air sac mite treatment/ bird weight

[amalan11]

Hi..just wondering if anyone can give me an idea how much the following birds weigh please
canary,zebra finch ,budgie ,corrella and sulpher crest cocky.
Iv got a problem with my roller canarys im sure its air sack mite as when sprayed with standard pyrethrin spray they start franticly rubbing their beaks .I was told that the correct treatments are only avalable from a vet and so at least a hundred $ for one bird so to try just the pyrethein spray as 95% of the time that works(seems to have worked for all but one) ..also advised to put in a bag with mortein ,didnt try that!!
Anyway as forum is out of it for now, I found a ebay seller who sells" Cydectin drench 1g pr ltr moxidectin" . He says 1-2 drops per 30 gms between shoulders but I have no idea how much they weigh
Im assuming I better treat all my birds??? cockys included ???
oh ..also do you think one drop from an eye dropper would be accurite enough? iv tried to avoid this stuff as im told it kills easly if incorectly used
thanks

[Craig52]

Amalan11,one drop from an eye dropper is ok for canary,zeb and budgie,2-3 drops for corella and cocky and i find it best to place on the bare skin on the back of the neck as the bird can't reach it to preen etc,though i don't think it would hurt if it could. Cheers Craig

[natamambo]

With that range of birds, unless it's urgent dose via drinking water, search the web for rates coz in Oz it's illegal to prescribe it for birds unless you are an avian vet so we cant discuss dosage rates here.

[GregH]

It's not Illegal for me to tell you that birds vary in weight but if you're not prepared to individually weigh each bird then these weights are what I found:

Species...................................Weight (g)..............Reference
.......................................Range.......Average
Zebra (domestic).............14.0-17.0........15.7......Harper, Lambert & Moodle (1998)
Canary....................................................23.2......Harper, Lambert & Moodle (1998)
Budgie - wild..................23.5-32.0........29.0........
.........- standard.............28.0-30.0......................Talk Budgies Forum
.........- exhibition...........41.5-65.0......................Talk Budgies Forum.
Corella - short beaked............................
.........- long beaked................................640.........Avian Web
Suphur Crested Cockatoo........................800.........Avian Web

[Finchman1]

What symtoms are your canarys showing,why do you think its air sack mite?

[amalan11]

thanks for that.I have treated them for worms and the usual lice spray is used every 3 weeks(pyrethrem based).They seem short of breath and are rubbing their beaks franticly when sprayed with the pyretrem which im told is a sure sign.Iv lost two a month ago and had one very bad a couple of days ago but with seperation and heavy spraying it seems much improved eating and jumping about fine.
Its not that im not prepared to weigh them I just have not got any realy fine scales ,I guess for a little bird it would need to be letter scales or something.
Its a funny thing with this product although its illegal it seems to be avalable in a few places that are not vets or prescribed and it looks like its legal for farmers if they use it for cows ect as I found a few places who sell it in cow sized bulk bottles .I suspect it would be easly obtained from any rural area

[amalan11]

Just a follow up..iv only seen signs in the rollers my other birds seem fine but im thinking I will treat them all in case

[GregH]

The beak wiping immediately after you sprayed them is a sure sign that they were sprayed - NOT that they have ACM. Canaries and Gouldians are extremely susceptible to ACM and when affected you will see them breathless and there is often a distinct click with each breath. If you capture an affected bird hold it up to the sun and part the feathers of the neck to expose the skin. With the light shining through the skin you will see dark creepy crawlies in the trachea if it has ACM.

The Agricultural Pharmaceutical and Veterinary Medicines Authority regulates the use of moxi and because of the legal liability requirements imposed the formulations can only be used in accordance with the directions written on the label which is why any off-label use should only be done under veterinary supervision. Unless you are going to eat or trade the birds or sue the chemicals supplier you'll probably be OK if you accept the risk of off-label usage but I'd recommend you do your research carefully to make sure that the formulation you are dealing with is correctly diluted for the type of application you are attempting, is miscible with whatever you are diluting it with and doesn't contain anything toxic to birds.

[amalan11]

thats very good to know ,I will have a look tommorow for any mites.This one is ok it was recomended to me by a breeder who uses it himself on his canarys
and he said to look for that strenth
thanks greg it will save me dosing birds that dont need it if I can look for mites

[GregH]

If you don't see then it doesn't mean that they don't have them as they can be low numbers down in the respiratory tract. If one bird has them in a shared aviary then you need to treat everything in it not just the obviously affected birds.