I just need a little help

[Lora, Archer, & Kira]

You're welcome Kev. I'm glad I could help, if even in a small way. :)

[TooLover]

Joel, we really do need to find you a job! You are a perverted individual - LMAO :D

[Lora, Archer, & Kira]

Joel, you are too funny... :)

[Kevin]

Photoalbum will be up shortly.... as well as the link directory and article archive.... as well as a new events calender that is alitle more ideal to work with and user friendly for people not too good with the internet.

[TooLover]

Joel - I really was playing with ya! I enoy all of your posts :!: :!:

[BirdzRmylife]

Darnit all! I generally kept all newsletters but decided I didn't need to keep them because I could check it on Birdboard.... BUT I do still have one newsletter here it is...........

Ok guys, I am very sorry for not having put out a letter last week and for being
late on this one. It seems like it has just been one thing after another. First
the brown hair ( long story ) then the small house fire ( even longer story but
will be on here! ) Hopefully, things can get back to normal now.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ARTICLES~~~

I cannot stress enough how helpful it is to me and to all members who recieve
this newsletter, that if you send in a site you like or a recipe you love, it
makes the newsletter better and more personable. Please send all story or
otherwise submissions to Tritak in a PM.
Thanks in advance :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ok so for those of you who visit the site you already know this story. I am
sending it out here for those who dont visit regularly. Please read it carefully
and learn anything you can from it...

Do you have a plan if your house is on fire???????????????


I ask because tonight I had to think about my plan in the middle of a fire and
actually could not do much thinking at all. At 1:11 am I was awakened to the
sound of my kids screaming, my smoke alarm going off, and animals running in all
directions.

My littlest son ( 4 ) had gotten in trouble earlier that night several times for
burning little odd and end things on 2 of our 3 gas burning heaters. We have not
had trouble with this in the past. I thought that I had finally gotten through
to him the last time just how dangerous it was to do that. Thankfully, no fires
had occured, just a sick lingering smell of burnt plastic and such.

I sent them both off to bed and finally laid down around 11:30 after talking to
Jodi on the phone for awhile. I fell fast asleep as I have not slept well lately
because of a sense of foreboding that could not be described. I have been on
edge for a few days unexplained.

So I wake up the kids are running in my room screaming and crying bloody murder
and I think there was a bad dream or a small dose of mass hysteria and as my
eyes focus, I see smoke pouring into my room at the ceiling and quickly filling
my room. I threw my kids on the bed and told them to wait there so I could
figure out what was going on and not to move. ( there is a large window that we
could easily get out of if needed, but I wanted to know where they were just in
case .)

I ran through my house to where the smoke was thickest and it was in my living
room! ( Can you guess where I keep my birds?) Eyes burning, throat and chest
screaming for air, I ran in and saw that Echo and Asias cage was on fire!!!!!!!!
I got echo to step up on one arm and with the other arm I wrangled up the
sennies cage ( big and heavy ) and ran them into my room and practically tossed
them all down onto the bed, I ran back in and shoved my arm under mean old Asias
leg and yelled STEP UP WITCH! She hopped right on and I tossed her into my room
as well. I yelled at all my dogs to go lay down ( which means get on moms bed
apparently ) and once they were all in my room I ran back in the living room
with a cup of water and got to tossing it . I can't breathe, I can't see and I
am not quite sure what to do at this point anymore. I just kept grabbing cups of
water and running back to the cage and tossing it on there. All the water just
caused more smoke and I was beginning to thi
nk it was time to quick and run with kids and critters out the window.

I finally saw just enough through the smoke that it was mainly the bottom fo the
cage that was on fire. I grabbed the burning metal and tossed it right out the
front door. Alot of their toys and ropes were on fire so I got so more water and
after a few more cups of water it was put out. I ran outside barefooted and
hooked up and turned on the hose and squelched what was left of the bottom of my
big fids cage.

I went around and opened every door and window, hooked up all of our fans and
had them pulling smoke from the back of the house out the front of the house. I
got all the animals fresh water to drink to cool their burning throats. I got
the kids in the bathroom and wiped off their smoke covered faces and got them
some water.

