Human activities have changed the course of the planet. Climate change, warming temperatures, rising sea levels, and pollution, all these have posed a threat of extinction to many fauna species. And our little feathered friends are at risk the most.
Need to take care of your Quaker Health
The changing ecosystem has impacted everyone alike. And our Quakers are also not immune. Mood swings, heat strokes, reducing the clutch size, changed mating habits. There is not only a need to make them habitat-resilient but also climate-resilient. So, your Quaker Health needs to be taken care of.
Do Quakers fall ill
Quaker Parrot health issues are also on the rise these days. Lack of care and knowledge about their diet and habits are the two major reasons for this. Paying attention to their health and behavior could help us keep them healthy and hearty. The root cause of the sickness may not always be known, but staying updated on every sign of worry will go a long way to provide a solution to the problem.
Early signs
Preventing the occurrence of diseases is far better than letting your Quaker suffer in pain with the disease-curing process. You just need to keep an eye on any changes appearing in your pet physically or in his behavior. You need to know the differences in your bird that act as an alarming call to take him to the vet. Let us throw some light on these factors today –
Quaker Parrot Obesity
Weight of a Quaker parrot tells a lot about his health. Regularly measure your pet’s weight for any major changes. If your pet Quaker is gaining weight and heading towards obesity, it might lead him to fatty liver disease.
Missing feather patches
Preening is natural in Quaker parrots to maintain their hygiene and groom themselves. But picking out excessive feathers is an indication of a serious illness. Such over-plucking is a sign of parasites or excessive-compulsive illness. You can keep a check on your pet’s preening habits by looking for any patches of missing feathers on his body or by observing the number of plucked feathers on the bottom of this cage.
Diarrhea
Keep a check on your Quaker’s poop consistency. If it looks too watery, he could be suffering from Diarrhea. You also need to gauge the frequency of his droppings. If he is releasing the waste more often, he is facing a health issue. Diarrhea might be a result of digestive problems or fatty liver disease.
Bruising on beak or toenail
While spending time with your pet, you might notice some black spots on his beak or toenails. These are the bruises that appear due to compromised liver function. These black spots are the areas of hemorrhage and develop due to impairment in the Quaker’s clotting ability.
Difficulty in breathing
Carefully observe your bird’s breathing patterns. In case you hear abnormal sounds, he might be facing difficulty in breathing. This can happen in case of respiratory problems.
Abnormal beak growth
Look for any abnormal growth of your pet bird’s beak. If you are required to get his beak trimmed more often than you usually do, he might be suffering from a life-threatening disease. Quaker parrot’s beak grows quickly and irregularly when he is suffering from fatty liver disease.
Drainage from eyes or nostrils
Keep a check on any kind of moisture below the eyes and nostrils of your Quaker parrot. Drainage from a Quaker’s eyes or nostrils might occur due to sinus or respiratory problems.
Trembling
Shivering the head is normal in Quaker parrots, but if you observe their body trembling, he might be suffering from fever. A sudden fall in temperature might also lead to such trembling as he will feel cold.
Rejecting treats
Quaker parrots love to get treated with their favorite food and toys by their owners. If your Quaker suddenly stops responding to your offerings or stops playing with his favorite toys, it is a sign of sickness.
Change in eye color
If you notice any change in your pet bird’s eye color, he might be suffering from an eye disease. Though the eye color of a Quaker usually changes with age, it is better to get him checked for cataracts or any eye infection.
Ruffled feathers
When your bird is not following his preening activity normally, his feathers will get ruffled randomly. Such lack of self-grooming on the part of Quaker shows his lethargic behavior which could be an indication of a disease. Your pet is unable to take care of himself, he needs your intervention.
Change in poop color
Keep an eye on your pet Quaker’s poop color. A change in color represents a change in his digestive system. This could be a sign of a disease. Experienced Quaker owners can distinguish between various digestive problems by just having a look at their pet’s poop color.
Falling from perches
Quaker parrot loves to jump from one perch to another. But what if his ability to balance is compromised because of an illness? He will frequently fall from the perches.
Inactivity
Quaker parrots are vibrant in their behavior and love to spend time exploring their surroundings. If you notice that your bird is not taking part in his usual daily activities, he might be suffering from some kind of pain. It can also indicate that your pet bird is lacking the energy to carry out his normal tasks.
Quaker parrot Aggression
Quakers are usually fun-loving and playful with their owners. If your birdie shows any signs of aggression it could be a possible cause of some discomfort he is experiencing. Such discomfort could have developed due to hormonal changes, pain, or illness.
Common diseases of Quaker parrots
Quaker parrots bear strong personalities and tend to hide their weaknesses for long. If your pet parrot is acting normally, you still need to be careful about his health. On the other hand, if you notice some changes in his behavior, it could be a sign of some serious illness he is suffering from. It is crucial to know the symptoms of common diseases your Quaker parrot might encounter.
Psittacosis
Also known as Parrot fever, Psittacosis is a very common disease in all the parrot species. It is caused by a bacterium called Chlamydophila psittaci and is transmittable. The feces and nasal discharge of the infected Quaker parrot remain infectious with the bacteria for several months.
Symptoms:
Inflamed eyes
Watery droppings
Difficulty in breathing
Lack of appetite
Green Urates
Depression
Discharge from eyes and nose
Weight loss
Lethargy
Anorexia
Fluffed feathers
Enlarged liver
Transmission
The disease is transmittable through the feces, feathers, and eggs of the infected bird. Physical contact with the infected bird is not important, inhaling the infected air can also cause the bird ill. An item infected by the ill bird can also spread the disease, so ensure to keep separate utensils for all your birds.
This disease can also be transmitted to humans and mimics the symptoms of typhoid fever in the first week of its onset.
Treatment
The treatment for this disease involves the use of antibiotics ingested either through drops or injections. Normally, the medication is 45 days long and the success rate of treatment is five out of ten birds.
Giardia Infection
Giardia is a protozoan that resides in the infected Quaker’s intestine. This infection negatively impacts the intestinal functions resulting in poor digestion of fat. The protozoa interfere with the bird’s capability to absorb vitamins and minerals from the food. Therefore, the infected Quaker shows the symptoms of a malnourished bird. Contaminated water supplies are a common source for the occurrence of this disease.
Symptoms:
Feather picking
Diarrhea
Lethargy
Depression
Poor appetite
Itchiness
Dry skin
Weight loss
Bulky stool
Transmission
Protozoan parasites form cysts inside the infected bird’s body which are shed in the feces. The disease is transmitted through these infectious cysts released in the feces. They remain in the environment for several weeks and can easily spread the infection to other birds. These cysts can also get transmitted through the infected one’s feathers as they can survive on Quaker parrot’s feathers too. Common water supply for all the pet birds can cause the infection to spread to all of them.
This disease can also be transmitted to humans if the water source is shared with the pet birds. The symptoms include diarrhea, fatigue, cramps, nausea, abdominal pain, and weight loss.
Treatment
The treatment for this disease involves several courses as it tends to recur. Antibiotics are prescribed by the vet, and maintaining cleanliness is recommended. To prevent the recurrence, you need to keep the aviary clean and dry. Avoid overcrowding and sharing the water source for your pet birds. Consider using water bottles in place of open water sources.
Polyomavirus Infection
It is a virus that usually affects young birds. The deadly infection targets multiple organs of Quaker simultaneously. Polyomavirus is known to affect only the caged birds. It is also believed that adult birds develop immunity to the infection.
Symptoms
Vomiting
Regurgitation
Loss of appetite
Swollen abdomen
Diarrhea
Dehydration
Excessive urination
Feather deformities
Depression
Breathing problems
Tremors
Paralysis
Weight loss
Withdrawal
Hemorrhages
Transmission
Polyomavirus gets transmitted through direct physical contact with the infected Quaker. It can also transmit through feces, feather dust, dander or nest boxes. Inhalation of infected air can also cause it to other birds.
Few forms of this virus can also get transmitted to humans. The symptoms will show up in the form of fever, lethargy, and gastrointestinal problems
Treatment
Experts have not yet been able to develop any special treatment for treating this disease. A vaccination protecting polyomavirus is recommended though. So, it is better to get the little bird vaccinated against this infection to immune him from the disease.
