Rio has ABV

[Cheekie]

After three bouts with antibiotics we have found out that our 16 week old B&G has Avian Borna Virus. She has started celebrex yesterday and we are praying for the best. I would appreciate any info on how to deal with this the best that we can, for we know that it is a two sided road: 1) if meds work and/or she is a "carrier" she can live a good life 2) things could progressively get worse.

 

[triordan]

my bird was also disgnosed with it, and I understand most birds will too~ Remington's must have been passed from his mother because he never had any contact with birds prior to testing...What type of testing was done to confirm diagnosis? was your bird also tested for PDD? It is my understanding that all birds with PDD have borna, but not all birds with Borna have PDD
I was told by my vet that at the age of 15 it was probably in some sort of remission and the stress of being rehomed could have triggered it~

 

[MaraWentz]

I'm so sorry, first you need to contact whoever you got her from and tell them. Second, keep her away form any other birds and always, always wash your hands after dealing with any of their fecal matter. I would switch to a food that aids in digestion to elongate her life, since it's ability to digest (or lack there of) is what can lead to death. It often turns to PDD, but not in every case. It's such an unknown virus, how to stop it and how it's spread are quite a mystery. I am so sorry for the bad news. On the bright side ABV is not always fatal, just the PDD, so as long as it doesn't progress to PDD there is a chance for a well lived, long life. Just keep the stress down and keep her in easily digested foods.

 

[MaraWentz]

Please talk to your breeder if she was not tested by her prior to you getting her for ABV and ask them to stop selling and breeding their birds, and if they don't, I personally would report them for selling sick birds. Most breeders test for ABV, and since it;s not clear how it's transmitted (just feces, cole interaction, air, etc) any bird, of another species, sex, different clutch could have it.

 

[Cheekie]

She has not been tested for PDD. Doc said to get back with him in 2 weeks unless she takes a down turn and is still loosing weight. Currently, since she is weaning, I feed her ground Harrisons High Potency coarse in formula form and wetted Zupreem natural pellets (we try to get 40-50 g/day/dry weight), as well as offering vita prima hookbill mix, pecans, almonds, walnuts, peanuts, peas, corn, brocolli, black bean, rice, fruit, etc. I have also started her on Sunshine Factor palm oil supplement. She doesn't eat well on her own right now. Even made birdie bread.

p.s. the sunshine factor palm oil is like "crack" to her! WOW she loves it!

 

[Birdlover11]

Always give her natural or organic pellets as thier more easy to digest. Hope she gets better

 

[OtterKin]

Reading this thread made me paranoid. Researching it makes me feel like all birds have it- isn't it fun researching medical stuff on the internet? :11: I feel like I could diagnose myself with life-threatening illness, much less my birds.
I have mostly found mentions of bigger birds suffering from it. What's the real likelihood that my healthy-looking birds could have it? Should I test them all?

I wish Rio well and hopefully a full recovery.

 

[Cheekie]

Always give her natural or organic pellets as thier more easy to digest. Hope she gets better

We feed her USDA Organic Harrisons High Potentcy Coarse gound up for formula and wetted Zupreem natural pellets for hand feeding. (Harrisons is terrible for wetted, it turns to mush)

 

[Cheekie]

Reading this thread made me paranoid. Researching it makes me feel like all birds have it- isn't it fun researching medical stuff on the internet? :11: I feel like I could diagnose myself with life-threatening illness, much less my birds.
I have mostly found mentions of bigger birds suffering from it. What's the real likelihood that my healthy-looking birds could have it? Should I test them all?

I wish Rio well and hopefully a full recovery.

For what I have learned, keep a close eye on the weight and have a good feel for your bird(s) behavior, attitude, condition, habits, etc. ABV PDD is very hard for the scientific experts to put their finger on. But, yea the more I read the more I thought the worst for Rio. Since she's been on celebrex she has def gotten better, but that could go bad or better, only time and close attn will tell.