I sit here now cold, covered in smoke, smelling of smoke, and almost
disturbingly calm. I have yet to cry, but admittedly know that it will be coming
as soon as my mind takes in all that I could have lost and all that could have
happened.

I did the best that I could, and didnt stop to think. I just reacted to what was
going on, but find myself wondering did I make all the right choices to begin
with?

It is now an hour later and the birds have been showered down and are preening,
the dogs are bathed and the cat got a baby wipe, wipe down. All our licking and
preening the lasting effects of the smoke. I need to take a shower and get that
smell off of me. It is putrid and disturbing, but I am afraid to move, aftaid to
leave my now sleeping kids unattended. Scared of what will happen in another
blink of the eye.

No fancy SUV, no great big house, and nothing in the house will make me happy.
It is the loved ones inside the house that fill my heart with love and joy and
tonight I could have lost it all.

I have to go to work in a few hours, but I need to shampoo my carpets and living
room suit. I need to see if my big fids cage is salvagable, if not I have to
figure out how to get them a new one.

So my final point is this......

I am cold......
I stink of smoke.....
I had a plan.......
It saved everyones lives......

Do you have a plan????????????
_________________
Spread your wings and fly
Tritak

I am owned by Niki and jem the senegals
Echo and Asia my militarys
Miles the cat
Lou lou, rocco and Oscar the chihuahua's!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~`

To see all replies please visit :
http://www.birdboard.com/bbs/viewtopic.php?t=2496

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

RECIPES~~~

The Daily Sunrise

* 3 Cherry Tomatoes
* 1 Carrot
* 1 Mini Box of Raisins
* 4 Strawberries
* 1/4 c. Cubed Cantalope
* 1/4 c. Cubed Honey Due Melon
* 1/4 of a Pear
* 1/4 of an Orange
* 1/4 of an Apple
* Handful of Grapes

1. Stir everything together except the box of raisins.
2. Put the mixture in my bowl.
3. Lay the box of raisins (still in the box) on top of the mixture.
4. SQUAWK & Serve!

