PLEASE READ: the importance of quarantining & vetting new birds

[Doyle'sMommy]

Rita- I am so sorry to hear about Niblet, he sounds like my Doyle, very cuddly and loving. We are getting a TAG in March and I will definitley put him/her in quarantine. Is 90 days an appropriate amount of time? Tiffany

[Xavier]

Stella blue-

We had a similar story to yours, only with our kitten Annika.

A few years ago, we bought a devon rex cat and shared the expense with some close family friends. The deal was that the friends would keep the cat, and we would breed her with another male supplied from the breeder. So the friend would get the cat (Meiko), while we and the breeder would get a kitten.

After the kittens lived their first few weeks of life with their mother, we took them to our house.

There were four kittens in the litter- Annika, Sox, Ice Legs and Wrinkles. All of them were adorable. We have some pictures somewhere of all four kittens and our cat Jonesie sleeping on my dads lap. It was a good few months, with lots of great memories.

My aunt Erin is a vet, and offered to vaccinate the kittens for free. So she did, and after that Annikas health began to worsen.

We took her to the vet, and they told us that Annika had a bad kidney that kept filling with fluid. She perscribed some medications, but no matter what Annika kept deteriorating. She lost dramatic weight, and had to be handfed.

After a few months, her condition was stable again, and we thought everything was going to be fine.

On September 7th, 2004, I was running down the stairs to go to to my first day of school. Annika was meowing and pawing at my legs, but I just pushed her out of the way.

I came home that day, and Annika had died.

I think Annika was trying to tell me to hold her, because she knew. She knew she was going to die, and wanted to be comforted. But I was too busy for her. Had I known, I would have spent all day with her in my arms.

[jessica313]

thank you for sharing your story. i am so sorry for your loss, but you did everything right.

[Buteo]

Very hard to handle such tragedies....
our deep condolences to all..

[Lisa B]

Megan, thank you for writing that post. I know its not easy to talk about things like that, and how hard it is to actually get your fingers to type the words, but, through your writing, you might have helped someone else.
I am very sorry that you lost dear Wrigley... He reminded me so much of my Polly, tho I could never get those words typed out to you since, when I saw his sweet face, all's I could do was smile.

StellaBlue, I am sorry to hear of your loss. Polyoma is one thing that does scare me, since my guys are NOT vaccinated, and I do have a caique. (they never outgrow the risk)
My vets advise it to keep practicing as if I had a closed aviary, and never to introduce vaccinated birds.

[Machelle]

Megan, I am so very very sorry for the loss of Wrigley, but I SO appreciate your post. It is so critical that everyone know the importance of quarantining and vetting a new pet. Thank you for sharing your experience. You will be saving some lives with this post. I guarantee it. *hugs*

[CALVINS MOM]

Megan - ditto everyone's thanks for your post. Again, I am so sorry about Wrigley.

I would like to add that I think it is important to have birds tested within a day of bringing the bird home. As Rita posted, even though Niblet was home for 60 days, he did not show any signs of illness. I believe blood profiles should be done to verify the non-existence of Psittacosis, Beak & Feather and Polyomavirus. They are three leading diseases in birds. If the bird is not tested at the facility from which it is purchased, whether it be a breeder or shop, I feel you should definitely have this done independently. Most people recommend a 30 day quarantine which I think is crazy. It took Nibley 60 days to show signs of illness. If you have other birds, it is important to have blood work done post haste.

I have not seen or been able to find any articles indicating that testing for Polyomavirus is only accurate if the bird is shedding the virus. You have peaked my curiosity. Can you link me to anything that states this?

Thanks! These are the types of things that help to educate both new and long-time bird owners. As I always say, the more I thought I knew, the more I realize there is so much I don't know.

[Tiki]

Megan, I know how painful it was for you to write that, but I am glad you did. We have almost 9000 members and countless lurkers, you will never know how many bird's lives you just saved by making everyone aware of the importance of quarantine. Thank you for sharing and the birds you just saved thank you too.

[Maui's Mom]

Im so sorry for you lose. My prayers and thoughts are with you. the information is worth its weight in gold, TY for writing your story.

[Mike B]

Megan, THANK YOU for your post. I'm sure it was very painful. Please take solice in the fact that by posting you saved many, countless birds. Through our pain we can educate others, and save lives.

Thank You,

Mike