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Sick dove

23 9:35:09

Question
Hello, Julie, I don't know if you
are the right person to be asking this
question but I have a dove that is about
4 years old. All his life he has been
healthy and bright. But now for almost
a week he has been sitting all
day puffed on his perch never hoos
anymore. All his droppings are normal
and his eyes aren't runny nor is his
nose. The only thing that might be differant
is awhile ago a differant brand of seeds was
changed in his diet. Could this be the problem?
But you know a long time ago he did that same
behavior but on his bottom a mass of droppings
acumulated and had to be removed, but this time
there is no mass of droppings. He eats and drinks
alright, just remains puffy all day like a big
puffball. Why would he be doing this? What could
be wrong? Could the sudden change of brand of
seeds be the problem?
I hope you can answer my question.
Thank you,
Susan.
Ps: I apologize for any mis-spellings.  

Answer
It's hard to tell you exactly what could be wrong with your dove without getting a good look. If you are in doubt, it's always a good idea to consult your vet.

You may be right about the feed change causing the illness. If the droppings look fine, and there are no other signs of illness besides the lethargy and puffed up look. The terrible thing is that by the time a bird appears ill, it is usually very very sick. In the wild, birds have developed the ability to disguise illness so they won't be left by thier flock. That ability does them no good in a pet home.

Keep him warm, around 90-95 degrees. You can do this with a heat lamp. Often, the heat is enough to pull them out of whatever funk thier in. When he does recover, slowly start adding some fresh fruits and veggies to his diet, along with the seed. If it's good for you, it's good for the bird. You may want to consider switching back to the old brand of seed.

Please let me know how it turns out, and please feel free to ask any more questions you may have :)
Good luck! ~Julie