Birbs Flashcards
(85 cards)
Most birds should have a diet of 80% pellets, 20% veggies, and less than 10% seeds, fruits except this type of bird
Cockatiels, they should have 50/50 seeds and pellets
Do you need to give psittacines or passerines grit
No
Are water additives a good way to supplement a bird’s diet
No
A cockatiel presents with polyuria making the stools look very watery, what may be the cause
Being on a diet of mostly pellets and not 50/50 seeds and pellets
What is the most common dietary issue in pet psittacines
Malnutrition
Seeds are high in ____ and low in _________ and ________
High in calories/energy and low in Vitamin A and Calcium
How could you differentiate between a behavioral or metabolic issue causing poor feathering
Metabolic will impact the entire bird, and behavioral will be where the bird can reach (so the feathers on the top of its head may be fine)
How many liver lobes does a bird have
2
What liver disease are captive birds prone to
Hepatic lipidosis (fatty liver)
A bird with an overgrown beak and nails and ratty feathers with broken off sheaths may have issues with what
It’s liver (not making enough animo acids)
And probably some other shit too like malnutrition
How do you gauge if a bird is overweight or underweight
You can palpate the keel bone (want it to be a 3/5, can feel bone but not super prominent)
What is the best test in birds for liver function
Bile acids
2 birds present to you for blood work
One has a blood panel showing an elevated AST, LDH, and CK and the other just has an elevated AST and LDH
What do these findings tell you
The bird with the elevated AST, LDH, and CK may have some muscle damage and not necessarily liver damage. The bird with the elevated AST and LDH is more likely to have liver damage
A bird presents and you determine it has a liver dysfunction. What diagnostic can you use to get a definitive diagnosis of what is going on with the liver
Biopsy (just isn’t done as a first test because it is so invasive)
T/F exercise is very important in the treatment of liver disease in birds
True
A bird presents to you and on physical exam you notice in the bird’s mouth the papillae around the choanal slit are blunted. What may be going on
Hypovitaminosis A
What cell type is targeted by hypovitaminosis A
Epithelial cells ex. Respiratory, renal (squamous metaplasia, respiratory tract infections, oral abscesses- rhinoliths)
What is a good example of how vitamin A can impact pigment in a birds feathers
Flamingos getting pink!
What can cause Rhamphotheca- proliferative and flaky skin and stressbars on feathers
Hypovitaminosis A
An African gray that spends all its life as a couch potato presents to your clinic right at closing for seizures! Oh no! What is a likely cause
Vitamin D deficiency, get that bird outside in some sun! (Well after the seizures are controlled…)
Birds should have a Ca:P ratio of
2:1
Which bone is used for intraosseous catheters in birds and why is this notable
The ulna because in birds it is bigger than the radius and it is non-pneumatic! Could also use the tibiotarsus
Which x-ray view is helpful for seeing a fracture in the coracoid or another part of the shoulder girdle in birds
The H view- they are placed in dorsal recumbency and a 45 degree angle shot is taken
T/F birds will start seeming sick soon after they are
False, they hide their symptoms
