We feel fortunate at Olathe Animal Hospital to have proactive owners who want the best for their new birds. A good bird owner realizes that, while a new bird may look and act perfectly healthy, a trip to the vet is one of the first and most important things to do. In fact, establishing a relationship with an avian vet BEFORE you need it is one of the best things you can do for your bird! This article will talk about what we look for in a new bird exam, and why you should schedule a wellness visit within the first month of buying/adopting a bird.

Birds have evolved in the wild to hide illness in order to avoid predators.  This “masking” of signs of illness has led to the misconception that birds get sick and die quickly.  This is why semi-annual physical examinations and laboratory testing are so important, because they can help identify problems before they become untreatable.

When you bring your bird to Olathe Animal Hospital, you will be asked to fill out an Avian History Form (or you can print and fill out the one attached to the link and bring it with you to save time).

A veterinary nurse (technician) will walk you into one of our exam rooms where we have specialized equipment for examining birds and other small pets and exotics. If you have specific concerns or questions that you want the doctor to address, be sure to mention them.

After the nurse takes a short history, the doctor will come in. Both Drs. Mark Romain and J.C. Burcham are members of the Association of Avian Veterinarians (AAV) and have had special training in avian medicine. Please note: AAV membership is different from being board-certified. There currently are no board-certified avian vets in the states of Kansas or Missouri.

The doctor will likely want to talk to you about your bird, cage set-up, etc. while observing the bird in its cage. When it comes time to examine your bird, the doctor may use a towel to help restrain it and allow for a thorough examination. Eyes, ears, nostrils, mouth, feathering, body condition, heart and lungs, vent or cloaca, uropygial gland, wings, legs, and feet are all examined.

Small, flighted birds (canaries, finches, some budgies) will be weighed in a “birdie basket” so they hold still on the scale, and most other birds will perch on our specially-adapted scale. Birds are weighed in grams. If you’d like to know how many ounces your bird weighs, use an online grams-to-ounces conversion calculator.

An important part of a bird’s visit to the veterinarian is a discussion about nutrition and environmental enrichment. Avian nutrition is a whole other topic in itself, and the conversation that will take place will vary depending on what kind of bird you have. Any specific information you can provide, such as the brand name of food you’re currently using (or better yet, bring in the bag of food or a picture of it!), is considered very helpful and allows us to better tailor our recommendations.

Another good idea is to take a picture of your bird’s cage set-up and bring it with you for the veterinarian to see. Any other information you can provide, such as where the cage is located, toys available, and how much time (and where) the bird spends outside of the cage is also appreciated.

Routine wellness testing should be considered for all healthy birds. Blood work and fecal testing (a direct smear and a gram stain) are recommended for most pet birds, and we can discuss the specifics with you.

If you’d like your bird’s wings or toenails trimmed, let us know.

Remember, establishing a veterinarian for your new bird is one of the most important things you can do. You don’t want to find yourself in a situation where you need an avian vet and don’t know where to find one.

J.C. Burcham, DVM

Dr. Romain examines an anesthetized bald eagle with Operation Wildlife director, Diane Johnson

Whether it’s accidental or intentional, letting a pet bird escape or get lost presents a nightmare situation for bird owners. Yvonne Patterson, bird owner, bird trainer, and President of Wings of Love, a 501c3 non-profit providing educational bird shows, wrote an article on retrieving escaped birds, which appeared in the Parrot Society of Australia magazine. With her permission, we are re-distributing the article, which we encourage all pet bird owners to print out and have on hand–so you don’t have to go looking for it in the event of an emergency. Yvonne herself has been able to retrieve lost birds, and as the title of her article says, “Vocalization & Persistence” are the keys.

To view the full article (PDF), click the link below:

Retrieving Escaped Birds by Yvonne Patterson

Everyday cleaning tips:

1. Wipe down your bird’s cage, perches, and playgym with a bird-safe cleaner, wipe or brush at end of the day.
2. Use a handheld vacuum to suck up seeds, dander, feather, and dust, and/or keep a dust pan nearby to sweep up debris.

