Puck has a blockage again D:

[roxynoodle]

I'm glad he's doing better! And I'm glad there are different strains; I thought Guardia was Guardia, but it makes sense there are different strains. Our colds are not the same as what horses can get.

I think I'd be sanitizing every few days just in case. I'd do the food and water bowl daily along with the grate just to try to prevent reinfection.

Don't you take him places as well? Don't forget the carrier/travel cage. No, I know you aren't an idiot Just a reminder in case it slipped your mind while worrying about Puck. I do things like that when I'm thinking about my pet instead of it's things.

 

[Remy]

Yeah. Generally, the farther apart one species is from another, the less likely they are to be able to spread diseases. There are some bugs that can jump species, but not most of them.

I'm definitely going to sanitize a bunch of times, especially while he is still on his treatment.

I take him a lot of places. I'm wondering if he may have contracted it outside somewhere. I'll definitely be more careful now.

Will definitely sanitize his big cage, his travel cage, his outside cage, his cage at my boyfriend's house, and his spare cage.... He has a lot of cages. Lol. The spores/cysts of giardia can stick around for up to 2 months, so it'll be important to do.

 

[roxynoodle]

Do you have a well by any chance or city water? I'm wondering if it is in your well if you have one. Or a well at someone's house you go to.

I admit I give my birds only bottled water, but I did see something about aspergillious possibly still being in that. One site I read mentioned it's best to boil all water first for birds and then refrigerate it. I haven't gone that far, but it's been on my mind.

 

[Remy]

Oh, also, the vet threw in a DNA sex test with the other tests. I was right! Puck really is a boy. Haha.

 

[Remy]

RoxyNoodle - Interesting idea! The water in my house is actually from a local well. I thought they chlorinated it though, although the chlorine isn't nearly as strong as it is in the water at my boyfriend's house (I usually don't smell it at home). I'll have to look into that! How would I find out?

 

[merlinsmom13]

Absolutely check your well, for your safety too. I think I'd do bottled water until you figure it out. Wells are bad for water born illness. The local health dept should tell you where to go for testing.

 

[roxynoodle]

Absolutely check your well, for your safety too. I think I'd do bottled water until you figure it out. Wells are bad for water born illness. The local health dept should tell you where to go for testing.

Yes, I take in a sample every year to the county health department for testing. But, just because it tests safe for humans, I'm still not totally trusting it for my birds being so small. I also hate the taste of my water. So the birds, cat and I use bottled water. The horses drink the well water, and I shower and do dishes and laundry in it. But my vet also mentioned that the well can put stuff into the air as well. She asked me if Merlin's previous owners also had a well, and I had to say I don't know. Well, the person who adopted the other 2 birds told me they did. And I know they sometimes gave the well water to the birds. That might explain her having all those bacteria in her.

If you need to chlorinate a well, you open the top, pour in 2 gallons of bleach, let it sit for 24 hours and then you need to use a hose to let it drain for *I think* 12 hours IIRC.

Once chlorinated wells do tend to be very safe unless the casing is going. Safer than the big cement storage tanks some have (the word is on the tip of my tongue for what those are called, grr!), which constantly grow bacteria unless bleached each time they are filled.

 

[roxynoodle]

The big cement storage tanks are called cisterns. I remembered it when I went out to bring the horses in, lol!

Cisterns are nice because you don't have iron or sulfur, but they do grow bacteria like crazy if you don't throw bleach in them frequently.

 

[roxynoodle]

My understanding as well is that chlorinated water is not that great for birds either. Bottled water is probably the safest for drinking no matter what.

 

[Remy]

We don't get to see the wells! Lol. I know they send out a water report every now and then. I'll have to check into it.

Chlorine isn't good for anybody! It's a good idea to let any chlorine evaporate, preferably away from any humans or animals. Some people even claim that it can destroy the good bacteria inside our nasal cavities, leaving us prone to sinus problems.

I don't drink the tap water here, except when it's filtered, because it tastes yucky from all the minerals. We have REALLY hard water. I shower in it (we have a shower filter though), and we usually have filtered water in a water dispenser. Puck may have gotten plain tap water a few times, but I generally only give the filtered stuff. Also, he gets hose water sometimes. That's not filtered. The aviary birds live off it though, and they appear to be healthy.

I have no idea where he could have contracted it. I'm going to start taking more precautions though.

 

[roxynoodle]

Ground water can be contaminated by things. Farm field run off of manure or chemicals for example. Even the cities around here put up advisories here and there to not drink the water without boiling from farm field run off. And that is water that has been treated by them. Or they tell you pregnant women and small children shouldn't drink it. I can't help but think no one should when that happens, lol! So I would have to think animals shouldn't either during those times. So even if I did have city water around here I probably still wouldn't drink it. I don't remember these things happening in Cleveland when I was growing up. But, I suppose Cleveland doesn't have the farm field issue.