Cockatiel more sick after antibiotics

[rehreh]

I'm a new parrot owner so I don't have much experience.
About Lulu, my cockatiel
- about 4 months old, had him for a few weeks
- is not tame with me yet but will step up on my finger for millet
- still on a seed diet but would like to switch to a pellet

This week he got sick being lethargic and sneezing here and there (I have air purifier and they are wet sneezes). Every vet is booked a month in advance so I took him to emergency vet for all animals and they gave him fluids to hydrate and 2 antibiotics to take home (.05cc Baytril & .03cc Flagyl) to give at the same time every 12 hours. His poops change daily. First very yellow and liquid around it, then a very dark green with a bit of white. Now it is dark green and very liquidy. He got better yesterday after antibiotics were started and moved around slightly and tried eating some food. Today he is at his worst - regurgitating liquid that he drinks or the medicine, very lethargic and very puffed up. Hopped off his perch to stay on the ground. No vet will see him for at least another 2 weeks despite the emergency.

I have him in a low cage with a blanket over part of the cage with an air purifier and humidifier right with him and a lamp to make it warm. He seems to drink sometimes but not eating. He keeps spilling liquids out of his beak (not shaking or forcing it up). He doesn't like any other food right now besides millet and seed but I have parrot formula to make liquid food. Is there anything else I can do to help him right now?

[Pajarita]

Oh, my dear, I am afraid that your bird is very sick. You see, birds don't throw up unless there is something very serious going on... Diarrhea is scary but, in reality, it's much easier to take care of because it's usually caused by a bacterial infection treatable with antibiotics. Was any kind of test done on the bird? Fecal? Choanal swab? Blood?

Now, as to the meds he got. He got Baytril -which is enrofloxacin, a good wide-spectrum antibiotic and the most commonly prescribed for birds. Flagyl is metronidazole, normally used for dogs and cats with diarrhea but I've never had it prescribed for my birds. You need to take him to a good avian vet - and soon! But, if he were my bird, I would eliminate the metronidazole and stick with the Baytril. Don't use the lamp for heat - they do not work because you need to put it behind the cage with some sort of an opaque material blocking the light from the bird (it hurts their eyes and can even blind them) and do not heat up the entire cage efficiently. You need to buy a heating pad large enough to fit at the bottom of the cage (and the kind that does not automatically shut off by itself after 2 hours -most of them are like that so you need to read the label carefully) and cover the entire cage with something, leaving only the front open for light. Put a thermometer inside the cage and make sure it has a constant temperature of 85 - 95%. Put lots of a good quality probiotic in his water as well as a little splash of ACV with the mother and, if he is not drinking on its own, put some in a syringe and give it to him 2 hours after the antibiotic (twice a day). Give him things to eat that he likes -even if it's sunflower seeds without the shell. Try a good quality bread, some cooked white rice (use Basmati from India or Indonesia). Check his poops to see that he is eating (there should be feces -green or brownish- and some white and not only pee -transparent liquid). If he is not, feed him in his beak with a baby formula (make sure the formula stays at the right temperature the entire time you feed). If he doesn't want to eat at all, give him just the tiniest bit every hour - if he eats a bit better, feed him every two (again, just a bit).

Now, like I said, diarrhea is not that super worrisome - what bothers me is that he is throwing up... Did you handfeed this bird? Where did you get him and how long ago? Because the most common reasons for a bird to vomit are a fungal infection in the digestive system (for which you do NOT have any meds, the most common is fluconazole) or metal poisoning (for which you also have NO meds - you need a chelation agent) so, if he has either and will go without proper meds for two weeks, he will die. Please try to find an avian vet or a vet that treat exotics ASAP - even if you have to drive a couple of hours. I hope from the bottom of my heart that I am 100% wrong but I think he is VERY sick.

[Pajarita]

Oh, my dear, I am afraid that your bird is very sick. You see, birds don't throw up unless there is something very serious going on... Diarrhea is scary but, in reality, it's much easier to take care of because it's usually caused by a bacterial infection treatable with antibiotics. Was any kind of test done on the bird? Fecal? Choanal swab? Blood?

Now, as to the meds he got. He got Baytril -which is enrofloxacin, a good wide-spectrum antibiotic and the most commonly prescribed for birds. Flagyl is metronidazole, normally used for dogs and cats with diarrhea but I've never had it prescribed for my birds. You need to take him to a good avian vet - and soon! But, if he were my bird, I would eliminate the metronidazole and stick with the Baytril. Don't use the lamp for heat - they do not work because you need to put it behind the cage with some sort of an opaque material blocking the light from the bird (it hurts their eyes and can even blind them) and do not heat up the entire cage efficiently. You need to buy a heating pad large enough to fit at the bottom of the cage (and the kind that does not automatically shut off by itself after 2 hours -most of them are like that so you need to read the label carefully) and cover the entire cage with something, leaving only the front open for light. Put a thermometer inside the cage and make sure it has a constant temperature of 85 - 95%. Put lots of a good quality probiotic in his water as well as a little splash of ACV with the mother and, if he is not drinking on its own, put some in a syringe and give it to him 2 hours after the antibiotic (twice a day). Give him things to eat that he likes -even if it's sunflower seeds without the shell. Try a good quality bread, some cooked white rice (use Basmati from India or Indonesia). Check his poops to see that he is eating (there should be feces -green or brownish- and some white and not only pee -transparent liquid). If he is not, feed him in his beak with a baby formula (make sure the formula stays at the right temperature the entire time you feed). If he doesn't want to eat at all, give him just the tiniest bit every hour - if he eats a bit better, feed him every two (again, just a bit).

Now, like I said, diarrhea is not that super worrisome - what bothers me is that he is throwing up... Did you handfeed this bird? Where did you get him and how long ago? Because the most common reasons for a bird to vomit are a fungal infection in the digestive system (for which you do NOT have any meds, the most common is fluconazole) or metal poisoning (for which you also have NO meds - you need a chelation agent) so, if he has either and will go without proper meds for two weeks, he will die. Please try to find an avian vet or a vet that treat exotics ASAP - even if you have to drive a couple of hours. I am not a vet and have no formal education on medicine so I hope from the bottom of my heart that I am 100% wrong but I think he is VERY sick.

[FabianDangelo]

Taking it to see a pet doctor is the best choice.
prostadine