Speed-cleaning products for everyday use

Cleaners

AviClean Non-Rinse Cage and Aviary Cleaner

Avitech, 800-646-BIRD; www.avitec.com

Doodle Disinfectant Spray

Doodle, 636-257-7005; www.doodleproducts.com

Nok Out Sterilant

Parrotdise Perch, 888-243-2194; www.parrotdiseperch.com

Poop Off

Life’s Great Products, 760-510-2782; www.lifesgreatproducts.com

Brushes/Wipes

EZ Care 6-1 Cage Cleaning Kit

Super Pet, 847-956-1130; www.superpetusa.com

Simple Solution Bird Cage Wipes

800-272-6336; www.simplesolution.com

Lixit Bottle Brush

Lixit, 800-358-8254; www.lixit.com

Deep Cleaning – Once a week

Deep cleaning tips:

1. Scrub your bird’s cage from top to bottom with a bird-safe cleaner.  Roll the cage outside, and use a pressure washer or backyard hose to spray it down.
2. Soak the perches, dishes, and toys in a bird-safe solution and rinse with water.

Cleaners

Royal Cage Cleaner

King’s Cages International, 732-698-9800; www.kingscages.com

AviClean Non-Rinse Cage and Aviary Cleaner

Avitech, 800-646-BIRD; www.avitec.com

Doodle Disinfectant Spray

Doodle, 636-257-7005; www.doodleproducts.com

Nok Out

Parrotdise Perch, 888-243-2194; www.parrotdiseperch.com

Avian Solution Rx

Earth’s Balance, 877-364-6648; www.earthsbalance.com

Brushes

EZ Care 6-1 Cage Cleaning Kit

Super Pet, 847-956-1130; www.superpetusa.com

Perch Brush

Penn Plax; www.pennplax.com

Air Cleaners

Exotic Bird Air System

JWR Exotic Bird Environment Air Systems, 800-939-BIRD; www.aircleanersforbirds.com

BioGS HEPA Filtration System

Rabbit Air, 888-866-8862; www.rabbitair.com

Feeders

Tidy Seed

Tidy Seed, 386-752-0717; www.tidyseed.com

Above information adapted from Bird Talk June 2009

This article is borrowed from Barbara Heidenreich with the owner’s permission.

Wow. That Bird Sure Can Scream!

By Barbara Heidenreich

www.GoodBirdInc.com

“Screaming. Somebody reinforced the heck out of that behavior.” I said to myself. Misty, a double yellow headed Amazon parrot, lived with me for only a few weeks. She was there so that I could put some of her vocal behaviors on cue. However it quickly became apparent she had a few other behaviors that needed to be addressed first. Before her stay with me she resided with Jill Bell for six years. Prior to that time her history is pretty fuzzy. She is estimated to be 19 years old. This meant screaming could have been reinforced for at least 13 years. It must have been, because it was STRONG. Misty was relentless. I’d leave the room; she’d scream and scream and scream.

She had been a good reminder of what companion parrot owners experience when faced with a very annoying and challenging problem. It can be very frustrating. Oddly enough, when I walk into someone else’s home and hear screaming birds I am usually not effected. But when a bird is screaming specifically, in what feels like a demanding way, to get my attention, it strikes a nerve. How does one find the patience to be a good trainer in those situations? It is not easy, but definitely necessary.

My mantra with Misty was “I am solving the problem. Getting angry or letting that knot in my gut sway my strategy will not give me the desired results. I am confident what I am doing will work. It has worked before with other birds I have trained. Hang in there!”

And it is true, my blue fronted Amazon parrot Tarah also learned to scream for attention. Completely through my own ignorance I reinforced screaming. I acquired Tarah, as many people do, when he was offered to me for free. At the time I was working in a veterinary hospital. One of my co-workers also worked part time in a pet store. Someone had walked in off of the street and sold her the bird for $100. Was the bird stolen, smuggled or desperately unwanted? I don’t know. My co-worker found she was overwhelmed with too many animals in her home and asked if I would be interested in watching the bird for awhile. (That “while” has turned in 18 years.)

