Bad breath?

[Eriisu-chan]

I've noticed lately that my little Mr Tango has bad breath... I thought about getting him a toothbrush (which he loves), but then I thought "He doesn't have TEETH!! :eek:"

Anyhoot... have any of you guys noticed funky breath from your fids? :shrug2:

Just wondering if it's normal, really...

[tropiclegirl]

Ya sometimes they have pellet breath or seed breath!!

Actually if i put garlic in there fresh food mix, they have BAD breath all day :rofl:

[Eriisu-chan]

His food doesn't have many seeds in it... and he doesn't eat pellets. :shrug2:

Glad to see Tango's not alone in his beak-stinkiness, though! :p

[tropiclegirl]

There seed mix doesnt have a whole lot of seeds in it either. I buy a few different mixes of the Goldenfeast and mix them all together. Some of them have different spices and stuff in it so thats pretty much what i smell, is there food.

There fresh foods i mix up different varieties each week. So far the strongest smell that stays on them is garlic, celery, dill, and cilantro.

And of course there fruits make them smell yummy :drool2::wub:

Is there anything that you have changed in there diet lately?

[Shirley]

I think I'll move this to Dr. C's Expertise.... remote possibility of something going on in the crop...??

[Jim]

Not to scare you. A bad yeast infection can cause bad breath. It will smell like yeast, sour bread or sour dough.

[Geoffrey]

If Tango doesn't eat pellets or seed, what does he eat? Is there another option?

Disclaimer: Does not have a parrot, therefore doesn't know about feeding one.

[CocosMomma]

To: Person with scary cat avatar:....:eek: :foot-tap:

Some examples are veg, fruit, nuts, eggs, grains, (rice, pasta, etc.), etc. ...

Coco's diet is, however, pellets (Harrison's) - in addition to certain seeds, certain nuts and then everything else listed above with the exception of fruit and eggs (I give her very, very little fruit or eggs - maybe once or twice a year on average). I also give her hemp seed oil supplementation as she needs a little extra oil (plus, amazons do not have a preen oil gland).

Elise: Coco gets an unusual breath smell when she's got a lot of hormones going on - but it is not anything I would classify as bad or nasty; just different. I don't know if that is unique to amazons, but every amazon I have ever had got this unique breath smell when their hormones were at a higher level. Not a bad thing - just that hormones fluctuate. Unfortunately, I cannot describe for you what that smell is.

Naturally, though, we'll wait for Dr. C. to come in and give the 'medical' answer!:nuts:

[Geoffrey]

Ok, gotcha.
(Scary cat in the avatar is not actually being scary, btw. I had to invert the colors to make her look scary - in the original picture she is mewing and pawing at the camera :p)

[all4stvoyager]

Oh sure...yer just saying that about scary cat...

As far as breath...I know that Mister smells different day to day based on what he's eating. He smells great when I feed him something with cinnimon (sp?)

[CocosMomma]

...she is mewing and pawing at the camera :p)

"Give me that *^%&^ camera, human, or I will make you wish you had never....{mew, mew, snarl, swat, paw}... crash, bang...."

--Scary Kitty--

[Geoffrey]

I wouldn't put that past her, but *then* she was being nice. I have proof! I can still type, which means I still have hands, which means she wasn't angry. If she was actually mad, I am sure I would have some sort of battle-scar.

Zeke is petrified of her :p

[Ellen K. Cook, DVM]

I've had a few patients like scary-cat :eek:

Parrot halitosis is usually related to what they have been eating. When Merlin eats a load of broccoli, his breath would "knock a buzzard off a gut wagon", as my 82 year old mother would say.

However, a sour or foul odor is sometimes associated with a yeast/bacterial infection in the crop, mouth or sinuses, as Jim said. I would recommend that you have your bird examined by a qualified avian veterinarian. Birds are such masters at disguising symptoms of illness, that anything out of the ordinary warrants concern.

[Eriisu-chan]

Is there anything that you have changed in there diet lately?
Nope. But he has has a tad bit less fresh foods...

I think I'll move this to Dr. C's Expertise.... remote possibility of something going on in the crop...??
I didn't know if "Bad Breath" was Dr C worthy... :wub: For once, I wasn't being paranoid! :funny: Thank you, though!

If Tango doesn't eat pellets or seed, what does he eat? Is there another option?
I didn't say no seeds, just not many... He eats Golden Feast... a mix of nuts, seeds, fruit, veggies and pellets... and fresh foods...

So yeah, there are seeds, but not like you'd find in a budgie or cockatiel mix, for example. :)



Dr C, as always, thanks for your advice... Next time I have him out I'll try and sniff his beak see if I find it smells yeast-y, sour or foul... I don't quite remember what it smelled like... it may have been morning breath, too. :shrug2:

He's sleeping now, but tomorrow I'll snuggle with him a bunch. :agree: