In need of some help.. :(

[kc_y0]

Hey lovelies!

Yes it has been agessss and I have some updated news, but I'll get to that later! I have a problem, I've hit a serious unforeseen finicial situation an basically need to move as soon as I can as well, so I'm a bit stressed and my account is in minus. Of course this comes at a time where my arty boi seems to fall sick. I called my vet and they do not offer payment plans so basically I'm a bit stuck for a least a few weeks.
So what can I so. Arty (budgie) has started a strange sneeze coughing and it's started to happen during the night as well. His activity and eating are all the same so otherwise he seems fine but I know birds hides symptoms. I know no one can tell me what's wrong except for a vet but does anyone know any home remedies that I can try out?! I'm desperate and want to get my baby boy feeling better as soon as I can :'( I'm so stressed out it's not funny. I guess if he's sick my other birds would also be sick too! :'(

 

[Kiwibird]

I'm so sorry this has hit you all at once. Unfortunately, theres not a whole lot you can do treatment wise without a vet prescribing antibiotics or doing tests. What you can do at home is isolate him from your other birds (in case its communicable), check in on him frequently, make sure he's eating/drinking and get him under a heat lamp ASAP. Keeping his cage half-covered during the day might also help promote rest until he's feeling better. Just another thought- are you packing things up to move? If so, you might be stirring up a little dust and thats why he's having respiratory symptoms but no other signs of illness. I'm not a vet, but I know when we recently moved everyone (including Kiwi) was sneezing from dust. Good luck, I hope he has a speedy recovery.

 

[kc_y0]

Thank you for your reply! I wouldn't give him any antibiotics or anything without a vet consent, I just thought maybe there is some fruit or food mixture or some kind of remedy that could help him & his immunity until I can get him to the vet
I live in Aus, so a heat lamp isn't needed at the moment haha, its been very warm!! But he's drinking and eating fine, he's a pig actually, he loves his spinach and kale, when I walk outside with it he jumps up on the cage and starts eating it before I've even put it into his cage lol!
I did consider the dust as a problem, as the other birds are a little sneezy, but Artys problem is different Its like a coughing kind of sensation and I didn't have much luck looking up coughing budgies. He also shares his cage with another budgie who is NOT showing these symptoms or sneezing or anything, so that makes me wonder? I can't even separate them because I only have the one cage for them :'(
You know what they say, when it rains, it pours... My gosh, I haven't been in this much trouble ever I don't think! I never thought I'd be stuck in this situation either, as I have had savings all of my working life, but this year has been nothing but bills, bills & more bills!

 

[Kiwibird]

Heres some information on respiratory infections in budgies- Birds Online - Health and diseases - Infectious diseases - Cold (sneeze)
Here are some homeopathic remedies that may be helpful (please use common sense, as he hasn't been seen by a vet)-
HolisticBirds.org
birds and holistic veterinary medicine. Homeopathy for animals. Alternative health.

Hope things improve for you, and hope Archie gets to feeling better.

 

[kc_y0]

I've looked up some herbal teas for birds, what do you think on that? There is anise seed tea which is supposed to be able to help with respiratory infections (like coughing or sneezing) it seems promising and a lot of people swear by it!

Thank you for that website, I've had a look on there. There is no mucus or anything which is weird. In fact I found a youtube video which is very similar to what Arty is doing, [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDuUdqUv0d0]Budgie is coughing - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Kiwibird]

It does sound like the bird in the video could be "coughing", but I have little experience with the smaller birds, so I'm not sure what is and isn't normal for them noise-wise. I do think anise may be something to try. It's definitely safe for birds to consume. I put a piece of anise in Kiwi's dish every morning because it freshens his breath and he seems to like the taste. It has a "licorice" smell to it, and may help with decongestion going by the smell. It's worth a try to brew a tea with it and it's not expensive. Though be sure to only give cold or lukewarm tea, as they aren't accustomed to drinking hot beverages.

 

[witchbaby]

Have you looked into using CareCredit to pay for a vet visit?

 

[kc_y0]

I was going to give it to them in their water haha so I think it should be alright! I wonder when I can actually get anise from!

I am in Australia, I don't think that applies over here. =[

 

[Kalidasa]

You can usually find anise in fruit market/grocers/farmers markets. hope your budgie feels better...that his appetite is normal is a good sign.

 

[Frumpydumple]

Erik (Sun Conure) just had a similar problem to your Budgie. He had red nares, coughing just like the bird in the video and the vet said he had a crackle in his lungs. He needed Baytril (Enrofloxacin antibiotic). He is fine now. So I do think your Budgie will need antibiotics to fully treat him. But you can try anise in the meantime, I'm sure it will help. Erik was coughing for a few weeks before we even took him to a vet, so Arty should be fine for a few weeks.

 

[crimson]

awwww casey....I sure hope he gets better. I can't really offer any advice other than to take him to a vet.

I know what it's like not to have the cash, it literally can be so frustrating!

I would try and give him loads of protein, cooked egg yolk with broccoli is a favourite.
hopefully he can pull himself thru this....but like frumpydumple said, he really needs some baytril.

 

[kc_y0]

Thank you everyone! Don't worry, I will get him to a vet as soon as I can, but that wont be for at LEAST 3 weeks yet! Stupid money!!! And thats if nothing else goes wrong that I have to fork out for! I am happy he is still himself though. He doesn't have a red nose or anything either, so that might be a good sign, its just the coughing symptom that he has. At first I thought maybe hes mimicking something but now I know he isn't when he started doing it during the night. Hopefully the anise will make him feel better in the mean time and I will also get him in the shower and make it all steamy so he can breath in some steam!

 

[MonicaMc]

I've had some good luck using milk thistle extract.


Any new updates on how he's doing?