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I come home every day expecting to hear my bird calling for me and there is nothing but silence. I miss her so much. I've been looking around online for local listings for people selling birds. I located someone who is selling 3 of them. I want a male this time, he said the bird was hand tamed at 1 year old. My next questions to him were: what does his diet consist of? What his personality is like? and if he lives with other birds?

I am super paranoid about getting another bird though, because I don't want to have to put another one down. It's super sad and I'm very attached to my animals.

So, I want to get a male, I want a bird that is a little bit more personable with everyone. Tatyana, was only really nice to me. I also would love to hear some other vocalizations, talking isn't all that important but different sounds would be cool.

What other kinds of questions should I be asking this person and what should I look for when I go visit the bird? I doubt the guy will pay $75 to get a vet exam done on a bird he'd selling for $50. I just want to know some pointers before I buy the bird and take it to the vet only to find out it's sick or something.

What can I expect out of a bird who is probably bonded to someone else already? Will it bond with me still?

Would it be better for me to wait and find a baby bird?

If your vet is right about your 'tiel dying with PDD, please do NOT get another bird until you've moved from where you now live and have a different car. It was only last August that researchers announced that PDD is caused by a virus. It is still unknown how that virus transmits from one victim to another. It is unknown how long the virus lives in the environment after the host bird is gone. It is unknown what cleansers can kill the virus. It would be very dangerous for you to bring another bird into the same environment.

There were no tests done, it was simply. She was vomiting runny yellow liquid and full seeds. She was very thin and depressed.

Anyways I was told to bleach my toys, cage, an surrounding walls. I wont be moving out of here for at least 6 years.

Lyndsay wrote:There were no tests done...Anyways I was told to bleach my toys, cage, an surrounding walls...

You were told that by one of the Univ of GA researchers?

Are you going to play avian vet online?

http://derisilab.ucsf.edu/index.php?news=87
This site, DeRisi labs claims they don't know how it's transferd. So.. am I supposed to tell my parents we have to move out of our $300,000 house so I can get another bird?

You're an adult. Move into your own place. Your parents might have no desire to move.

There's no rulebook for this situation. I'd think a reasonable person would gather the facts and use good advice, a good brain, and integrity to reach the right decision on what to do next. You could opt to not get another bird. If you do, please, please, please, never let another bird be sick for 3 weeks before getting her to an avian vet.

Your assumptions are correct, but foolish. I am indeed an adult, I am also going to university to be a nurse, there is no money to move out. I work 2 jobs so that I can save money to complete school and whatnot.

Had I of owned a bird previous to my 'tiel, I sure as hell would have noticed the signs better. She acted normal until the last 2 days. When I called the vet to ask questions about the vomit on her feathers, the vet said she would be fine to wait. In those days she got better, I showered all the vomit off her and there was no more for a few days. Then she got worse and when I found her sitting in the corner of her cage I knew something wasn't right. But she climbed up to her perch and slept there when I came into my room. The next day was when she wouldn't do much, so I called the vet and got an appointment. My vet also never suggested I send her body away for an after death examination, so I buried her as soon as I got home. I will never know for sure if she was PDD positive, but I sure as heck don't want to live the rest of my time in this house without another bird.

What more do you want me to do? Honestly you keep harping on me with your illogical answers. Moving out on my own so I can own a bird? You need to get your head checked.

Surely there has to be some way to disinfect a contaminated room? What do people do when they get a suspected case of PDD when they have a bunch of birds?! They obviously don't put them all down; so how do they clean the environment to make it safe for the other birds?! And what do people do when they loose a bird to PDD, they don't move or throw out $200 cages. There has to be a way around this. What about in a lab setting, what do they do to disinfect their study area? They would have to if they were studying PDD.

I'm trying to look for good advice, I've asked for it, I've been reading for hours about it and there is nothing saying that I have to move out of my house. So unless you're going to link me to a trusted website that says that is necessary; then you really need to stop with those claims.

Until then, the sites I've found suggested, "Sterilize the cage of a confirmed PDD bird first by scrubbing off all organic matter, then steam cleaning, then using a solution of bleach or another type of viracidal compound if you wish. Discard wooden toys and perches. Sterilizing metal, ceramic and plastic in the dishwasher might be enough, but I would use bleach, too." http://www.justanswer.com/questions/3frz-parrot-regurgatating-clear#ixzz0JDj8DsQ9&D

There is also this one, Synphenol -3 looks promising. Anyone have any experience with this? http://www.quakerville.com/qic/qdefect.asp

Any advice that preceded the bornavirus discovery is obsolete.

Your answers don't help. There is no possible way that I have only the option to move out of my house to own another bird.

Lyndsay wrote:... What do people do when they get a suspected case of PDD when they have a bunch of birds?! They obviously don't put them all down; so how do they clean the environment to make it safe for the other birds?! And what do people do when they loose a bird to PDD, they don't move or throw out $200 cages...

If they love birds, they don't expose another. Yes, many do put down whole flocks when one develops a deadly disease. A $200 cage is nothing.

Don't forget about the car. You'll need another car too since yours was exposed.

Lyndsay, I think it is entirely up to you.
I do really really love my birds too, but can also imagine wanting to get another one if I'd lost one.

