# I think my 3 week old baby pigeons have pox what to do?



## Young Bird (May 2, 2007)

I noticed a bump on the beak of one of the babies so pulled both of them out to take a closer look and to my surprise they both have these bump on there wings and head like six or seven bumps on each. what should i do.


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## warriec (Feb 2, 2007)

Dont panic.

Firstly give some details about your birds.

1) how many
2) have you had young before
3) is this the first time you are having pox in your loft

do not remove the pox lesions, apply an antibiotic cream or tinture of iodine twice daily. you need to prevent sencondary infection.

have you adult birds all vaccinated and dont have any young for about 3 months.


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## Young Bird (May 2, 2007)

There are two babies with pox I have four adults in there with them they do not have any bumps on them that i can see i will handle them tomarrow in the morning give them all a good look over . These are the first babies that I have raised. will the parents get pox too since the babies have it. There is two breeding pairs in the cage on pair is the babies parents and the other pair has three day old babies.


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Hi Youngbird, 

If you have a digital camera, it would be great if you could take pictures 
of the 'bumps' that you are referring to so that we can be clear on what 
symptoms you are seeing. If you have no camera, a more detailed description
of the "bumps" would be helpful. Are they warts? blisters? boils?sores?, this would be helpful to know.

The parents could have previously had the virus and be shedding the virus ifin fact pox, how old are the babies?? Also, are all adults involved in feeding the babies? If not, move them out of the cage where the babies in question and the adults feeding them are located. Follow good hygiene protocol and wash hands before and after tending to the sick birds. One half a cup of bleach to 
a gallon of water will kill the pox virus, make sure the cage, feeding and drinking bowls, and anything else that especially comes in contact w/saliva, blood etc. are cleaned w/the bleach and water solution. Do you have other
birds besides the ones mentioned?? You'll want to be sure they are in separate housing accomodations whatever the illness is. If lesions or boils,
you may use Hydrogen Peroxide to keep them clean and dry...
Are these birds housed out of doors?? Pigeon fly, mosquitos/ insects in general that feed off the blood can be vectors for Avian Pox Virus so netting, spraying the feathers and either Ivermectin or Moxidectin will help to minimize opportunity for an insect vector for the disease to have access to the birds.

Sometimes it's necessary to treat for secondary infections, but let's start here in terms of pictures and details and see if in fact that is the presenting
disease. 

fp


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## warriec (Feb 2, 2007)

FP is right. lets make sure you have pox first before jumping conclusions its pox.


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## Young Bird (May 2, 2007)

I will post pics in the morning


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Sounds good, this will be very helpful for folks here.

fp


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## warriec (Feb 2, 2007)

young bird, I had a severe battle with pox as all other users her know. In my country getting treatment was impossible. But thanks to advise given I was able to get thru it and now I have a pox free loft for the last few months.

FP & you are in the same area.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

warriec said:


> young bird, I had a severe battle with pox as all other users her know. In my country getting treatment was impossible. But thanks to advise given I was able to get thru it and now I have a pox free loft for the last few months.


warriec,

I'm glad to hear you have gotten these issues resolved, I know it was quite a challenge for you.

It is always best to innoculate the birds, it sure saves alot of time and heartache, but that is not possible for you because of your location.


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## Young Bird (May 2, 2007)

Here Are the Pics hope they help I hope it is not pox.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/baby_pigeon/


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## warriec (Feb 2, 2007)

my internet connection is too slow. this is my secret to control pox. innoculation is not an option because of unavailabilty of vaccines in my country.

1) control the vector
2) if you have the problem dont breed for 4 month, throw all eggs away.
3) quarantine your new birds
4) regular cleaning and sprinkling sea sand in the nest and all over the floor.


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## Young Bird (May 2, 2007)

so is it pox or did you not see the pictures


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## warriec (Feb 2, 2007)

sorry, did not see the pictures. please attach pictures here.


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## Young Bird (May 2, 2007)

here is one for you to see there are more pics in the link above.


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Hi Youngbird, 

I did view the pictures, must say you have really beautiful birds. I tend to 
think that it is pox, though your 'boils' are mild compared to the ones that my
feral flock and rescue, Diesel had. Diesel had an outright boil on the back of
his neck that burst and was just the grossest, ugliest thing you ever saw, bigger than my thumb if you can imagine. While the 'boils' on your birds appear tame in comparison, it's possible that they may grow in size in the days to come.


On pox, figure four to six weeks for the boils/ballooning to resolve. Again,
clean them w/straight hydrogen peroxide and especially in the instance 
where they have 'broken', pull the feathers immediately surrounding the 
boil/ballooning tissue. Keep any symptomatic birds separate from the rest of
the birds, and clean the cage and feeding utensils w/the solution of 1/2 cup
of bleach to a gallon of water. I kept a gallon container of the solution and filled a spray bottle for spraying and wiping surfaces. Wash hands before and after handling the sick birds. 

If the sick birds do not feed themselves adequately, you will have to hand
feed them until they get better. They can get 'wet' pox concurrently w/cutaneous pox and canker, so do keep an eye on the inside of their mouth
and throat. You may want/need to treat w/Metronidazole during the course
of the virus. Other than that you are looking at a virus that needs to run
it's course and in the meantime you simply provide 'good nursing' for the 
sick birds while keeping a close eye on any significant changes in demeanor.
Additional protein in the diet will be helpful.

Are your birds housed inside or outside? How many do you have in addition
to the sick ones?? Do you keep meds on hand for your birds? 

fp


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## Young Bird (May 2, 2007)

I have more birds but they are in a seperate loft. There are four adult birds with the babies with pox two are the parents and the other two have 4 day old babies. i have 4 in 1 Tablets from foy's. they are housed out side.


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Young Bird said:


> I have more birds but they are in a seperate loft. There are four adult birds with the babies with pox two are the parents and the other two have 4 day old babies. i have 4 in 1 Tablets from foy's. they are housed out side.


If there are two adults who have two-four day old babies, and none of these
are currently exhibiting pox symptoms, I would make some temporary housing separate from the other parents and sick babies.

Spray your other birds and get some Scatt or Ivermectin and treat the outside birds. You can get a Permethrine-(Scalex or the like) or Carbaryl based spray for the birds. Sevin (Carbaryl) comes in powder or spray and will help to repell insects before they get the first bite. The Moxidectin or Ivermectin will kill the insect if theyget past the repellent to get the 'bite'.
Think about screening on top of the existing loft for windows or the like.
Also, consider giving your birds the Pox Vaccine that can be purchased at
the Pigeon Supply Houses:

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=9455

Have you looked inside the birds' mouths yet?

fp


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## warriec (Feb 2, 2007)

FP, young bird should not use pox vaccine now i think because there is a good chance of it getting worse. I suggest that he let treat the young with peroxide until they are fit enough meanwhile not allowing eggs to hatch fpr some time. in about a months time he can give the pox vaccine to all at once.


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## Young Bird (May 2, 2007)

I looked in there mouth and it was clear. So I should get some insect repelant and this is sold through the pigeon supplies houses or can i go to any store and buy it.


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

All right, here's a link to the product that I think you are referring to:

http://www.foyspigeonsupplies.com/catalog/canker/index.html#4 in 1

fp


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Moxidectin(Scatt)& Ivermectin are sold through the Pigeon Supply houses. With Scatt, two drops go between the wings on the back and that's it. It will become blood born and kill any biting insects. 

The sprays you should be able to pick up locally at Petco or the like where
Scalex (Permethrine based products) is concerned, and for Carbaryl based products, Garden Supply places carry the product. Make sure and read the
product and make sure it mentions use w/pets to deter insects. Home Depot
carries a product in spray form called Sevin by Garden Tech.

Weighing the birds and keeping an eye on the food intake is a good idea in
case you need to intervene and hand feed....it's also good to continue checking the mouth for lesions. 

fp


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