Once in my apartment I was thrilled when Tarah offered a “hello” at the sight of me snacking on a piece of bread. However the enchantment wore off as Tarah began to scream anytime I was out of sight. Unaware of how to stop this undesired behavior, I did as many do, I ran back into the room each time Tarah screamed and told him to “Be quiet.” Did it work to stop the screaming? No, and at the same time I found I very much disliked my attempts at punishing reactions to the undesired behavior. I so enjoy having animals respond positively to my presence and did not want to become an unpleasant experience in my bird’s life in order to stop the screaming behavior.

While in the middle of dealing with this problem, I was introduced to the book “Don’t Shoot the Dog” by Karen Pryor. (Also known as the bible of animal trainers) As I read the book, I latched onto two important principles that could help me address the screaming problem. Extinction and differential reinforcement. Extinction is described as the process of discontinuing reinforcing a behavior that has been previously reinforced. In other words part of my strategy should include discontinuing offering reinforcers for screaming. This meant I should no longer run back into the room, or yell at Tarah. The book did not describe the exact situation I was experiencing with my bird. Rather it described the principles and how to apply them to a variety of examples, human and animal. In reading the words, I made the connection that the concepts could apply to any behavior I no longer wanted to continue. Paired with the principle of extinction was the strategy of differential reinforcement of an alternate behavior. In other words, if screaming would no longer work to get a response from me, what would? For Tarah this turned out to be a whistle.  In the middle of a session of screaming and me doing my best to ignore this undesired behavior, Tarah offered a “whistle”. I immediately reinforced this by responding with the word “good”. Tarah replied with a scream. This was because at this point he only had one repetition of whistling being positively reinforced and an entire  year of screaming being reinforced.  However I remained consistent with my strategies and within two weeks time Tarah learned to whistle instead of scream when he wanted a response from me. 17 years later Tarah whistles when he wants to know where I am, when he desires a toy or treat, when I come home, and when he simply seems to be “happy”. The undesired screaming behavior was extinguished and replaced with a whistling sound.

Misty seemed to throw a kink in our now peaceful, well behaved and relatively quiet household. I “knew” from my past experience that I could repeat the process I had implemented with Tarah. However this time proved to be a bit more challenging. Because I was working out of the home at the time, it meant no breaks from dealing with the behavior problem. Every time I left the room I was challenged with having to be focused on training this bird. I was finding this to be very demanding. In addition there were times in the day when mentally I was just not prepared to train. Rather than feeling inspired to train and ready to resolve the behavior problem, I found myself dreading having to leave a room and work with Misty. I decided I needed to better set myself up for success. In getting to know Misty, who other than the screaming behavior, I found to be a delight, I learned that in the past she was accustomed to being covered at night. I took advantage of this and decided to leave Misty covered during the time in the morning I needed to shower and prepare breakfast and bird diets in the kitchen. This allowed me time to peacefully attend to necessary tasks in the morning. After this, I found I was less stressed and more prepared to begin a training session with Misty.

Throughout the day I would treat each time I left the room for whatever reason as a learning opportunity for Misty. I practiced my strategy of extinguishing screaming by not responding to it, followed by reinforcing a desired behavior. In Misty’s case the desired behavior was not a specific sound. Instead I chose to reinforce silence. My plan was to reinforce small increments of time of silence and gradually increase the duration Misty was silent before I would reinforce her with my presence or attention. If I was in the kitchen I would wait just outside of her view while she screamed. At first if she offered a pause in screaming that seemed the slightest second longer than what she had presented in between screams in the past, I would quickly appear and offer generous amounts of attention. I wanted quiet to receive a greater amount of positive reinforcement than screaming if I could. Overtime I gradually increased the amount of time she remained quiet before I would respond. And it worked!

However this was not without challenges. There were times throughout the day when a training session was not convenient for me when I needed to leave the room. Rather than cover Misty I opted for engaging her in other acceptable activity. For example, I often offered Misty a small cardboard box, a rolled up ball of newspaper, a new toy, or a portion of her diet just prior to leaving the room. This gave Misty another activity to focus on instead of screaming. But it also was not an opportunity for Misty to learn that screaming would not gain my attention and quiet would. It was still important to include training sessions throughout the day. The other activity was meant only to offer a break from training for me. This may have also lengthened the amount of time it took overall to teach Misty that screaming no longer would work.

