# My pet dove seems constipated. Please help



## Picollo30 (Oct 18, 2011)

hi guys what brings me here again is that my pet dove Afonso seems constipated as of today, i noticed today he was trying to poop but couldn't. i really dont know what to do. he seems fine and active,very friendly and cudly, eats fine he just doesnt drink water. since we brought him home from what i can see he just doesnt drink. can he be dehydrated? could you guys make that out from his droopings? He doesnt show signs of illness like sleepiness or tail bobbing, i'm really clueless here.

i think dehydration because his urine is white and pasty and the urates are mostly chalk white. also his bill is whiter than it used to. im going to post some pics for you guys to check out. if he is dehydrated and cant poop because of that what can i do. do i need to give him water trough a syringe or what?

here are the pics 

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/10/fotogr0001.jpg/

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/593/fotogr0000.jpg/

are these droopings normal?

here's a pic of him

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/4499/img002ki.jpg (notice he doesn't have the usual black ring around the neck)

Note: btw i'm mixing grit with his food (seeds). is it wrong to do so? Also what can i give my dove instead of an all seeds diet and grit?


Thanks in advance


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

you do not mix the grit with the feed it goes in its seperate dish so he can eat what he wants when he wants. it may be good to change you're dove over to a high quality pellet feed like Harrison's bird food high potency fine, if you can find it where you live. the pictures are bad so I can't tell a thing, I would give him some cut greens like spinach for a few days and add a probitoic to his feed or water...when they drink it is usually right after they eat and only take a few gulps and they are done so it is easy to miss..make sure you have a water dish he can use easily and knows where it is by dipping his beak in it..he must be drinking if he is still alive.


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## Picollo30 (Oct 18, 2011)

spirit wings he hasn't poop yet, is there any natural laxative i can give him so the feces would be released? could the constipation be caused by the grit or the seeds?

You mentioned spinach is that good for a bird with constipation? Are there any other vegetables or fruits that can help?


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## jondove (Nov 17, 2011)

Yes, about spinach. You can read this thread about constipation also.


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## Picollo30 (Oct 18, 2011)

hi guys i think Afonso is ok now, something was blocking i think it was the grit. my sister gave him water trough a syringe and massaged his stomach and immediately he expelled lots of feces both solid and liquid with grit, he even spat something and hiccuped. He is now preening his wings and cooing. I called the vet and he said i should stop with the grit and give him only once a month and feed him not seeds but pellets and fruits as treats. what do you think?


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## jondove (Nov 17, 2011)

Picollo30 said:


> I called the vet and he said i should stop with the grit and give him only once a month and feed him not seeds but pellets and fruits as treats. what do you think?


I would do as spirit wings said, just give *grit in a separate dish*. Pigeons know when they need to eat grit, as long as you don't mix it with the feed.

About pellets, I don't know, they certainly don't cause constipation, and may be easier to digest without grit, but grains, seeds and grit are pigeons' natural food and they don't normally get constipated from that.


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