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Question
QUESTION: Do you know anything about parakeets??

ANSWER: I own an animal rescue and have decades of experience with both wildlife (raptors ie: owls, hawks); currently specializing in domesticated parrots.  Parakeets are parrots. How can I help?
 See me  www.4AnimalCare.org  (click on 'birds')


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QUESTION: i went to the web site and e-mail the e-mail address that was there but just incase it didn't get to you 'am sending it here too.
Question:
I have 8 parakeets and i think that two of them might be sick. One of them bobs its tail and breeds funny sometime. Its been like this for like a month or two and seems fine. Is there anything wrong with her? The other one has been puffed up and has been ruffled for a couple of days now. She also has a spot on her back that there are no feathers on and there is some blood around it. What could of cased this and what should i do?
ANSWER: Sometimes the email gets washed as 'spam' and I don't receive it, so it's good you backed it up through this site.
 I think you've got two different problems here rather than related, but it's hard to tell without a hands on examination.
 The tail bobbing and 'funny breathing' might be associated with a mating behavior, but given that there's one currently in need of a vet exam, it might be worth taking this other one in too.
 The 2nd bird, with the fluffing for a couple of days and the spot on her back, needs attention quickly.  By the time a bird shows symptoms, the problem is much more advanced than you think. It's most difficult to tell what's going on for sure, however, it sounds like she's got a virus and secondary bacterial infection.  
 Just in case you're wondering, there are NO home treatments, NONE of the things you can buy in a pet store will work, but will delay adequate treatment and jeopardize her (and the rest of the birds') life.
 
I can't tell you how often I've seen one bird in the aviary become ill and because pet store clerks are pushing sales, owners take home useless vitamins or water additives (or one of the MOST useless things, one of those cage 'mite' protectors).  
 Entire aviaries have ended up lost because valuable time was wasted and money spent in pet stores when it should have been spent on a vet.
 One lady spent about $50 trying to treat her cockatiel at home. By the time she was convinced to take him to the vet, he was so bad it cost her over $1,000 in 'real' treatments and care to save it's life.  If she went to the vet right away? It would have cost her less than $100 to make her little bird all better.

 So with that said, please get the two you're most concerned about to their vet quickly.  I think this is still early enough to save both their lives, keep the others healthy and not cost too much at all.

 Good luck!


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QUESTION: Thank you so much i'll try to get them to a vet as soon as i can but i have one more question were can i find a Avian vet??

Answer
Avian vets ARE hard to find in some areas, but this may help provide a guide:

www.parrotpassionsuk.com/Advice/Internationalvets.htm

Take heart, many 'regular' vets are well experienced with the more common caged birds like parakeets/budgies. If you have a Pet Smart in your town or nearby, call and ask them who they use for their birds.  Many Pet Smart's have a chain veterinary clinic in them called 'Banfield' - and they'd be a good idea.

Otherwise, just go through the phone book and ask. Make sure that they are REALLY  avian experienced and actually see at least several birds a week.

Also - if you have any pet stores that sell birds or local breeders, they must use someone for their birds, so ask them who.

 Do let me know how you make out, ok?