Another challenge in training Misty was that Tarah was in the same room as Misty. Tarah would whistle at times when I left the room. While I wanted to respond to his whistle, I did not want to also then accidentally reinforce Misty’s screaming. My strategy had to be to only reinforce Tarah’s whistle if Misty was not screaming. If I was focused on the training session, I also found I could position myself so that Tarah could see me, but Misty could not. This allowed me to reinforce Tarah’s “good” behavior and wait for Misty to offer silence before responding to her.

Misty’s screaming also appeared to stimulate an occasional screaming behavior in Tarah as well. Fortunately because he had a strong reinforcement history for a whistle, I simply waited for him to offer a whistle before I would respond. Tarah quickly returned to offering a whistle and once again extinguished screaming.

Misty also would on occasion scream for my attention while I was in the room. When this occurred, I simply left the room. Again my thought process was to teach her that screaming now created the opposite response. Instead of people coming to her, people go away. It was also important to reinforce her with attention at times for being quiet while I was in the room as well.

Overall training Misty to present silence to gain my attention took about 6 weeks to train. Obviously this was longer than it took to change Tarahs behavior. This could have been a result of the strength of the behavior in each bird based on their individual positive reinforcement histories. It could have also been a result of the fewer training sessions applied to Misty during the given amount of time. It could also be a factor of the birds as individual learners. In any case the end result was a bird that successfully learned to present desired behavior for attention as opposed to the undesired behavior of screaming.

I went through the emotional gamut that many companion parrot owners face when addressing screaming problems. However by focusing on good training strategy and allowing myself opportunities to relieve myself of the stress associated with addressing the problem I was able to attain my desired training goal. Screaming for attention is a behavior problem with a solution. Set yourself up for success and invest the time to train the desired behavior. The end result can be a lifetime of good behavior.

Tips to address screaming for attention

• Extinguish screaming.
• Reinforce any other behavior besides screaming.
• Remember the extinction burst is a good sign! The end might be insight. Change your feeling from frustrated to hopeful when your bird really goes for it.
• If you need to leave the room, but can’t focus on training, offer another positively reinforcing activity prior to leaving the room. This may buy you a short window of time to move freely between rooms without screaming behavior. However you will still need to include training sessions at some point.
• Get some earplugs to help you cope with the screaming during the extinction burst.
• Plan to wait in the other room. Prepare in advance a quiet activity you can do when trying to deal with a screaming session.
• Leave the room immediately when your bird screams for your attention.
• Manage your activities to help set yourself up for success. For example keep the lights off or your bird covered for a few extra minutes in the morning until you are prepared to deal with the screaming with good training strategies.
• Get support. If neighbors are having a problem with your screaming parrot, explain to your neighbors that you are working on training your bird not to scream.
• Count seconds in intervals of silence and increase if possible.
• Focus on fixing the problem instead of your frustration.
• Believe you will get there. This strategy does work.
• Keep notes if necessary to determine how and when this behavior maybe getting reinforced. Eliminate any reinforcers for screaming.
• Offer even more reinforcers for the desired behavior than the undesired behavior would normally receive in the past.

© Copyright 2006. First appeared in the Volume 2 Issue 1 Spring 2006 Good Bird® Magazine.

For more information on training your parrot visit www.GoodBirdInc.com

Barbara has been a professional in the field of animal training since 1990.
She owns and operates a company, Good Bird, Inc., (www.GoodBirdInc.com) that provides behavior and training products to the companion parrot community. These products include Good Bird Magazine, books, videos, and training/behavior workshops. Barbara has provided behavior workshops and/or animal training presentations at the Association of Avian Veterinarians conference, The American Federation of Aviculture conference, The International Parrot Conference at Loro Parque, Parrot Festival, The International Association of Avian Trainers and Educators conference, American Association of Zoo Keepers conference, Association of Zoos and Aquariums conference, The Parrot Society of Australia conference and many more. She is a past president of the International Association of Avian Trainers and Educators (www.IAATE.org) and served  on the Board of Directors from 1997-2009. Her expertise has been utilized by the US Dept. of Agriculture, Fish and Wildlife Service and numerous international professional organizations.

