Quarantine in Multibird Homes

[LeslieA]

I rescue and rehome older birds and keep either a breeder baby or a pet store baby for my own sanity. Based on my experience and the recommendations of my AV, quarantine is 30- 90 days for older or medium to large parrots and 30- 45 days for medium and smaller birds, all depending on test results. Luckily, I get AV discounts based on history, etc. so take each bird at the beginning and, again, at the end of quarantine before mingling with my flock. The quarantine period is then followed by a 7- 10 day "familiarity" period. For example, my Blue-crowned Conure had a quarantine of 45 days while my GCC only 30. My WCP got 60 days of quarantine.

Since many members and bird owners are familiar with Drs. Foster and Smith, I will cite their article about introducing a new bird. https://m.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article.cfm?aid=672
Not only do they explain simply the common recommendation of 30- 90 days, steps to introduction are included. Even experienced multibird owners need this refresher with every bird!

Please, reply with your thoughts, experiences and comments.

 

[ChristaNL]

Actually, I always welcome new (and even old) insights in the world of parrots.
So... once again: thank you for this one

 

[EllenD]

It's always a great idea to read anything and everything you can find on a topic, especially when it comes to medicine/science/animal health science, etc. Even if you don't personally agree with something you read, it's another angle/take on a subject or topic that you can keep in your memory-bank and realize that some people follow.

As far as the quarantining goes, I wish more people would simply follow the very basic 30-day quarantine of putting the new bird into a different room. Unfortunately, more and more, we're seeing that people not only don't follow any type of quarantine protocol at all when they bring home a new bird, but they are actually putting the new bird right inside the cage of the bird(s) they already have, without any quarantine or introduction...And with so many people buying more and more parrots from pet shops like Petco, they absolutely need to practice at least the very basic, 30-day quarantine processes (they are selling a huge number of both Green Cheek Conures and Sun/Jenday Conures, as well as some Black Capped Conures and Cockatiels now too). All of these Petco birds (and even smaller pet shop's birds who do not breed their own) come from extremely large "Vendors" as they call them, which are no more than Bird-Mills where they are not at all "hand-fed" or "hand-raised" like Petco labels them, but rather simply pulled from the parents at whatever age, who knows, kept in huge Brooders, and then quickly Tube-Fed and put back in the Brooders, with hundreds and hundreds of other babies and breeding-pairs...So they are all being exposed for weeks to months to both active bacterial and fungal infections in other birds, not to mention a huge number of different parasites, both internal and external, and then of course lethal diseases such as PFBD, which is usually contracted in baby birds...

I like how your Vet/Rescue does their quarantining...The Avian/Reptile Rescue that I have worked at for years practices a similar quarantining process with both the birds and the reptiles, but they also take into account the situation in which they came from, and any past medical history we may have on them...And if we have no history on them at all, which is very common, then we always Assume that they're sick", and they automatically go into quarantine for at least 60 days regardless.

I'm the Medical-Liaison at the Rescue, and I do all of the intake-exams/assessments on every bird and reptile/amphibian who comes into the Rescue, and I always sit down with the owners who are surrendering them to do a History on them whenever possible. Then after my initial assessment, they either go right into the automatic 60-day quarantine with no restrictions/requirements, go into the 60-day quarantine awaiting a trip to our CAV or CRV, or go immediately to our CAV or CRV if possible, or if not straight to the local 24/7 Emergency Animal Hospital. It's a system that has worked very well, since we don't have the luxury of having an in-house Veterinarian...I also write-up a sheet on their temperaments/behaviors and their socialization gets a score by me, and this goes straight to one of the people who do the training/socialization with our birds, and with the larger reptiles who need to be socialized, as they are species who should be interacting regularly with their owners, such as Iguanas, Tegus, Monitors, Bearded Dragons, and the land Turtles and Tortoises.

