KJ>At least she knows about the dangers of diseases. Many folks who
KJ>approach me about buying birds have NO clue that birds can even get
KJ>sick!
>I had two different people come to buy a bird with money in hand *But*
>they had nothing else.  No food, no Cage, nothing...
I've had people do that too. One even said "I can afford the bird this
week, and I'll get a cage with my next paycheck in 2 weeks". She planned
to keep the bird in a box until then...sorry, NO SALE......
>As far as your buyer is concerned--at least she is prepared and knows
>what she is doing.
The poor woman called me today. Since we last spoke, her Senegal was
acting a bit under the weather, so she rushed him to the vet. The vet
found an elevated WBC on bloodwork, so she prescribed Cipro. The bird
was looking and acting just fine, with normal blood counts, on a
re-check 2 weeks later.
But the owner is panicked that this may be a precursory infection caused
by PDS--apparently her Jenday was ill a lot before the PDS symptoms
became obvious. But her Jenday NEVER gained weight--she was always
skinny and in poor feather, aside from always having some minor
bacterial problem or other. The Senegal actually GAINED weight during
the 2 weeks of Cipro treatment, and has, up til now, always been a
healthy, robust bird. I highly doubt that the Senegal is having PDS
problems, and I assured her of that. I *did* suggest that if the Senegal
acts ill again, that she insist that her vet do cultures before
prescribing drugs, just to rule in-or-out bacterial infections.
The woman was ready to let me cancel the deal if I wasn't comfortable
with the Senegal's health, and even told me I could call her vet and
discuss the problem if I felt I needed to. Since the Senegal responded
so well to the Cipro, I believe it was *just* a bacterial problem
(PDS and viruses don't respond to antibiotics so neatly). I told her
that if he gets sick again before the Jenday is weaned, she may have to
reconsider the wisdom of adding another bird to her household, but odds
are against it. So for now, anyway, she's still going to get the baby.
--Kathy
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