Aussie Finch Forum

Hi folks,

I got some masked finches sent down from the Gunnedah sale earlier in the year.

One of the cock birds fluffed a little before he arrived.

He didn't improve in quarantine but didn't decline either. He went into the general population and I found him a couple of weeks later very weak. He then got heat and spark and I got a faecal smear down which showed cocci. Vet prescribed clavulox, bird appeared 100% before I even started the antibiotics after heat and spark. I gave the antibiotics for about 8 days.

Since then I treated the whole flock including the bird in question with moxi plus and baycox for two days each treatment, 2 weeks apart.

In the last couple of days the bird has weakened again, has a dirty vent and is struggling to make the perch, so it's back on heat and spark and I started the clavulox again today...

I feels like I'm going around in circles and not sure what else I should try or what I should change.

Any ideas welcome.

Cheers Ian

pm sent

iaos wrote:Hi folks,

I got some masked finches sent down from the Gunnedah sale earlier in the year.

One of the cock birds fluffed a little before he arrived.

He didn't improve in quarantine but didn't decline either. He went into the general population and I found him a couple of weeks later very weak. He then got heat and spark and I got a faecal smear down which showed cocci. Vet prescribed clavulox, bird appeared 100% before I even started the antibiotics after heat and spark. I gave the antibiotics for about 8 days.

Since then I treated the whole flock including the bird in question with moxi plus and baycox for two days each treatment, 2 weeks apart.

In the last couple of days the bird has weakened again, has a dirty vent and is struggling to make the perch, so it's back on heat and spark and I started the clavulox again today...

I feels like I'm going around in circles and not sure what else I should try or what I should change.

Any ideas welcome.

Cheers Ian

Hi Ian,why would the Vet give you antibiotics for coccidia and not baycox in the first place. Craig

Agree with Craig - he just beat me to posting the following....

If significant cocci was found then I'm not sure why clavolux (antibiotic) was prescribed? With a wet butt, I would have put the bird on Baycox for a fair while - week at least. Not uncommon for Masked finches to stress which I presume allows low levels of cocci to multiply and cause issues.

Thanks fellas,

I will have to double check the notes they gave me.

I will get him on another course of baycox. Should I make it up daily, or can I just make one batch?

Thanks again.

Ian

Regarding the vet, the practice is known as a bird vet. I was pretty disappointed with their overall advice.

They offered no advice on husbandry to avoid a repeat and no advice on preventative treatment for the rest of my folk.

I did get a generic handout informing me that I should feed my birds pellets and not clip their wings

iaos wrote:Thanks fellas,

I will have to double check the notes they gave me.

I will get him on another course of baycox. Should I make it up daily, or can I just make one batch?

Thanks again.

Ian

You can make up 1ltr and keep it in the fridge for a few days but give it a shake before you give it to him,the dose is 3ml to the litre

Hi folks,

The diagnosis was cocci bacteria rather than coccidia. My misunderstanding.

I had a very productive and pleasant conversation with my bird vet today. He offered some practical solutions and options to help the bird and my flock.

Bird looked stuffed this morning, fingers crossed it made it through today and starts to improve in the next couple of days.

Cheers Ian

He didn't make it through the night.

The vet kindly offered a necropsy free of charge. Preliminary results indicate abnormal liver and gallbladder.

Hopefully I will learn from this experience and my flock will benefit.
Cheers
Ian

Sorry to hear that Ian. Can be for the best in the long run as often those finches that do manage to appear recovered are the first to succumb when breeding or winter comes along.