He's really cute BUT am I the only one who is surprised by the lack of quarantine???
Crimson- you've had your share of bad luck, is it really wise bringing in a new bird and not making sure he's healthy first? It's a big risk for your entire flock
Echo-thanks for your concern... if you read my post, he slipped out the front door of the cage...and got out. my only other bird out was Tie-Dye....
All my other birds have been in their cages all day, which is rare.
normally I do practice quarantine, but rather than stress him out today, I let him fly around a bit before I put him away in his cage.
I also know he came from a breeder, who I know, and is a very good one.
all of his birds are disease tested with negative results.
I'm not attacking you or want to be negative, and really, it is your responsibility and choice. I had a very big scare with a bird I got from a reputable breeder and usually I quarantine in a detached garage, but it was winter so I put him at opposite end and level of the house (stupid). I sent all my blood samples for disease testing and it came back positive for PBFD. I personally talked to the lab technician who performed the test and he really was grim as far as the life of all my other parrots, the disease being airborne and them all being under the same roof.
He told me to send more samples as well as environmental ones to redo the test. In the meantime, I brought the bird to a vet to get him tested with a different lab.
It was the worse week of my life waiting for results. I would have to test all the birds and likely lose them all. I had babies (I breed GCC) and feared for their lives. I also would have had to explain to the buyers that their babies were sick with a fatal disease. As a breeder I'm responsible for raising healthy babies and not take any chances. Heck I could have lost them all.
Well turned out that the bird was really negative for PBFD and healthy! Nobody knows how that first result came back positive ( possibly a cross contamination at the lab). The environmental sample was negative too. My vet confirmed all good at her end as well.
All this to say that I will NEVER take another chance, don't care where the bird comes from. It can happen to the best of breeders and person. I got so scared. The quarantine is in another building and the last time I bought from a breeder, I had her test the baby for a bunch of diseases when she sent in the DNA test for gender. (She was happy to do it as it was testing her aviary as well). And if winter, I'll keep the new bird at a birdless friends house until cleared.
), Heaven, Blue-Tye
