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Left eye balding and abnormal poop

3951 Views 19 Replies 7 Participants Last post by  wgerven
Dear TB forum members!

What a great place this is. I introduced our dear budgie Robert in a post some days ago, but will have to turn to you again for some advise on our little friend.

We're afraid Robert has some (hidden) health issue. Naturally, as we only have him now for close to two weeks, we don't really know yet what is his "normal" behavior... But I can say, that in the first three days that we had him, he showed some remarkable aliveness and was quite investigative and vocal for a 'new' bird. We were surprised in fact by how easy he seemed to adjust to his new home.

However, I think that on the night of the third to fourth day (which was suddenly cold) he might have contracted something, due to also maybe lowered immune system because of stress. Since that night, we feel he became less inquisitive, in principle he does not "look" like a sick bird, but he gave us the feeling he is hiding something. He is less vocal, sits more still. More passive. Initially he was interested in investigating his swing, flying towards it, now he prefers to leave it alone. He appreciates us communicating with him, but he is more to himself. He is not fluffed up though, and sleeps on his highest perch. His eating behavior seems normal, and he also lets us feeding him water and seeds by holding his cups close to him.

However, now we have started to see some more indications that indeed something might be wrong with him. Let me include two pictures:

We have grit on the ground, but with some paper we were able to see something is off with his poop:
Wood Pest Metal Rectangle Fashion accessory

This is from one night, so some normal (at least they look normal to me), but then suddenly also some diarrhea.

Also, since yesterday we noticed that Robert's left eye is balding slightly:
Bird Parrot Pet supply Beak Bird supply


So these things quite alarm us.

Perhaps there are some forum member who could shed some more light on his condition? Anyway we got a phone number of a local avian vet, so that is good. We will contact her on Monday. But your opinion would also be very much appreciated.

Thanks a lot.

-Willem
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Hi and :welcome: to Talk Budgies!

I'm glad you've made an appointment for Robert to see an Avian Vet on Monday.

If Robert were female, then the cere would be turning brown and crusty because she is coming into breeding condition. ;)

A male budgie's cere only turns brown if there is a nutritional deficiency or a hormonal imbalance which may be related to liver or testicular issues.

It's difficult to tell from the picture if the area around the eye is due to molting or caused by something else. I would suggest asking the vet to do a blood test for Chlamydophila psittaci. Primary symptoms of this disease in budgies would be an upper respiratory infection with nasal and/ or ocular (eye) discharge, poor feather condition, diarrhea with the possibility of conjunctivitis.

Having Robert examined by an Avian Vet who will be able to do the correct blood tests to get a proper diagnosis is assuredly your best course of action.

We'll be thinking of your little one, sending lots of positive thoughts and looking for an update once you've seen the vet. :hug:

To familiarize yourself with the forums, please take the time to read through all of the How To Guides, the FAQs and the stickies located at the top of each section of the forum.
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Glad you decided to join us and I'll be looking for your update after Robert's vet appointment.

:wave:
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I read a lot about discoloration in male cere and cancer... That worries me much... We only just got him, he is a young guy. Could there be any other reason for his discoloration?
I'd like to ask if you can post a close-up picture of Robert's cere taken in natural light.
It would be best if you could open a free PhotoBucket account and post a full-sized picture (as described in the thread linked below) as those are easier to see. http://talkbudgies.com/how-guides/175818-how-post-pictures-photobucket.html

If Robert is actually a female, then the brown color of the cere would be a natural occurrence as she came into breeding condition.

Sometimes looking at pictures we can't see what you see in person and a change that happened so quickly sounds as though your budgie may actually be a female. :D
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I'm so glad you have taken Robert to the vet and the necessary tests are being done to determine the cause of the problems! :hug:

Here is a link with good reference information regarding grit:
http://talkbudgies.com/diet-nutrition/86185-grit-should-you-offer-your-budgie.html

We'll be looking forward to an update when your vet has Robert's test results back.
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