Conference 7.286::pet_birds

    
    I took the bottom grids out of both the finch cage and the cockatiel. 
    I have corn cob on the bottom of both cages and change the finch cage
    weekly (looks pretty clean when I do it) and I dump the cob once a week
    and clean the cage once a week, so the bottom is pretty clean.
    
    I notice that the droppings look fine (well, like other birds I've
    seen,a nd what I've read they should look like).  My question is...I
    thought that cockatiel and finches were both ground eaters.  For some
    reason, the cockatiel wont go to the floor of the cage.  Is it the corn
    cob that keeps them from going???  Also, I notice they'll eat millet
    spray off the fridge but when I give them a honey stick (they'll devour
    it in 24 hours) they won't eat the big pieces that fall to the floor. 
    I dont understand why.    If they eat it so fast, they must love it. 
    Why would they not touch it once it falls??
    
    I do try to give them fruit and veggies and I give them oyster shell
    and wheat germ oil on their fresh food daily.  I buy the food from a
    grain store and not a grocery store.  My cousins friend was feeding both
    birds wild bird seed which was bought in a grocery store.
    
    I guess I'm just afraid that I'm not doing everything right.  I'm
    afraid that the birds will never be quite cuddly.  I think Garkon would
    come around if Ava wasn't around to influence him/her.
    
    Garkon is fearless when it comes to Seisha and the swings etc.  Ava is
    fearless at trying new foods.  It's funny to see the differences
    between them.  They can't stand to be seperated either.  They truly
    seem to love each other and thrive off each others company cuz they
    scream endlessly when they are out of each others sight.  I do love my
    birdies though.
    
    Donna
    

    
    I hate to be a pest, but...
    
    The birds don't talk either. That doesn't really bother me (as long as
    their happy) but shouldn't they be talking? I was told that they were 3
    years old when I got them.  The band on Garkon's leg says 87 and Ava
    doesn't have a band on her leg.  Thank God, she appears to have gone
    through enough trauma.
    
    Donna
    
    Ps...My mother is trying to teach Garkon to "wolf whistle", but it's
    not quite right, but he's trying.  The bird won't do it though unless
    we're all out of the room and he hears my mom whistling in the living
    room.
    
    Maybe it's not a lost cause???

    Donna,
    
    It sounds to me like you have 2 males (just a hunch).  If Garkon (the
    Lutino that you think is a female now?) is trying to whistle, then
    it is probably (although not definitely) a male.  It is tough to tell
    on a Lutino.  As for the bat poses, both my males and females do that.
    It is a way in which they stretch their wings (I currently have 9
    cockatiels).  As for talking, do you mean talking words or chirping?
    As far as teaching them to talk words, it is rather difficult and most
    don't talk readily but can be taught to whistle.
    
    As far as Ava's nose and wing problems, it sounds like she/he has an
    injured wing that may take sometime to heal.  I don't know about the
    nose since I haven't seen it.  It she is not sneezing or having
    discharge emitting, then it may not be serious.  Sometimes my
    cockatiels noses look red or irritated, especially after they stick
    their noses in their water.  However, for peace of mind I would 
    suggest that you have Ava checked out by an avian vet.  
    
    IT takes time and patience for birds to feel comfortable with their
    new surroundings.  Especially with birds that have had little 
    interaction with people.  I'm sure in no time your little guys
    will be adjusted.  Ava sounds like a male to me, especially if
    he is a normal grey.  Only pied females would have a yellow face/head.
    Normal grey males have a clear yellow face with bright orange cheek
    patches.  Normal females have a mostly grey face with a hint of
    yellow and very pale cheek patches.
    
    Keep us updated on your progress!
    
    REGARDS,
    Denise

    
    Hi,
    
    Thanks for your reply...
    
    Ava does sneeze more than Garkon, but not constantly.  There is no
    discharge coming from the holes in her beak.  It just looks like it may
    be uncomfortable.  I think I will take her to the vet, I'm just afraid
    to do it now because of the bitter cold.
    
    Garkon and Ava both chirp and Ava definately tries to whistle more than
    Garkon but usually it's when we're not in the same room as the birds.
    Sometimes they hear a bird outside or the parakeets my
    landlord keeps downstairs and she goes on a whistling frenzy and it
    sounds like she's trying to say "Hey, we're up here, come and get
    us..." It's funny.  Garkon whistles too, but not as often.  He's much
    more likely to try new "stunts".  He hops on the swing and swings hard! 
    Ava tried the swing once and kept the family in stitches trying to
    figure out how to get off the bloody thing!  It was hysterical and I
    did feel guilty for not helping him....Ava hasn't gotten back on it
    since.
    
