URGENT!!!! PLEASE HELP

[Keiri]

my baby irn is 6 weeks old now and yesterday stopped eating his baby mix. i was mixing the handrearing food with crushed peas and zucchini and not he isnt interested at all. what do i feed him? i got millet seed and he doesnt seem to want that either. im so worried his not getting enough food but he just refuses everything i try to give him!!

[McmillanBirds]

Hi

Your baby will start fighting you. Try force feed him some food atleast twice a day. He will start nibbling on food soon. Put seeds or pellets in the cage and some grated apple, carrot or cooked mix veg so he can try experimenting.

Thanks
Carmen

[Keiri]

I have tried force feeding him he just doesn't want the baby food or seed at all.. He keeps closing his eyes .. I don't know what to do! He bites at apples
And stuff but then flicks them off his beak I'm not sure if his actually eating any of it

[McmillanBirds]

Does he seem lethargic? sleeping the whole time, not calling, fluffed up and not moving much?

[Keiri]

yeah he did look very lethargic yesterday afternoon so i took him to a bird vet and she gave him some medicine he ate the food from her and seems to cry for food from me again now and is eating normall after 1 day of the medicine... im really not sure what was wrong.. his on 1 yellow and 1 white medicine and seems to be back to normal. she even said she didnt know what was wrong so im still unsure, hopefully the medication will kill whatever it was

[McmillanBirds]

I am glad he is doing better. Lets hope the meds work

[Keiri]

do you know what causes baby birds at that age to get like that?? he just didnt want any food at all i fed hima few seeds individually he would crack them open with his beak but he wouldnt eat them by himself

[McmillanBirds]

With birds it is so difficult, especially baby birds. There could have been many reasons or it could just be one of those things.
Too cold, too warm; food too cold or too warm; spraying deoderant, bug spray, spray and cook too close; just picking up a bit of a "cold".

My friend recently lost a baby she got from me. Her cat managed to get into the box, pulled it out, and scratched it. We thought it would be ok as I knew bites were not very good for birds but a teeny tiny scratch! That could not have been too bad surely. Sadly I did not have decent internet at the time so I was not able to research it effectively. The event took place in the early hours friday morning. By the afternoon it was lethargic and not eating. Friday night she contacted me to let me know what had happened. Saturday morning she bought it to me, I put it by an infra red light and was force feeding it 3-4 times a day. We proceded like this through the whole weekend. I saw the life draining out of his eyes and become so weak, but he continued to fight day in and day out. Monday morning when I woke up I went to the box talking and the usual sounds he made when he heard me weren't there. I knew what had happened instantly.

Monday morning I came back to work and researched it. Cat bites and scratches are FATAL to birds if not treated IMMEDIATELY. Their saliva and wounds caused from a scratch contain a bacteria called pasteurella. One needs to wash the wound out with hydrogen peroxide and betadine as soon as the wound is inflicted. Then taken to a vet for antibiotic shots. If the wounds are not treated the bird usually dies within 24hrs.
My friends bird fought for so long if you compare it to that. It was heartbreaking.

Things happen unexpectedley and without warning.

It seems your little guy is doing much better though which is a good thing Keep us updated with his/her progress

Carmen

[willowisp71]

Carmen, that is such a sad story about your friends bird!! I would be devo if anything happened to Skittles

Keiri, I'm glad you little one is doing better! Whatever that medicine is, (maybe some type of mild antibiotic?) it's obviously working!

[Keiri]

carmen, thats so sad about the baby bird:( i guess its taught you something that you now know that could help save other birds!
Lewi (my baby) is much better now his very cheeky, ive got him in a small cage until his a bit older ill put him in his big cage. he has learnt to escape from his little cage by opening the door and slipping underneath it.. i always find him out on my bed or up on the curtain rod. i even started blocing the cage door with a box so he wouldnt be able to get out and he still gets out.. he has also started flying down to the kitchen from the second story of my house when its his food time. he loves his medicine and loves the baby formula stuff again as well..

[willowisp71]

Hi Keiri,

You might want to get a clip for the door of his cage, or find a better way to secure it so he doesn't get out on his own. IRN's are VERY clever birds, and are renowned for learning how to open the catches on their cages......even the tamest of parrots could get a fright one day and fly off out a door or window that's been accidently left open. It's a good habit to get into to make sure you are in control of the environment and able to supervise before your FID is allowed to come out of his cage. You only have to take a look at parrotalert.com to see just how many beloved feathered friends go missing each day in the world! And that's exactly how we came to be owners of our Skittles - he had escaped from his previous owners, and we managed to capture him. We never did find his owner, (which I find REALLY odd, as my home town isn't THAT big), but suffice to say, we know we have to be super careful when we let him out of his cage, cos all the love and yummy food in the world wouldn't stop him from bolting out the nearest open door or window, (more than likely screeching in total delight "I'm FREE! I'm FREE!!")

Sure hope we never experience that with our boy! Good luck

[McmillanBirds]

Hi Keiri

Your baby sounds like a regular "Houdini" I am so glad he is doing 100% better

@ willowisp71 aswell, it was a very sad weekend. Losing a baby is not fun, but we do learn from it, and if we pass on the knowledge we gleen off of a situation, it may help someone in the future.