She is the author of “Good Bird! A Guide to Solving Behavior Problems in Companion Parrots” by Avian Publications and also “The Parrot Problem Solver. Finding Solutions to Aggressive Behavior” by TFH Publications. She is also the producer of the Good Bird Parrot Behavior and Training DVD series.

Barbara’s experience also includes consulting on animal training in zoos and other animal related facilities. She has been a part of the development and production of more than 15 different free flight education programs. Barbara continues to provide consulting services to zoos, nature centers and other animal facilities through her other company Animal Training and Consulting Services. In her career she has trained animals, trained staff, and/or presented shows at facilities around the world.

Among the hundreds of parrot species kept as pets, budgies (also known as budgerigars or parakeets) have a reputation for being extremely prone to cancer. It’s a very sad and unfortunate fact, and due to the perception that they’re not as valuable as some other species, research as to why they develop tumors and what can be done for them is extremely lacking.

I recently saw a budgie who I diagnosed with a renal (kidney) tumor, which is why I wanted to take the opportunity to help inform other bird owners about this condition. The owner brought the bird in because he was not using one of his legs. Naturally, he thought maybe the bird broke his leg or injured it somehow. But there was no fracture palpable–it was just paralyzed.

I took a radiograph (xray) to confirm my suspicion–a renal tumor was pressing on the sciatic nerve, causing paralysis of the one leg. Sadly, there is no suggested treatment. Their small size precludes a surgical option, as these tumors tend to be invasive.

I know of one case report of carboplatin being used for palliative treatment in a budgie with renal adenocarcinoma. The bird was 6 years old and had been showing symptoms of leg weakness for 1 week prior to going to see a veterinarian. Xrays confirmed a tumor, and they elected to try carboplatin, a chemotherapeutic drug that has been used for the treatment of advanced ovarian carcinoma in women (as well as other cancer types). The bird in the case report showed some temporary improvement but passed away 3 months after starting treatment.

When asked how long a budgie with a renal tumor has left, my answer is always, “it depends.” In my experience, they may pass away on their own within a week or a month, sometimes longer. Despite their inability to use their leg or foot, I do not feel it is a painful condition. However, euthanasia is a very appropriate option that should be considered.

Another budgie with renal tumor and leg paralysis

Some female cockatiels can be very “hormonal” and lay eggs even when there is no male bird around. This happened recently to a cockatiel who came to Olathe Animal Hospital on emergency because she was trying to lay an egg but she became egg-bound. This means she was unable to pass the egg. This particular bird has been a regular egg-layer (a few every month, according to the owenrs), but this is the first time she ran into trouble.

The owner knew something was wrong when she observed her bird sitting at the bottom of the cage and the feathers were moving up and down with every breath, and she didn’t seem quite right.

When I examined her, I could feel a large swelling (the egg) in her abdomen. With the owner’s permission, I anesthetized the cockatiel with isoflurane gas and was able to gently massage the egg out of her. The egg was intact with a soft shell. Massaging the egg out in an awake bird can be very dangerous, as there is more muscle tone (resistance) and you can rupture the egg. By anesthetizing her, she relaxed completely and made this procedure relatively easy. I gave her an injection of dexamethasone Na-P to help with inflammation of her reproductive tract, and sent her home on antibiotics (compounded Baytril).

To help prevent excessive egg laying, I recommend or offer the following options:

• Make sure the bird receives 12 hours of total dark and quiet at bedtime. This may mean putting her in a small “bedtime” cage in a different room, away from the TV and family conversation.
• Limit handling and petting. Petting the bird on the back or under the wings stimulates her ovaries and puts her into mating mode. You can still have her out with you, but try to minimize petting and cuddling.
• Start hormone therapy with Lupron injections. The above measures alone may be enough to shut down a female bird’s need to reproduce. But some birds–and you know the ones I’m talking about–seem to always be ready to breed and lay eggs! These birds may benefit from Lupron injections, a hormone that can help quiet down over-active ovaries. Call Olathe Animal Hospital and speak to one of our avian veterinarians to learn more about this option and whether it’s right for your bird.