    Well, thanks for your reply.  I appreciate it.
    
    Donna

    
    Hello,
    
    I just made an appointment at Littleton Animal Hospital.  I'm bringing
    in both Ava and Garkon. I made the appointment for next Saturday.  The
    receptionist tried to encourage me to bring them right in, but I just
    feel funny getting out of work.  I'd feel worse if anything happened to
    them, but I don't know what to do.  Part of me feels like Ava's
    been this way for so long it probably could wait....but I'm still torn. 
    I've picked up the phone to call them back and make it for today, but I
    keep hanging up as soon as I'm done dialing.
    
    I'll keep you posted as to how I make out
    
    Donna

    
    I made an appointment for 3:30....the guilt was killing me.
    
    Donna

    
    
    
    I'm chuckling, but not laughing at you. Just enjoying your notes.
    Good luck.
    
    

    
    Hi,
    
    Gee, did I sound that bad???
    
    I took my babies to the vet.  I liked Dr. Kilgore very much but she
    wasn't what I expected.  She was very good with the birds.  She told me
    that Ava is a male and that it was hard to say what Garkon was but she
    would guess female.  I like that combination.  
    
    She said both birds were of good weight and sounded good and healthy. 
    She was doing a gram stain test on the birds and I need to call
    tomorrow for the results.  She gave Ava a vitamin A shot and said that
    it looked like she'd had a sinusitis for a *very* long time, but she
    didn't sound like it had gone respiratory.  She told me I should rub
    some vitamin A&D ointment on the cere and it should help.  She said Ava
    will probably never have a normal cere again because it is so
    malformed, but he'll feel better.
    
    Dr. Kilgore also recommended that I get a vitalight, to help the birds
    make vitamin D and she reinforced the fact that they need lots of fruits
    and veggies and rice and almost anything that people eat, so I made
    them scrambled eggs this morning and gave them leftover rice pilaf and
    raw broccoli and an apple wedge.  She told me that I also need to
    sprinkle NEKTON MSA on the soft food, in addition to the NEKTON S I
    sprinkle in the water.
    
    Anyway, it did cost me a little bit of $$$, but I'm so relieved that
    they are fine, and will be fine and I'm not doing as bad as I thought.
    
    I still need to get the light, but I'm all set with the rest of the
    stuff.  I must admit that I'm glad Dr. Kilgore told me that I could use
    a Q-tip to put the A&D ointment on Ava's cere, because if I had used my
    finger (which I probably would have tried) Ava might have taken it off!
    I had to give him one Qtip to bite on while I used the other one to
    apply the ointment!  He was pissed too!!
    
    I just hope that after all of this the bird doesn't begin to hate me. 
    After all, I was the one who shoved them in a bag and brought them to
    my house, and I shoved them in a box to take them to the vet and Ava
    got a shot and I have to restrain her with a towel daily to apply her
    medicine, etc....  Poor babies.  Maybe they'll come to realize that I'm
    not that bad and won't hurt them after all.
    
    Wish me luck and thanks for your support, even if I do sound like a
    worry wart.
    
    Donna

	Hmmm....now you know the reason I always let someone else clip my
	birds wings and nails....Actually Avalon seems to like the Vet, but
	he is a strange bird.....

	I am a firm believer in taking a new bird immediately to the Vet.
	Yup it costs a few $$$, but with a little luck you will have the
	bird for many years, and a general check up is a good thing.

	I take my bird to the Vet every year for a "complete physical"  It is
	sorta like Life Insurance, I have some, but if no one ever collected,
	it would not bother me at all!  So far the Vet has never found anything
	wrong with Avalon, and that's just fine.

	Anyway, welcome to the NOTESfile...and don't worry about saying too
	much or asking silly questions.....

	I think that we all share each other's birds vicariously thru the
	notes...there are many birds in here I feel that I know very well,
	and have never met in person...

	And there is no such thing as a silly question....so ask away!

	-dick

    
    Well,
    
    I just got off the phone with the vet.  She found a few gram negatives
    in the stool samples (whatever that means) so I need to bring some 
    more samples in for them to check.  That will cost me another $30. 
    Janice (the receptionist) told me that I could get them with a
    papertowel and then put them on wax paper or saran wrap and
    refridgerate the samples to bring to them the next day.
    
    The things we go through for our pets....
    8^}