budgie problem

Question
Hi Chris , I have a couple of budgies as pets for my children . One is a 6mth old cock and the other a 3 mth old hen . The hen was bought to replace the first hen who died ( we suspect she was egg bound ). This current hen is now sick aswell and she has all the same sysmptoms as the first . She has fluffed up her feathers , her eyes are always closed , she is on the bottom of the cage most of the time and she has the most horrendous diahorea. The cock seems to want to mate with her all the time and will not leave her alone . She is becoming weaker by the hour and unable to fight him off.
Does she sound egg bound to you or is it something the cock is doing to her to make her so ill ? We seem to think it is the cock that is the problem as this is the second hen this has happened to . Please advise as we are at a loss to explain this to the children .
With Thanks in advance ,  

Answer
Hi, Mark.  Thanks for posting.

You need to separate these 2 birds right away and then get the baby hen to an avian vet ASAP.  You need to ensure this little hen is kept warm (use a light bulb or a heating pad under her cage), and you need to ensure she does not dehydrate (closing eyes can be an indicator of dehydration) by ensuring she's drinking water (or try dropping human infant Pedialyte into the side of her beak).  She also needs to be eating in order to remain healthy/get back to health again.  If she's too sick to eat on her own, you'll need to handfeed her with a handfeeding syringe and baby parrot handfeeding formula OR give her her favorite food (budgies enjoy spray millet) so she'll be nourished enough to get better.

This young hen is too little yet to have a 6-month old cock bird mating with her.  It's breeding season and he'll drive her to her death wanting to mate with her.  She still has growing up to do before she becomes a mommy.    

I can't tell from your description if she's egg bound.  An egg bound hen has some of these symptoms, but you should see a bulging at the vent/just before the vent area and/or maybe a partial egg sticking out of the vent.  This is one reason she needs medical attention ASAP (not 2 days from now, but today or tomorrow).  An egg bound hen can die within a day or 2 from onset, so it's important you get her medical attention right away in order to determine what the problem might be.  Sometimes, a male will drive the female so hard to go to nest, the female becomes stressed, her immunune system is compromised, and she becomes ill.  Either way, sounds like she needs to be separated from the male immediately and seen by an avian veterinarian (not a cat/dog vet, but an exotic animal vet that treats birds).

I hope all turns out well for this baby budgie.

Chrys