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Scaley Feet/Cere

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Scaley Feet/Cere

Postby TYS_ » Sun Dec 03, 2017 6:30 pm

Hello Everyone,

One of my budgies has had scaley feet and a scaley cere for about a month or something now. I didn't think it was much of an issue, but clearly, there are pests digging into her.

Her cere is extremely dry and white, and for a while, it looked like if I had touched her cere, it would have fallen off. And her feet are starting to get heavier with the white fungus or whatever you call it.

I'm aware that I need to replace the wooden cage perches (I don't know where to get the exact size of those...) and that I need to replace all of the play area perches.

Does anyone have recommendations on how to treat this? I'd like to avoid having to pay a vet unless it's necessary. I read online that I can mix some grapefruit seed extract with distilled water and apply that to the affected areas. However, can I put this on her cere? Is that safe?

Thanks.
TYS_
Parakeet
 
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Re: Scaley Feet/Cere

Postby liz » Mon Dec 04, 2017 8:09 am

I use olive oil on Rainbows feet or she will pick the scales off down to the blood.
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liz
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Re: Scaley Feet/Cere

Postby Pajarita » Mon Dec 04, 2017 10:45 am

Well, if you are sure that it's mites, you can treat her with mite medicine. I never have a problem with mites because my birds never go out but, if I did, I would use Ivermectin but you can also use Scatt. Isolate the budgies from your other bird, wash the entire cage very thoroughly and change all the perches, toys, etc. Don't use dowels, use tree branches baked at 400 degrees for 15 minutes to ensure no mites are in them. And keep the birds extra warm [you are giving them poison after all so you want to maximize the care, just in case].
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Re: Scaley Feet/Cere

Postby TYS_ » Sun Dec 10, 2017 4:09 pm

She seems to have picked off all of the white fungi that had built up on her feet. I'm wondering what to do about her beak though..
TYS_
Parakeet
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is male
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Types of Birds Owned: Jenday Parrot & Two Budgies
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Re: Scaley Feet/Cere

Postby Pajarita » Mon Dec 11, 2017 11:16 am

Is it mites or fungus? Birds don't get fungus on their feet so it must be something else or it might be nothing at all -meaning a perfectly normal situation that you could be misreading.
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Norwegian Blue
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
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Re: Scaley Feet/Cere

Postby TYS_ » Sun Jan 21, 2018 3:37 pm

I think it is mites. When I checked her today, she seems to have completely bitten off a nail due to the pain of the mites. I don't know how to treat this other than a vet.

I will go get some mite spray and spray it on her wings and feet. Maybe that will help.

Does anyone have advice?
TYS_
Parakeet
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is male
Posts: 7
Number of Birds Owned: 3
Types of Birds Owned: Jenday Parrot & Two Budgies
Flight: Yes

Re: Scaley Feet/Cere

Postby Pajarita » Mon Jan 22, 2018 10:27 am

Mites don't cause enough pain for a bird to chew off anything - if anything, they make them itch...

Do you put your birds outside? Have you gotten a new bird recently? Have you used tree branches in their cages that had not been baked? Because the only way birds get mites is by being exposed to something that has them so, if they have not been outside or access to outside stuff and if there are no new birds that could have brought the infestation, it cannot be mites. But spraying feet and wings is not going to do it because red mites don't live on the bird [those are the ones that make them itch], feather mites don't even touch the bird itself, they feed on the protein in the feathers, air sac mites are internal and the only symptoms are labored breathing and a clicking noise in their chest and the only other common parasite to birds is scaly mites which affect beaks and feet [where there are no feathers] and produce something similar to scabs [it's also called bird mange].

You either need to take the bird to a vet and get a proper diagnosis and treatment OR you can try using ivermectin internally or Scatt topically [I have used Ivermectin in the past on my canaries and it's very safe and effective if you follow the instructions correctly]. The trick is to take away their water bowls at night and give them freshly medicated water in the morning and to do the treatment once a week for three consecutive weeks and always on the same day so, if you do it on a, say, Monday, you need to do it again the next two Mondays. Vets will tell you that two weeks is enough but some mites have a three week life cycle -if not lifespan- and it's best to do it three times in a row, just to make sure. But you also need to do the thorough cleaning and changing of everything not made out of metal [which needs to be scrubbed].
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