Hello there! Hope to help here... see, my birdie had the same symptoms and yet it was not due to air sac mites but to something that can give the same symptoms, also affects the air sacs but is not treated with ivermectin which as an antiparasite-drug, but treated with an antifungal medication.
Could you go to an avian vet to consider or even get treated for Aspergillosis? (since normally the med - when well given- does NOT harm them if they do not have that disease,yet if they have it it cures them....)
My birdie had those symptoms but after seeing that the ivermectin did not make a difference, my avian vet and myself thought, maybe it is aspergillosis.
Aspergillosis is a fungus, that can get located in the air sacs and cause wheezing sounds, and open beak and more respiratory increasing problems as it progresses.
Ivermectin kills parasites, not fungus, so if it ever was aspergillosis, you will need another medication, an antifungal one. IF THAT was the case what one does (what happened to my birdie) is to be suggested an antifungal tablet, BUT those can be too strong for the birdie digestive system, kidneys, etc. and harm them if taken orally.... so you get a tablet of, say, terbinafine *an antifungal*, crash the tablet into 1/8 of the human tablet size (the amount depends on what drug, how much the tablet has of the med, etc., for that you need a vet) so you get the powder and then you mix it with saline solution (yes, like the one in all pharmacies and for all uses) and put that in a nebulizer like those kids with asthma use... you cover the cage with a nylon, make a hole for the nebulizer outlet and make the bird INHALE the mist created with the antifungal in saline solution. That allows the drug to get into the air sacs as the bird breathes that air, and the particles get to where the fungus is WITHOUT the birdie having to ingest (no digestive system risks)... and the antifungal kills the fungus spores little by little and the bird gets better. It takes nebulizing the birdie often at first, once a day, then many days a week, then a few times a month...it takes patience but the fungus starts dying, the spores that were reproducing die as soon as they grow and eventually, after a month or so you start seeing your bird doing great.
If you are not sure your birdie has air sac MITES and the ivermectin does not seem to work, really consider the chance of asking for a treatment for aspergillosis. And remember and trust a vet who suggests using a nebulizer and NOT an antifungal orally. Aspergillosis is kind of chronic but when treated,the fungus can become dormant, so to speak, and the bird regain his health. I have my own experience of a birdie who has aspergillosis but since last year we treated him, his symptoms went away,he is strong, beautiful, bigger, healthy! I always have to nebulize him from time to time just to make sure the fungus does not grow back... that usually happens after a disease, a stressful situation or something that lowers the birdie immune system and makes him or her weaker and the fungus to reproduce. But if treated and if you keep an eye on the issue, it DOES go away and your birdie will be a happy camper. Please double check if your birdie might not have a respiratory infection and not mites, OR, like mine, aspergillosis (a fungus) and so symptoms SIMILAR to those of having mites, but NOT mites,and therefore not fixable with ivermectin. Please keep me updated! if it is aspergillosis the treatment requires time and work (nebulizing each day) but the improvement is soon seen and the reward of seeing the birdie getting healthier bythe day totally worth it! If they are indeed air sac mites, I wonder if you maybe need to give ivermectin more time... some birdies take a month to SHOW the improvement. But consider anyway the chance of the problem being not necessarily mites but either and infection or this sneaky fungus that goes confused oftentimes with other diseases, precisely,but whe treated, bingo,the bird gets great.Mine was frail, now he is big, gorgeous, happy. Keep your hopes up and keep on checking if he improves with the ivermectin and if not please please consider those chances: the chance of his issue being the fungus OR some respiratory infection. Hugs, let us know more!
PS it is NOT about getting old, the vets sometimes say that because issues such as aspergillosis SHOW up and evolve faster and for worse when the birds are older because they are logically less strong due to their age... but it is not because of their age! it is because they might be not as strong anymore to fight the fungus!
