help with psittacosis

[chinchilla]

after another one of my budgies died (i've lost three now over a year) I took her to the vet and he did an autopsy and said it was psittacosis (other name ornithosis) but sent some sample away to be properly tested. the result havn't come back yet but he gave me the proper antibiotics and i've been giving the budgies this for about a week now (i have too keep it up for 45 days)

but today one of my budgie was audibly breathing and another had a sneezing fit. the vet mentioned that th budgies that might have an advanced infection would probably not survive :crying2: but i was wondering if anyone had any suggestions about if certain types of fruit or veggies would help in fighting this virus????? anything would be appreciated,

also the budgies that have died have all come from the same pet store, Pet Priority, they have not lived for more than 6 months from here, but i bought another budgie from a completely different location and shes absolutely fine and is more than 9 months old and has no signs of the virus. should i tell the pet store owner or should i go to the RSPCA or another authority??? :furious::confused1: i feel absolutely disgusted by it, i've lost 3 very close companions because of them.

also another question (sorry guys last one :rolleyes:) if i do get another budgie (not from that place) but is has this virus should i get it tested by the vet because the disease kills them after about 3-6 months so the month in quarantine wouldn't protect my flock at all?? :(

[tstmard]

Sorry to hear about all of your losses. I hope your other budgies are able to recover somehow and get all better. That would be horrible to have that problem with a pet store. I think I'd report it to both the owner and the RSPCA. Please keep us posted on how your birds do.

[Pippin's mom]

Wow! I'm so sorry for your losses!:( I agree with Susan on the reporting..go to both! It wouldn't hurt to have your new Budgie tested,

[ronsig]

This is a serious disease that can infect people as well. If you have any symptoms yourself you should see a doctor and tell him about your birds' infection.

Yes, report it to make sure it doesn't happen to anybody else.
I keep my fingers crossed...

Sigrid

[califjewls]

I agree with Ronsig, this is a serious illness and can be trasmitted to humans pretty easily. I would not purchase any other birds until you can be sure that none of your other birds have the disease. From what my vet explained to me this disease can lie dormant in a bird and they may not show signs for weeks or even months. You may need to wait months for this to cycle through your birds before getting another bird. Even if they are in different rooms, if you have infected droppings, bird dust, etc even on your clothing, you can carry that to a new bird, they could also get the disease.

I would absolutely report the pet store to the authorities. That is un-acceptable and the pet store are obviously buying sick birds to sell.

Make sure that you feed, clean, sanitize, etc your birds that are not ill (not on antibiotics) first and then feed, clean, sanatize the ill or birds on antibiotics last. Do not share food and water dishes, etc. Be sure to wash and sanatize your hands thoroughly also, this disease can be easily transmitted between the birds toys, cage, dishes and your hands.

Im so sorry for your losses. This is going to take awhile to get under control, good luck!

[ravengypsy]

I would report them asap... also, here is some information (http://www.gypsywillows.com/index.php?view=article&catid=23%3AAvian+Health+&Diseases=&id=31%3ACompendium+of+Psittacosis+Control&option=com_content&Itemid=12) from the AVMA on this disease.

[pal0m1n0]

This should probably be reported to public health, but really I would think hat the vet would be required to report it if he sees it. You could also contact a local newspaper tell them about, emphasizing the danger to humans and mentioning the outbreak in the states. But at the very least let the store know.

It just occured to me that a lot of people have said that they got a budgie and it would die three to six months after they bought it home. I wonder how many of them actually had the disease and it was undetected, hmmmmm!

[Budgietom]

Definately report them. I am so sorry about your budgies getting the terrible disease. There aren't any fruits or vegetabels that I know of, that can be used to help fight the virus.

[Babyluv12]

That is sick. I really sorry it happened to you but I am sure you aren't the only one. I'd go all out and report it. This is not only sad for those poor little budgies but also it's also a public health issue. The news channel is not a bad place to start.

[Celyste]

Pal0m1no... I was just checking, I know in ON any medical person MUST report the disease to the public Health Department... a fast search on a couple of the states requires the same. Same idea as Mad Cow or Brucellosis... it's zoonotic (animal to human transfer), and highly contagious.

Chinchilla - I would check with your vet to see if he has reported it or not. I can't say for sure with Psittacosis, but most diseases of this type require blood tests on every animal that resides there. Including yourself.

[chinchilla]

thanks for all the responses, i definitely am going to report it, to the RSPCA, the local newspaper and the local health department, plus i'll go get a blood test myself. if its as serious as mad cow disease in ON you would thinks it pretty serious here. i'll tell you of any developments