How to Be Prepared for Emergencies With Your Parrot

Unlike dogs, cats, and other animals, pet birds are very great at hiding their illnesses or injuries. Because birds are prey animals, they are designed by nature not to show sickness or weakness.

In case you have had your bird for some time, you will be able to pick up on subtle signs if your bird is sick.

Here are some signs your Bird Is Sick

1. If your bird looks puffier than normal or its feathers are fluffed-up feathers 
2. If it has lethargy
3. If your bird is sleeping more than usual
4. If your bird has a decreased appetite or no appetite at all
5. If your bird has abnormal droppings or droppings that don't look like they usually do
6. If your bird suddenly changes its routine or behaviour
7. If your bird tail is bobbing
8. If your bird is breathing with an open mouth
9. If your bird has runny eyes
10. If your bird is sneezing a lot

A great way to prepare for emergencies with your pet parrot is to make sure you have a parrot first aid kit. 

In that first aid kit, make sure there is a septic powder to help stop the bleeding if your bird is bleeding. It should also have a sterile gauze that you can use, as well as several other tools to help you in an emergency.

It is also a perfect place to keep all your emergency numbers for your avian vets.

Pet birds are very specific because they not only have very specific needs but they also have specific treatments for their ailments or injuries. So you would want to ensure you always take your bird to an avian vet.

One thing that you have to do if you are caring for birds is to ensure you have a lot of avian vets that you can reach out to and contact in emergencies. If you have a sick parrot, don't take your bird to a regular vet that handles dogs or cats because that vet is not going to have any idea of what to do with a bird.

Your pet vet would also be the best person to suggest the best Parrot food, Treats & Bars for your pet.

Treating your sick bird at home

Do not try this at home. If there is an emergency, treating the specific injury or illness at home is a bad idea. You need to get your bird to a vet.

If your bird has a broken blood feather, attempting to treat it at home can be disastrous. You may break your bird's wings while removing the broken blood feather because they didn't secure the joint as they were removing it

If your pet bird starts bleeding, put a little cornstarch or some septic powder on a piece of sterile gauze. Proceed to apply it to the affected area. This would try and help in clotting the bleeding a bit. After doing this, you can then rush your bird to the vet.

Travel Cage Preparation:  

When planning for an emergency, make sure that each parrot has its cage assembled and ready should an evacuation be necessary. If you have several pet's it will be simpler to have the tags prepared ahead of time and positioned in a location near your bird travel cage. Assign the proper tag to the birds travel cage as you place it inside its travel cage. Prepare tags with permanent ink with the following information on each:

Parrots Name and Species

Emergency Contact Name and Telephone

Veterinarian's Name, Address and Telephone Number

Finally, develop an evacuation plan which would revolve around how you will get your parrots to safety when lost.

This could involve you contacting your veterinarian ahead of time and asking to have your parrot housed with him/her if your parrot is lost and found by the emergency crew.