Original recipe by Echo (and every other Macaw out there)

~~~~~~

Fruit and Nut Bar

* 2 Large eggs
* 1/4 cup walnuts
* 1/4 cup raisins
* 18 oz Box corn bread
* 1/3 cup cranberry juice
* 1/4 cup applesauce
* 1/2 cup mixed vegetables, defrosted, and chopped fine
* 1/2 cup chopped broccoli

1. Preheat oven to 400*
2. In a large bowl, stir together, eggs, applesauce, cranberry juice, mixed
vegetables and broccoli.
3. Add corn bread mix a little at a time. Stir until well combined.
4. Stir in raisins and walnuts.
5. Pour batter into well greased 8x8" pan.
6. Bake for 20 minutes.
7. When cool, cut into squares and store in an airtight container in the
refrigerator.

Original recipe by Joyce Wilbu

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AIR FILTERS~~~

I know this topic is always a hot one. I am including a link to a list of air
filters and let me just tell you that there are a lot of them. Hopefully, this
will help you to make any decisions you may have...

http://www.avianweb.com/airfiltrationsystems.htm

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BIRD DISEASES~~~

ASK THE VET (Part I: Avian Polyoma)
by Linda Pesek, DVM
Westbury Animal Hospital
319 Union Avenue
Westbury, NY
516-333-1123
This article first appeared in the April 1994 issue of SQUAWK, and appears here
with their permission and the permission of the author.
All newly acquired birds, especially those to be used for breeding, should be
screened for avian polyoma virus.

Avian polyoma virus causes high levels of mortality in young psittacine birds.
It is thought that several strains of polyoma virus exist, with certain strains
affecting one species and not others. Species differences in susceptibility to
infection may also exist, since polyoma virus appears more prevalent in macaws,
conures, Eclectus parrots, lovebirds, cockatiels and budgies than in other
species.

Budgerigar Fledgling Disease (BFD) was the first identified acute generalized
infection associated with avian polyoma virus. Clinical disease appears to
depend upon the age and condition of the bird when exposed to the virus. In an
infected flock, neonates can appear normal for the first ten to fifteen days and
then die suddenly with full crops, while other hatchlings may develop swollen
abdomens, discoloration of the skin, subcutaneous hemorrhages, head and neck
tremors, ataxia and decreased down and contour feathers. Those infected budgies
that survive may have symmetrical feather abnormalities such as dystrophic
primary and tail feathers, and no down feathers on the back and abdomen. Primary
and secondary feathers may fall out. These birds are often unable to fly. It is
important to note that similar feather abnormalities may be seen with Psitticine
Beak and Feather Disease (PBFD), but PBFD progresses, while feather
abnormalities due to polyoma may resolve after several mo
lts.

Larger psitticines may die suddenly without signs of illness, or die after
showing depression, anorexia, weight loss, delayed crop emptying, regurgitating,
diarrhea, dehydration, subcutaneous hemorrhages, dyspnea, ataxia and paralysis.
Clinical signs are common at weaning and infected fledglings often die 12 - 48
hours after the development of clinical signs.

Both recovered budgies and larger psitticines are thought to remain infected,
and serve as asymptomatic carriers.

A chronic form of polyoma virus is also thought to exist which causes weight
loss, intermittent anorexia, polyuria, recurrent bacterial and fungal
infections, and poor feathering.

Transmission:
Polyma virus is thought to spread both horizontally (bird to bird) and
vertically (via the egg). Parents may transmit the virus to their offspring when
feeding by regurgitation of exfoliated crop epithelial cells. The virus can
replicate in feather follicles and thus be shed in feather dust (like PBFD). The
virus may also be shed in the urine. Susceptible hosts may be infected by
inhalation or oral ingestion. Although young birds are most susceptible, adult
birds may also develop disease. The exact incubation period is unknown but may
be anywhere from 1 to 2 weeks. Affected budgie fledglings show peak mortality
rates between 15 - 19 days of life, while larger parrots may show signs between
20 - 56 days of age.
Some asymptomatic adults produce persistently infected young, while others
produce some normal neonates. Asymptomatic adults who intermittently shed virus
are thought to be responsible for the persistence, transmission and spread of
the virus.


ASK THE VET (Avian Polyoma Virus/Part II)
by Linda Pesek, DVM
Westbury Animal Hospital
319 Union Avenue
Westbury, NY
516-333-1123
This article first appeared in the May 1994 issue of SQUAWK, and appears here
with their permission and the permission of the author.
Species differences in susceptibility to polyoma virus are thought to exist.
Macaws, conures, Eclectus, African greys and Amazons are thought to be very
susceptible to infection.

Polyoma virus can be present in a carrier state, with adult birds appearing
clinically normal until they undergo stress. One type of stress that can cause a
latently infected bird to shed virus is breeding. Increases in reproductive
hormones -- estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone -- are thought to have an
effect on the immune system and may be responsible for the activation,
multiplication and shedding of the virus.

Detection of polyoma virus:
Postmortem detection of polyoma is based upon finding viral intranuclear
inclusion bodies in the liver, kidney, spleen, heart and feather follicles.
Identification of the virus in a live bird can be very difficult. Early tests
looked for the presence of antibodies or proteins produced by the body against
the virus. These antibodies, however, may no longer be present in a bird that
remains infected by the virus. No correlation exists between serum neutralizing
antibodies and viral shedding. This means that a bird could have a negative
antibody titer and still shed the virus, or a positive antibody titer and not
shed virus.
A new test, a DNA PCR probe test has been developed by Avian Research
Associates. This test is able to detect polyoma virus in live birds that are
shedding virus by analyzing cloacal swabs. The limitation of this test, however,
is that a cloacal swab identifies only a bird who is shedding the virus at the
time of sampling. A latently infected bird may not be shedding virus. Thus, a
positive test indicates viral nucleic acid was found in the sample and confirms
viral shedding, while a negative test indicates that the individual was not
shedding virus at the time the sample was taken. It does not necessarily
indicate the bird is free of the virus.

Since polyoma is a very infectious virus causing high mortality and morbidity in
young birds, closed breeding aviaries are recommended. A cloacal swab should be
checked on all birds leaving an aviary and all newly acquired birds before being
introduced into a collection. Once the virus is introduced into a collection it
is almost impossible to eliminate. This is because of carrier states that exist
and because the virus is very resistant to many disinfectants.

Because a high incidence of polyoma exists in budgies and cockatiels, it is
recommended by some that these birds not be kept on the same premises where
other species are housed and bred.

Work is currently being done to try to produce a vaccination to protect against
polyoma. Although results look promising, no vaccination is yet available. A
bird positive for polyoma may be kept as a pet as long as it is in a single bird
household. It should never come in contact with neonates (young birds) or birds
to be used for breeding.

