please can anyone help me?

[sallybear]

First of all, hi there, first timeer here. We (myself and my 7 year old daugther) have a lovely budgie called Honey. She is about 18 months old and is very very sick.

I have spoken to the vet over the telephone who has said by the time a budgie is this ill its normally too late to do anything. He offered to come out but it will cost 65 pounds and i dont have the money.

I dont think Honey is suffering but seems to be finding it a little difficult to breath, quite laboured, alos seems to have lost her sense of balance and keeps closing her eyes and trying to sleep in innapropriate places. I noticed she hadn't been singing for a few days a much but is eating and pooing normally.

She is with us now, in her cage in a warm room.

Is there anything else we can do? Vet said if she cant perch to get a clean t-shirt and make a soft place for her to settle but she doesnt like that and has struggled up the cage to her perch, but it seems like she will fall off.

again apologies for first post being so selfish, but please any advice, thankyou

[sallybear]

well things are still pretty much the same except she seems to be perching quite well, her feathers are still really puffed up and her breathing seems difficult but its no longer noisy and she has tweeted really quietly and eaten a little also.

I really hope she is well, she is such a lovely bird.

Vet mentioned that budgies sometimes have strokes that effect their balance, but if anything, a few hours ago, she would have let me pick her up (she is not a people person) and now she is more aware of me.

Shes never been a touchy feely bird. She was tiny when we bought her at 9 weeks old, in fact we chose her becuase she looked so lonely and little. She will climb onto seed honey sticks held by me but doesnt like the feeling on fingers, we have an understanding honey and I, she will fly around my room, and will spend time sitting on top of her cage but she hates any toys, loves millet and honey sticks (especially the egg flavoured ones). Shes got such a personality. I was hoping in time, maybe even over a few years she would become more tame and come out her cage a lot more. She loves sitting by my computer and tweets at music being played. She loves the sound of running water, when someone runs a bath she tweets like mad, and when someone uses the loo she tweets too!! Sorry but my daughter is so amused by that, i really hope she is well.

Do sick birds get better without intervention? I hope so, I maybe shouldnt have a pet without money for Vets, maybe that is selfish of me, but my daugther is an only child and has no contact with her father. We had a long conversation and I bought her 'honey' for company. She talks to honey about stuff, and loves her to bits, I hope she makes it through the night.

[Amy]

He sounds like a great companion!

It seems as though he could be alright, wait though, just to make sure.

Do you have any pictures of him?

He sounds like a greedy little bird!

Hope to hear from you soon,

[sallybear]

I dont have any pics at the moment (my computer died a few weeks ago) i was going to take some more tongiht but hes all puffed up and not well, i dont want to startle him with flash and the room is quick dark and snuggly, fingers crossed will take pics of bird feeling better in the morning :-)

[Amy]

Oh yes, you don't want to frighten him. Good Luck for tomorrow!

[sweetheart]

Hi Im sorry to hear about your precious little friend being unwell
U could try some antibiotic medication from a pet shop or produce these are not usually very expensive and I have had success with these before
also I have found that a vitamin supplemnet can help when they are feeling poorly
keep her warm and quiet using a light for heat may help too

I hope this helps

[Budgiekin]

As I said in my welcome to you, I am so sorry to hear about your sick little Honey. She sounds so precious. I understand the attachment one can feel towards the little budgiekins.

Unfortunately, it is unlikely that she will get well without intervention. Since she is visibly ill, that often means that she has already been ill for quite some time and is probably getting quite weak as time goes on. Budgies are exceptionally good at hiding any signs of sickness, so when they are do become obviously ill, the illness has usually progressed significantly.

My real concern is that she has something that could be easily treated. However, you wouldn't know that for sure unless you brought her to a vet. If she has a bacterial infection, she could be treated with antibiotics. I understand that vets (especially avian vets) can be quite expensive, but I have always felt that providing them with that kind of care is imperative. (I believe it is for any pet). Budgies may be inexpensive up front, but they can be prohibitively costly when you add in the veterinary care. That is something to consider when purchasing/adopting a little budgie to begin with.

I actually have a budgie fund that I put money into every two weeks, and I was fortunate to have had enough money saved in it to save my little Skyla; her wing was amputated because of a tumour. She is as happy as can be now!

I think the best you can do is make your little sweetheart comfortable as you are already doing by keeping her warm. If she has trouble getting around on her perches, then you may wish to lower them and keep her food dishes closeby so she doesn't have to strain herself to feed. I am sending hugs your way and am keeping my fingers crossed for you. Let us know how she is doing.

[miss_missy]

I know how your daughter feels i was not an only child but the middle child which is just as worse not old enough but too old.. I bond to animals as my friends. though people may think im wierd i feel the love and compassion from animals.

Now about your bird....make sure the room is quiet and warm and not brightly lit. treat the bird with an infrared lamp, not only does it give out warmth but also its rays penetrate under the skin of the patient and stimulate blood circulation and metabolism. The blood vessels expand so that the harmful matter canbe destroyed more quickly. The distance from the rays and the bird should be 16 to 20 inches. and should not exceede over 95F conduct this therapy three times daily for about 20-30 mintues, make sure after wards, the tempeture in the room is not change rapidly..

also just make sure you feed them vitamins and give them love, and comfert.. hope this helps

[sallybear]

well i sat up with honey all night, she made it through till morning and even perked up, telephoned vets as soon as they opened and got first appointment, unfortunately there was nothing that could be done, it seems she had some sort of stroke, one wing and foot were not really there and her struggle to breath finally gave in while the vet was examining her.

We have brought her home, thanks for all your support guys

[Amy]

Oh I'm so sorry to hear that, your daughter must feel distraught.

Are you going to ever think of getting a replacement?

Oh I'm really sad for you.

[Mistyoriline]

This post breaks my heart:(

[Amy]

Oh no:crying2: That's terrible.:crying: Are you ever going to consider getting another?:violin: I relize your probably a little to upset to be thinking about a replacement at the moment, but I was just wondering.

:ohno: No other budgie could replace your little pal.