***And while it's very rare that an illness slips by us, though it does happen on-occasion with the birds (reptiles are usually pretty easily diagnosed, as they aren't nearly as good at hiding their illnesses as birds are), the reason for that is simply the quarantine process...Something that I like about the quarantine process that you are using is that it's really the only way that a quarantine can account for a bird's ability to hide any and all outward signs and symptoms of illness. This is something that even Vets forget about! I get so upset when a Vet gives a bird a "certificate of health" based on only a Wellness-Exam that is completely physical/visual, and includes no diagnostic tests at all. Typically when a Vet who is not an Avian Specialist does a visual/physical "exam" without running any diagnostic tests, not even a Fecal, calls it a "wellness exam", and then gives the owner/breeder/pet shop a "Certificate of Health", they never explain that the new owner of the bird still needs to do at least a 30-day quarantine, as birds hide all signs and symptoms of illness until they are extremely ill!!! So most people who are new to owning birds and to bird health automatically assume that because the bird was sold by the breeder/pet shop with a "certificate of health", or because they took their new bird to a Vet and their "wellness exam" resulted in the Vet giving the bird a "clean bill of health", that this means that no quarantine is necessary at all! This is very upsetting, and totally unfair to the new owner of the bird, who thinks they were doing the responsible thing and that their new bird has no infections, illnesses, or diseases.

****And to any Vet out there who regularly do "Wellness Exams" for breeders and pet shops, and who regularly give people a "Certificate of Health" that is solely based on only a visual and physical exam and that's it, no diagnostics, Let's Get Real... How hard is it for you guys to at least include a Fecal Test for bacteria, fungi/yeast,
and common parasites in your "Wellness Exam" Fee? Seriously? The typical "Wellness Exam" fee is between $80-$150, and that is only for the visual/physical exam and weighing, along with the "Health Certificate", which you all know does not in any way "guarantee" the health of the bird, reptile, etc. that you're simply looking at and maybe palpating a bit...I mean, what, do you guys have x-ray vision, ESP, or special powers that just tell you that the pet is "healthy", simply by you looking at them? It's a terrible Vet practice, especially when you can now buy simple, automatic ELISA tests for everything, which require no medical education, thought-processes, or really even effort at all to perform, and that when ordered in-bulk cost about $1-$5 each. They are no more difficult than peeing on the stick of a pregnancy test and waiting for the color-change or the lines to appear in the little window...I think you guys could squeeze a couple of these into your $100 "Wellness Exam" fee for free...damn.

So this is why these specialized and longer-than-usual Quarantine processes are absolutely necessary in this day and age, especially if a bird is going into a Rescue/Shelter, or is coming from a pet shop or even a private breeder.

 

[LeslieA]

Unfortunately, I read more and more about the time and distance to visit an actual avian vet, so owners take unnecessary chances. I made the mistake of taking my Sun Conure to a regular vet for a nail trim. I took my own KwikStop (I'm a worrier.) and am glad I did! Now my fid can't climb up me like she did and doesn't trust that she'll just land as easily as before. Be warned: Groomers and many vets even may treat bird nails like dog nails! They're not the same!

CAVs are hard to come by sometimes but are worth the drive even for seemingly minor trims! I'm lucky... My AV is only 3 hours away in the next state. I make a day of it. The AV keeps my bird(s) while I go to their city's stores.

It may be several hours from you, but, again, it's worth the drive! I keep a pad attached to my fridge for when my phone isn't in my hand to write done questions, comments, symptoms, changes, etc. so not to forget then read everything off to my AV. Not only are you helping yourself and your bird, you're helping your AV!

Please know also, birds have personalities and preferences. You don't like and become best friends with every person you meet. Don't expect it of your birds! If you had to live with your best friend or spouse 24/7, you probably wouldn't stay BFFs for long or divorce might be imminent!

So, I say look out for your flock's health with sanitary conditions and quarantines, slowly introduce the new bird, don't assume their friendships, be happy an AV exists and realize your bird's health is in your and your AV's hands.

Ooh Ooh Ooh What about other pets?