It’s rare for a pet bird, especially a pet parrot, to get constipated. But once a bird suffers a constipation, the bird will often strain to defecate, and become very inactive or irritable with fluffed feathers. It’s a very bad health problem that needs to take immediate attention and action.
The bird’s constipation can be caused by:
- The bird does not have enough exercise.
- The bird has a poor diet: The bird food is with low fiber and/or lack of oil; Eat a lots with little water.
- The bird suffers gastroenteritis.
Prevention:
- Supply seeds that are rich in oil and fat, and fruits that’s juicy with multi-vitamins and fiber.
- Provide in the cage fresh water all the time. Without water, the bird food will be dry and blocked inside.
- Clean the cage often, sterilize the cage and feeder periodically because infection like a gastroenteritis will also cause a constipation.
Treatment:
- Use warm water and a soft cloth to remove the poop built around the bird’s butt. Be careful that you are not tearing its skin to cause wound and get infected.
- Use an eye drop to feed the bird with a few drops of vegetable oil.
- If it’s serious and the above step doesn’t work, grasp the bird upside down and drip the vegetable oil directly into the cloaca, hold the bird upside down for a few minutes to let oil flow inside completely.