Pacheco’s Disease
It is a lethal infectious disease caused by the herpes virus. Normally, no signs of illness are shown by the Quakers but he survives only a few weeks after catching the virus. In some cases, a short period of severe illness might prevail before the sudden demise of the bird. In addition to receiving the virus from an outside source, Pacheco’s disease can also be caused by stress experienced by the Quakers.
Symptoms
Nasal discharge
Lethargy
Diarrhea
Lack of appetite
Anorexia
Kidney problems
Sinusitis
Green poop
Ruffled feathers
Liver damage
Tremors
Listlessness
Red eyes
Swelling
Sudden death
Transmission
Pacheco’s disease is highly contagious. Feces and nasal discharge of the infected bird carry the virus and spread it. It also gets transmitted through respiratory and oral secretions. Feather dust, dander, and contaminated food are other carriers.
The disease doesn’t pose any threat to humans.
Treatment
An antiviral drug is prescribed by the vet which leaves an impact on the bird’s kidneys. The treatment of this deadly disease, therefore, leaves the Quaker with a risk of kidney damage. Even if the pet bird survives the viral disease, it may later develop problems in his gastrointestinal tract. Vaccination is also recommended to protect the Quakers against Pacheco’s disease but it brings numerous side-effects along with.
Prevention is better than cure
You can take certain steps to prevent your Quaker from getting ill. Let us discuss these measures in detail.
Stay connected to your Quaker to know him well
Spend time with your little birdie to make that bond so that you can quickly sense their illness. The kind of bond we generally share with our other family members too. This is the best prevention of any illness, i.e., arrest it just at the moment it started.
Give them a hygienic home to live in
Keeping your surroundings clean plays a major role in maintaining the general health of any living being. The same holds for our little birdie. To keep your Quaker at his best, keeping his home i.e. cage clean is of utmost importance. You should clean your Quakers’ cage regularly. This will keep all the bacteria and viruses away from the little birdie. Ideally, daily cleaning of the cage should be done. Using soap and hot water will wipe off all the dirt, grime, and bacteria.
Take care of your Quakers’ basic hygiene
Just as we maintain our basic routine of bathing and grooming to stay healthy, it is very important to take your birds’ hygiene routine seriously. Never forget the basics. Bathing him would wash off all the bacteria off the Quaker regularly and would prevent any common infection to spread.
We never forget our salon session, right? How could we do that to our family members? Take your bird to the expert for those regular grooming classes. Grinding their beak, cutting their toe-nails and trimming their feathers on time are the essentials of keeping sickness away. Many Quaker parents learn all these grooming techniques during their visits to experts and then are even able to do themselves like a pro.
Take your bird to vet regularly
Just as we need our medical check-ups for staying updated on our health, never forget a visit to the vet to know how healthy your Quaker is. An annual checkup is a must and if suggested by the vet, your Quaker might need more than a single visit. Keep a track of those appointments and set your alarms so as not to compromise on his health.
Give a little space to your bird
This might look like baseless prevention but giving your Quaker a space to be on his own at times, is very important to keep him mentally fit. Depression and stress have been a major mental issue among Quakers. If your bird is mentally fit, it will show on the outside. He will always be cheerful and eat well which is all we want for our little birdie. A little me-time to your bird goes a long way to maintain your birds’ sanity.
Keep your new pet birds separate
You need to remain extremely cautious when you bring a new pet bird home. Ensure to keep him separate from your other pets until you get a proper full-body examination done for the new family member. Quarantining your new Quaker prevents the risk of spreading a disease he might be carrying to the existing flock.
Get regular vaccination done
Numerous vaccinations are recommended by professional vets to prevent Quakers against common diseases. Yearly shots are given for some like polyomavirus and a one-time vaccine is required for others like Pacheco’s disease.
Read more about how to keep your Quaker parrot in good health.
Read more about if Quaker parrot need Cuttle Bone
Conclusion
Every living being falls sick just like us. But humans have the natural ability to express themselves. And this combined with scientific advancement, we are at the advantage of checking any disease at an early stage. But our little feathered family members can’t speak out the problems they face and we are left to judge their health on our own. To make the situation worse, we humans are making earth unsuitable for leading a healthy life, not only for us but for other creatures too. With the brain we possess, we are left with the responsibility to better the situation by being more caring towards our environment, if not for ourselves, then at least for the little beings we love.
…some of the photos on this website are taken from www.wikipedia.com
