Suzy

Having birds can be really rewarding, but because they are so fragile, they can get sick easy and they are harder to take care of when sick. Here are some signs to look for if you think your bird might be sick.

If you notice any of these signs, you should call your local vet that can handle birds. Not all vets will take birds, I found that out the hard way .

inactivity
eyes closed most of the time
feathers fluffed all of the time
"droopy" wings
low, almost horizontal, posture on perch
talking and vocalization stops
eating stops
noisy breathing
frequent sneezing
discharge from nose
tail bobbing with each breath
perching with neck extended and beak grasping wire of cage, (bird does this to keep breathing passages straight to make breathing more effortless)
vomiting
soiled or pasted vent
feathers lost and not replaced
bleeding
weight loss
swelling
changes in water consumption
changes in routine and habits
change in droppings
change in activity level
decrease in preening activity
frequent flicking of the head
remaining at bottom of cage
self mutilation
regression

PAPIA

thank you for your information.I have a parrot and very pretty.Your information will no doubt help me in taking care of my bird.Thanks again

Jazzy

Wow, I was not aware of so many signs that can mean illnes of a bird, thanks for the information and most places would not tell you these things and you just have to find out from the vet.

MissyG

There are sure a lot of symptoms of trouble in birds that people should be aware of. I sure hope some of these would be obvious to any pet owner - like bleeding!

parakeetlover

o ya i think i might have skipped over this but when there's growth appearing on their noses thats what happened to my parakeet and we had to take him to the vet and she gave us some medicine i dont know exactly what he had because my dad took him in

ljack

Thanks so much for that list. There were a few things on there that I didn't know, although I was aware of most. Some of those things are so subtle it's scary.

heaven

Thank you very much for this checklist you have provided. This will be a lot of help for me, especially since I don't have any experience taking care of birds yet. I'm planning to buy a new pet and I'll keep this list. I'll also share this list to my friends who are also bird lovers. Thanks again Suzy!

petlove

This is a comprehensive list. If for someone it is difficult to remember all of them, the best way to remember is the look for most important ones. Inactivity, eyes closed most of the time, feather fluffed all the time are the important ones which can be life threatening.

cessy

Thank you for providing me with this list. It seems one of my lovebirds is indeed sick because I can see several signs mentioned above in it. Is there any medication I could give?

sams

I have just brought in my friend's budgies. They have come as a pair. But I can see they are showing signs no.1 inactivity and no.2 closed eyes. What do you suggest me to do so that they become normal again.