I find this a worthwhile article to read
http://www.stoppdd.org/problem/pdd_faq.html

It's a very tricky situation that you're in and I do really feel for you.
But it comes down to your own decision, we can only give you our opinions.
I haven't found myself in a situation like yours but I think I personally would give it some time.......
I can't imagine a virus living forever however, but then, I am certainly no expert!
Bluesbirds I think you mean well and have the bird's best interest at heart, but please mind your manners, you can be very blunt!

I am going to stick my .02 here ... and play devils advocate for a moment .. Lindsay it sounds like it was kidney failure from what I read but I can only hazzard a guess .....and I am not a vet ...
Moving is not the answer nor is buying a new car !
What is to say that the house you buy has not had birds in it that had it ? What is to say if it is new one of the builders was exposed to it touching stuff .. The same with a car ? What is to say it did not transport a sick bird or had some one assembling it that had a sick bird ? What is to say that the products that you buy at wal-mart, target etc were not touched by some one who had a sick bird , or that when you go to the vets that there was not a sick bird in there just hours or days before you , do you think they wash the walls and stuff down of the whole building !?!
You are basically saying that she can NOT have another bird period .... with all the precautions you are saying ...
There is such a thing as taking it too far and causing yourself to go crazy ! Lindsay just hang in there and clean but dont move and buy a new car or house ....ther is time for that later ! You are saying buy all new from home to car to clothes to furniture to carpet etc that is taking it too far ...
Use a pinesol or vinegar wash for your walls at home (do this before you get another bird , then air out the house)
Vaccuum well and toss the bag ... You can get a steam iron to clean the non washables or use a steam cleaner on the furniture , floors etc ..If you can wash it wash it if not steam it with a steam iron or steam clean it but I would not go to the lengths that they are saying ...
Soap , water , bleach should work fine as should baking the raised temps kill the viruses and bacteria it can not survive . Most can not survive with out a host .
Our vet who is avian told us when we lost our first tiel told us this " baking , boiling and dishwasher will kill every thing ,. if you can't boil , bake or dishwash it toss it ... you can soak it in vinegar and then rinse toss into a bucket of bleach water , then into the dishwasher , this will kill off germs . What you cant do that to toss such as water bottles unless glass and the sipper tube can be boiled , the cage can be sprayed with a bleach water mix then rinsed well and set in the sun to dry "
That is how we would handle it ... Sadie

Apple cider vinegar is another good one, I product I never do without
I must admit, the advice I and others get on this forum, though no doubt well meant and with the birds' best interest at heart, is quite often (I find) very excessive when it comes to quarantining, disinfecting etc etc
If I post the same question on an Ozzie forum, which I sometimes do, the advise is generally a lot more "casual" and also a bit more down to earth.
Perhaps that's what we Ozzies are like but yeah, I think sometimes you just gotta do what you think or what feels best!
With my new budgie, sure I keep him away from the other fids, but I certainly don't go and change all my clothes, shoes, wash my hair etc etc.
All I do is wash my hands, or just feed the new baby last.
Maybe blase, casual or perhaps, to some people, uncaring (trust me, I love all of my pets!) but I just call it being realistic

sadielynn wrote:I am going to stick my .02 here ... and play devils advocate for a moment .. Lindsay it sounds like it was kidney failure from what I read but I can only hazzard a guess .....and I am not a vet ...
Moving is not the answer nor is buying a new car !
What is to say that the house you buy has not had birds in it that had it ? What is to say if it is new one of the builders was exposed to it touching stuff .. The same with a car ? What is to say it did not transport a sick bird or had some one assembling it that had a sick bird ? What is to say that the products that you buy at wal-mart, target etc were not touched by some one who had a sick bird , or that when you go to the vets that there was not a sick bird in there just hours or days before you , do you think they wash the walls and stuff down of the whole building !?!
You are basically saying that she can NOT have another bird period .... with all the precautions you are saying ...
There is such a thing as taking it too far and causing yourself to go crazy ! Lindsay just hang in there and clean but dont move and buy a new car or house ....ther is time for that later ! You are saying buy all new from home to car to clothes to furniture to carpet etc that is taking it too far ...
Use a pinesol or vinegar wash for your walls at home (do this before you get another bird , then air out the house)
Vaccuum well and toss the bag ... You can get a steam iron to clean the non washables or use a steam cleaner on the furniture , floors etc ..If you can wash it wash it if not steam it with a steam iron or steam clean it but I would not go to the lengths that they are saying ...
Soap , water , bleach should work fine as should baking the raised temps kill the viruses and bacteria it can not survive . Most can not survive with out a host .
Our vet who is avian told us when we lost our first tiel told us this " baking , boiling and dishwasher will kill every thing ,. if you can't boil , bake or dishwash it toss it ... you can soak it in vinegar and then rinse toss into a bucket of bleach water , then into the dishwasher , this will kill off germs . What you cant do that to toss such as water bottles unless glass and the sipper tube can be boiled , the cage can be sprayed with a bleach water mix then rinsed well and set in the sun to dry "
That is how we would handle it ... Sadie

Thanks
I obviously wasn't going to buy a new house or a car for a $100 cockatiel.

I have to buy bleach, I have a steam cleaner thing and a pressure washer. I'm sure I'll make out, I'm not planning on getting another bird till at least August.