I think i have a sick Kakariki, please help! :(

[LoveMyKaks]

Hi im new to this! my first thread! The reason i joined up is as im really worried about my kaks. I have a yellow female called Sunny and a green male named Boss. We bought Sunny in early March and then bought Boss a month later, it took them a while to get on, as Boss being bossy, he took over and let sunny know who the dominant one was, even though it was her home first! But then they started to get really close, Boss would regurgitate for Sunny at least 10 times a day, every day. Then they started mating at least 4 times a day! But Boss would still pick on her sometimes. Sunny then decided to start plucking. She plucked herself that much she found it hard to fly. We bought some medicine and she eventually stopped. They carried on in love for a while until the other day, sunny started avoiding Boss, everytime he went near her she would bite himor fly off (which she has never done before) she wont let him regurgitate for her anymore, they have stopped having sex. But i think its really affecting Boss, he has changed so much. He used to be so happy,chirpy, loud and bossy and these past few days he just been sleeping LOADS, his feathers are constantly fluffed up, his eyes look sad, he keeps hiding in his long cardboard tubes attached to the ceiling, he stays in there for hours at a time, its just not like him at all?? Any ideas on why sunny has decided to all of a sudden reject Boss? And does anybody know what could be wrong with Boss? Its almost like hes suffering a broken heart. Please help thankyou

 

[LoveMyKaks]

Also, when he's hiding in his tube, we call his name and he just does a little whimpery cry

 

[MikeyTN]

IF your really that worried about them, take them to a Avian Vet and have them checked out. As they should be anyways cause anything can be wrong with them and they can be sick without you knowing it, once you realize how sick they are, it's probably too late.

 

[LoveMyKaks]

Ok thankyou Mikey!! the only thing is i cant seem to find one around my area! but i will have to find one somehwere!! thanks for replying so quickly aww willie is gorgous, ive always wanted a macaw but i am only 19 so will have to wait till i am older!!

 

[Adinafloyd]

Aww...so sad. You really do need to get em to a vet, like last post said, Birds do not show signs of illness until its progressed, so the sooner you rule out illness the better. good luck

 

[Alisana]

Birds are known for being able to see in the Ultraviolet spectrum, and sometimes a female will pick a male based on that colouration - basically, excellent plumage.

If a male is sick, this shows up in the plumage and is a big red flag for females - whereas a male with excellent plumage boasts that he is free from any sicknesses and that his genes/health are in top condition.

The animosity between the 'pair' and the lethargic behaviour clearly demonstrate something is very wrong. Sunny knows this and is avoiding him/keeping him away from her so that she doesn't get sick either/allow him to pass on 'faulty genes'. In which case it could be an infection, illness or something else.

Get Boss to an avian vet as soon as you can.

The OTHER possibility could be behavioural related and he may be suffering from depression. He may be 'in' season, but she may be 'off' season now.

I'm more leaning towards my first theory, but only an avian vet can confirm that for you.

Side Note: I'm interested in the feather plucking though - could he have introduced a parasite that caused a skin irritation in Sunny and sickness in Boss? Or is the feather plucking behavioural because she didn't want his attention to begin with? And it was a stress coming mechanism?

 

[Alisana]

As a recommendation: If Sunny is behaving normally, put her away from Boss - ideally in a new/clean cage and separate room/other end of house. Viruses/diseases can often shed in the feather down or droppings of birds, so if she isn't sick currently, it might be a good idea to keep her away from Boss until you can confirm what it is.

 

[Pedro]

I would take both birds to the Vet Hun, especially with the male feeding the hen. If you can get hold of a bird/animal probiotic & give both birds. 1teaspoon to 10mls of water & try to give to the birds on a spoon or syringe. Idealy it should be crop fed. The proboitics may help the immune system fight. It sounds like a bacterial infection, probably bought on by stress. You would have to see a Vet poor baby is very sick once in this condition.

 

[LoveMyKaks]

hey guys thanks for all of your help, I didnt manage to get to an avarian vet but boss has chirped up completely these past couple days, back to his normal self,shouting, running around etc, sunny started being with him again and letting him regurgitate for her, then all of a sudden she started rejecting him again yesterday. We found her in her nestbox, we lifted the lid up and she started going mad at us, screaming like she never has before. Then boss tried to go in with her and she started attacking him ( not like her at all ) and the squealing carried on for an hour or so even we werent looking in the box or near it. So we decided to split them up, Sunny is in the spare room with just her nestbox, food water and a bath outside the box. We let her sleep in there overnight while boss slept in our room in his cage. I went to check on her in the morning and she was eating, then went in her nestbox, so i lifted the lid up and she started the weird squealing again!! Does anybody know whats going on now?? Is she going to lay eggs?? if she is, why wont she let boss in the nestbox with her?? whats going on!!!!! ahhh lol thanks guys

 

[henpecked]

Yeah ,sounds like she might lay. Stay out of the box if it stresses her. I think you might let them back together and see if they can't work it out. After you've ruled out illness. But know zero about Kakarikis. Sounds like human imprinting or bonding (interference) could also be an issue. Hand tame pets somtimes have issues as breeders, IMO.

 

[LoveMyKaks]

Hi guys!! omg!! Cant believe it!!! Sunny has been on her own in the spare room for 4 days now and a minute ago she randomly started tweeting like mad ( which she never ever does either, shes probably the quietest bird ever) so i checked on her and she flew out the spare room straight into my room and sat next to boss and then carried on tweeting, she hasnt stopped!! its so unusual because she hasnt tweeted since we got boss and now she wont stop!! she has been rejecting boss for about 2 weeks now and she is completely fine with him!! how strange, im so happy though, even happier over the fact she wont stop tweeting!!!!! thanks everyone for your help, means alot!!! i hope this keeps up, ive been so stressed!!

 

[Thekatsmeow]

How are your Kaks doing? We had a breeding pair in the mid 90's and they were the most fun! I really hope all is well with your babies. Give me an update if you see this.