Things weren’t looking good for this Double-yellow headed Amazon parrot–she was 40 years old, had eaten seeds (sunflower seeds are her favorite!) her whole life, and she had just broken her wing (complete fracture of the right radius and ulna) after falling off her perch. The fact that she has not been on a healthy avian diet for such a long time can seriously affect her body’s ability to heal bone.

Surgery was the only hope of saving her broken wing. After checking blood work, which was delightfully normal, veterinarian J.C. Burcham performed surgery and placed an external fixator placed on her wing to stabilize the broken bones. Birds have some special requirements to ensure a safe anesthetic procedure. We placed an endotracheal tube to ensure an open airway and facilitate regular breathing. Birds also need to be kept warm so she on a circulating water blanket. We placed an intraosseous catheter in the ulna (on the opposite wing) so we could administer a balanced fluid solution during her surgery. This helps keep her blood pressure up, a crucial step in avian surgery.

Broken wing before surgery

An intramedullary pin joins the fragments of ulna together, while the fixator makes the wing more stable during recovery

Radiographs (xrays) were taken post-operatively to ensure correct placement of the pins, and she was sent home the following day. In all, she stayed in the hospital 3 days and received pain medication to help with the pain of surgery.

Six weeks after her surgery, she came back for her routine check-up. She was briefly anesthetized again so we could repeat xrays and the news was good! Adequate callus formation was holding the bones together and the fixator was removed. (The fixator was removed after the xray was taken, which is why you still see pins in this xray.)

6 week post-op recheck shows adequate callus formation and bone healing

Her wing has a slight droop to it, and probably always will, but she’s laughing and singing up a storm (like an Amazon should!), and her owners are pleased.

Not all bird owners want their birds’ wings trimmed, and that’s perfectly okay! In some situations, we feels it’s best to NOT trim the wings. However, when it is time to trim your birds wings, keep in mind the following points:

• Trim both wings equally.
• Trim each feather individually (ie don’t just cut 10 feathers in one fell-swoop of the scissors!), and cut the shaft high enough that the cut edge will be covered by the overlying covert feathers. We can show you what we mean by this the next time you come in.
• Do NOT trim blood feathers (identified by the dark, blood-filled shaft)
• If there are one or more blood feathers present, try to leave another feather next to it uncut. This offers some protection for the fragile blood feather.
• Remember: the goal is to allow your bird to coast safely to the ground. We don’t want “lift” and we don’t want to “drop like a rock”!

Our recommended species-specific trims

• Cockatiels & Budgies – 7-10 feathers
• African Grays & Amazons – 2-3 feathers
• Macaws & Cockatoos – 5-7 feathers

Congo is a wild-caught African Grey Parrot, presumably about 25 years old, who came to us late on a Thursday night because he’d stopped eating. We sent him home after gavaging him (administering formula directly into crop with a tube) and drawing some blood. Due to the time of day, we couldn’t get results until Saturday morning, so he came back in Friday for more gavaging and continued supportive care. We started him on an antibiotic because of some bacterial overgrowth found on a swab of the mouth (“choana” in birds). He went home over the weekend. I called the owner Saturday to let her know that blood work showed his calcium level was low. Following my recommendation, she bought him a full-spectrum bulb (ReptiSun 5.0) and offered him scrambled eggs with eggshell mixed in, and by Monday (this morning), he’s feeling much better! He loves to spend time under his light and is eating well on his own again. I gave him a calcium injection and recommended that we recheck blood calcium levels in 6 mos.

We know that African Greys are susceptible to hypocalcemia, and this is a perfect example of a happy outcome for this bird. It illustrates the importance of a healthy diet. We recommend Harrison’s Bird Diet – High Potency for African Greys because of this concern. Currently, Congo eats mostly seed, but we’ll be working on switching him to a better diet!