Alcohol

[Vee]

Sorry I did post earlier but in the incorrect section.
I know alcohol is deadly to birds but was wondering how it actually kills them. Do they die immediately or would one have time o get them to a vet?
Last weekend my husband was having a glass of sherry and left it on the table to answer the door bell. Our CAG got to the table and pulled the glass over. We managed to catch him before he drank the sherry, we know for sure he never managed to drink any. This has made me just curious as to exactly what happens should a bird drink alcohol.

[Dana64]

I have heard and read that alcohol is so toxic to birds that it can kill them. That said, I have a re-homed CAG that was fed white wine, by his previous owner, on a regular basis. Like daily. Not alot, she said, just a few sips out of her glass. I know this because I can't drink wine around him. The first time, I had a glass of white wine in my hand and he was perched on my shoulder and the minute I sat down, he pulled the glass over and dunk his head ... I immediately perched him and called his previous owner. She just laughed and told me what she used to do... for years!

So... my CAG no longer gets wine/alcohol... but he lived for 6+ years drinking "a few sips" daily...

I wouldn't (and don't) recommend it... except for red wine, it's not all that healthy for humans... how good can it be for a bird?

But I wouldn't worry about your little "accident"... your FID will be fine, I just would try very hard not to let it happen...

Just my 2 cents...

[Monica]

I've heard a similar story as Dana's CAG, only it was beer, and I don't remember the type of bird. As the story goes, the owners enjoyed getting the bird drunk because they thought it was funny. I don't remember where I heard this story, however, I would believe that alcohol is just as deadly to birds as it is to humans in the same way, only with birds, they have a much smaller system, and eat and drink a lot for their size, therefore it can affect them much worse if they get too much (i.e. alcohol poisoning).