# Bird with Pneumonia



## alyshmally (Aug 17, 2014)

Hello,

I just bought a cockatiel about a week and a half ago. When I brought him home I noticed he had some strange behavior. He was puffed up and pretty lethargic. I took him to the vet and she said that he is healthy, except for a little bit of pneumonia. She told me to give him Baytril twice a day for five days.

It is the fifth day now, and he looks better, but he is still puffed up and has some occasional tail bobbing and sneezing. He is slightly more active. He is jumping from perches to get around instead of slowly crossing the cage bars. He has been eating and drinking the whole time, and he has started preening, which he wasn't doing when I bought him. Do cockatiels usually get over pneumonia, or is it difficult for them? I am sure the medication is making him feel pretty awful as well. I think he probably had pneumonia for awhile since he had it when I bought him. He was a rehome which was left with a petstore in town.

He was also somewhat vocal when I bought him and since I've been giving him medicine he is silent all the time. He would respond when I said his name, but now he just sits puffed up with his back towards me. I can't tell if he is still sick, or if he just doesn't like me anymore. He isn't tame, so me toweling him and force feeding him Baytril twice a day hasn't been fantastic for our relationship.

Any insight you guys could give me would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Alyssa


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## Tequilagirl (Mar 4, 2013)

Hello!

Did your vet mention anything about giving him probiotics after the Baytril? The antibiotic will have wiped out a lot of his good bacteria and it would be normal for him to be feeling like crap. I would have thought there would have been a follow up with the vet after the treatment.

What's his diet like?


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

I think I would contact the vet and tell him that your tiel doesn't seem fully recovered. I'm not sure how long it takes for pneumonia to clear up. Also, did your vet say anything about giving your tiel probiotics? Maybe ask about that too.

And no bird likes getting meds and it's unfortunate you had to give them so soon but I think you'll be able to build a relationship once he's feeling better.


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## alyshmally (Aug 17, 2014)

No, she didn't mention any probiotics. And there was no follow up either. 

Unfortunately the store he came from had him on a seed only diet. I've been trying to incorporate pellets, and he eats some of them, but mostly seeds.


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

alyshmally said:


> No, she didn't mention any probiotics. And there was no follow up either.
> 
> Unfortunately the store he cam from had him on a seed only diet. I've been trying to incorporate pellets, and he eats some of them, but mostly seeds.


While he's sick, just let him eat whatever he wants. Eating anything right now is important to keep his strength up. Also vegetables are important to a tiel's diet.


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## alyshmally (Aug 17, 2014)

Good news! I was able to drop my bird off at the vet today. She says the pneumonia is all cleared up! But he does have a slightly elevated blood pressure, so she gave me some herbal medication to put in his water. Still no probiotics though. He has also gained some weight. He was only 74 grams when she weighed him last week.

She believes some of my bird's lethargy is just from being bored. I assumed that he just didn't feel well enough to be active and destructive, but the vet believes he doesn't know how to play with toys. When I dropped him off she said he chirped and talked to the other birds for at least an hour, totally tuckered himself out, and then went to sleep. They put a mirror in his cage and he settled down and has been is singing to it, pulling at it, and trying to pull of the bell attached. 

His behavior seems a little better too. I was able to get him on my finger to take him from his carrier cage to his home cage. With no biting!


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

I read in another post that she is well


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## alyshmally (Aug 17, 2014)

Yes, he is!  And he has also started eating the fruits and veggies I have been putting in his cage!


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