Your avian veterinarian may prescribe medications for many of the ailments in this article.
It is important to follow the directions and in many cases to not stop giving the medication until your avian veterinarian instructs you to even if the symptoms subside.
Listed below are a few of the more common methods of giving medication.
Water Soluble Medications - This method puts the medication in the drinking water of the bird.
This is the easiest method to administer but this method is unpredictable and unreliable.
It is difficult to control and/or observe the dosages.
Some birds reduce water intake when they are sick which also makes this a non-preferred method.
Be sure to remove all other sources of water (including fruit) when using this method to encourage drinking.
This method may work with small birds but larger birds would have to drink too much water to consume enough of the medication.
Always make sure that your bird is drinking.
Often birds will avoid the water due to smell or taste.
This would not only prevent them from getting the medication but would also dehydrate them.
Medicated Foods - Also hard to monitor the dosage because a lot of the food ends up on the bottom of the cage or aviary.
A loss of appetite during a lot of ailments also makes this method impractical.
The taste of the food often discourages the bird from ingesting the medication.
Always make sure that your bird is eating something.
Often birds will avoid the medicated food due to smell or taste.
This would not only prevent them from getting the medication but would also remove their source of nourishment.
Medicated Powder - Powdered medication may be designed for ingestion or inhalation.
For ingestion, it may be sprinkled on dry food but the medication will be discarded or removed by the bird because of its taste, smell or texture before it eats the food.
It is sometimes effective to sprinkle it on fruit to encourage ingestion.
Again, always make sure that your bird is eating something.
Often birds will avoid the medicated food due to smell or taste.
This would not only prevent them from getting the medication but would also remove their source of nourishment.
Powder can also be administered as an inhalant such as for the treatment of Air Sac Mites.
In this case the powder is put in a bag and shook similar to a 'shake and bake' to get the powder suspended in the air.
The bird is then placed in the bag to inhale the powder.
Oral Dosage - This is an accurate method of administering medication.
It is often given using a syringe (with needle removed) or eyedropper.
Previously hand fed babies will allow this but most birds will not and may require restraining (toweling).
This is stressful to an already ill bird so should be done as carefully as possible.
You must make sure that the medication is not administered into the trachea (opening to the respiratory tract) which will choke the bird.
Injections - Very accurate dosage but the bird will need to be restrained.
Injections should only be made by a veterinarian.
There are cases where bird owners learn to do this if required on a regular basis such as a bird with diabetes.