~~~~~

PBFD Diagnostic Flowchart**

Interpreting the Results of the Psittacine Beak and Feather DNA probe test.
A. If Bird Has Dystrophic, Necrotic Feathers and you Test Blood for PBFD Virus
using DNA probes:*
1. If Positive: Suggests Active Infection
Management:
If bird is from a breeding aviary: Bird should be removed and all areas that
could be contaminated with feather dust from the infected bird should be
repeatedly cleaned. If companion bird: Bird should not be exposed to other birds
outside of the household and you should be aware that the virus can be
transported to other locations on your clothes or in your hair. Be courteous of
other birds and do not expose them. It should be noted that, occasionally, some
PBFD infected Psittaciformes of South American descent have spontaneously
recovered from the disease.

2. If Negative: A feather biopsy (including the feather follicle) should be
submitted for histopathologic examination.

B. If Bird's Feathers are Normal and you Test Blood for PBFD Virus using DNA
probes:*
1. If Positive: Indicates that the bird has been exposed to PBFD virus and that
the virus is present in the blood. The bird must be retested in 90 days. If the
bird is negative when retested, it indicates that the virus was not detected in
the blood cells. If the bird is still positive, it indicates that the bird is
either clinically infected or that the bird is being repeatedly exposed to the
virus. It should be noted that most birds that are exposed to the PBFD virus
develop a transient viremia followed by an appropriate immune response that
results in the bird clearing the infection.
2. If Negative: Indicates that PBFD virus was not detected in the blood.


*Testing available from:
INFECTIOUS DISEASES LABORATORY
DEPARTMENT OF MEDICAL MICROBIOLOGY
COLLEGE OF VETERINARY MEDICINE
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA
ATHENS, GA 30602-7386
Phone: 706-542-5812 FAX: 706-542-5233
** Please feel free to duplicate and distribute.

Branson W. Ritchie, D.V.M., Ph.D.
College of Veterinary Medicine
Small Animal Dept.
Athens, GA 30602

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MAILING LISTS AND BIRD CLUBS~~~
here is a link to a site that has a lot to offer in the way of helpful mailing
lists and also various bird clubs. I hope you enjoy it!

http://www.avianweb.com/meetingplace.htm

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

YOUR SITE MOD'S ARE:

BLUEROSEAVIARY (JILL) CGRITE (CLIFF) GIMMESOMEBEAK (BJ)

YOUR SITE ADMIN'S ARE:

KEEV(BIG KEVIN) KVNBAND ( NOT SO BIG KEVIN) TRITAK (HEATHER)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Have you hugged your fid's today??

LOL there ya go... wow Heather sure can type!!!

[TooLover]

This really is a wonderful cyber family - I apply quite a bit of the information given on this site to my life and my fids, and when I talk to my hubby about things I have learned, I always say "so and so said" and he has finally learned that I am talking about my family here on birdboard!

[LMPego]

How about changing the Senegals forum to all Poicephalus?

[BrianKing]

A form to post links on birds

[kvnband]

The bird links will be appearing shortly. The forum name change might occur tomorrow sometime.