose- also learned the hard way for me. Generally does not require medical attention, however, if your bird coughs and sneezes you need to visit wet.
4. If your bird injured it's body part, it may not be broken... Bill fell off my bed chasing my cat right after wing trim and I freaked out. Thanks god our emergency vet was good and instructed me to put the bird in his cage and leave him alone there in warms and soft music. 6 hours later he folded his wing back and everything was fine- strain/sprain issue.
5. Things that i've been told require immediate attention: riped finger nails, anything that is bleeding, breathing problems, if you see your bird shake bad and not respond to you.
6. I've been told that if the bird is eatting well and playing, you don't need to call 911. If you still worry take your baby to the vet with an idea that every vet visit is an aditional stress for your bird.

If I remember anything else that my vet told me regarding my worry problem that effects others, I'll let you know

I hope everything is well with the baby bird!

[kade8325]

Okay- we just got back from the vet and GOOD NEWS!!! Here's the scoop...

Heavy Breathing- caused by stress. The vet said that if I see heavy breathing it's okay to wait a while and see what happens. He said that often a bird gets stimulated and excited and breathes heavy. If breathing doesn't slow after a period of time (half hour after the end of exertion), then there's cause for concern.

Loose Poops- again, caused by stress. Jojo did poop while at the vet and this had improved with the sausage-like dark parts.

Feather loss- at some previous time, Jojo was a feather-puller. Since his feathers are growing in nicely we hope this behavior won't return. He's not a baby, however, but the vet couldn't approximate his age.

Irritated vent- this was the only problem of concern. The vet put some water-soluble ointment on it and hopefully that will help. We can reapply it twice a day until it heals. The vet thinks it was likely self-inflicted.

He also had some tips about the diet. We feed a mixed seed and the vet told me I put too much food in. Since lovebirds weigh ~50g, and eat app. 1/5 their body weight per day, I only need to put in about a tablespoon of food, watching that he doesn't eat only safflower or sunflower. We'll try to put him on a pellet diet, but never had any luck with our cockatiel.

So, I'm glad that we went because I learned a lot and now I don't have to worry (as much) about Jojo! It only cost $36 (the vet spent over an hour with us) and he even clipped Jojo's wings for me!

Thanks to all that replied to my post! Appreciate it lots!

[Bill the Crocodile]

That's great! I am so glad there is nothing bad! Have you ever considered adding fresh fruit and veggies? I am the kind of person who does not believe in pellet only diets and many people argued this point, however, considering that my bird was on all seed diet and was dull and not in perfect condition, I think that adding veggies (and he doesn't eat seed now, except as a treat- he gets about 4-7 sunflower seeds) he is much better now. He appears healthy and active. My bird always has food in his cage, including 24-7 pellet dish, and even though he an Amazon (tend to overeat by nature) he never overeats... Maybe leaving pellets all the time while limiting seed intake could improve your bird's diet. Again, I am not a veterinarian and talk only about my personal experience... As to pellets, if you go on their websites you can order a free sample- that way you don't have to spend all that money just to learn your bird doesn't like it... I got mine Zooprime and he refuses to eat it to my knowledge just like any other pellets...

[kade8325]

I do hope to add fresh veggies and fruit, maybe we'll start tomorrow (Jojo's sleeping now after his exciting day). My guinea pigs get salad every night, so what's one more? The vet suggested frozen mixed vegetables, but I think I'll try fresh stuff. We always have a wide variety because the pigs go through it so fast!

I like your idea of offering pellets all the time, but seeds only as a treat. The vet said many birds will accept Harrison's brand pellets, but that they're only available through a vet's office. So I don't know if I can find them in my area anyway. I will look for some free samples! Free is good!

[Aviennda]

You can get Harrisons online, which is how I did, but my bird doesn't like it. I am going to try Roudybush soon, which is also available online.

[Mark and Michelle]

Aviennda,

I just got a GREAT sample in the mail yesterday from Roudybush. Just write to them (I sent an e-mail) and they'll send you a good supply of food to try. I have also received "samples" from Harrison's, Lafeber's and Beak Appetit.

Good luck!

Michelle, Mark and Nico
West Springfield, MA