Birds need proper nutrition to be healthy. They require a balance of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, and water. Fruits and vegetables ought to be chopped, whereas large seeds should be crushed for easy consumption by birds.
Yes, birds can choke on food and other swallowed items, and if they cannot clear their airways or be helped to remove the blockage, it can result in death due to the inability to breathe. Birds, like all other animals, can experience health problems and emergencies; hence, they need immediate medical attention whenever they fall sick or are in distress.
List of Items That Birds Can Choke On
Birds can choke on items such as:
1. Broken toys
Plastic toys can easily break as the bird plays with them. The bird can then swallow the small pieces of the toys. If the pieces have sharp edges, they will be lodged in the windpipe, thus, choking the bird.
2. Bones
Care should be taken when feeding your birds. As your bird feeds, it can swallow a bone by mistake, which will easily choke it.
3. Jewelry
Birds are curious and love exploring. They are likely to eat anything they find on their way that can be swallowed. Thus, earrings, beads, and rings should be kept out of your bird’s reach.
4. Water
Birds can choke on liquids if they get inhaled into the windpipe.
5. Seeds
Seeds come in different sizes and textures. A bird can have trouble swallowing large seeds, which will lead to blockage of the airway.
How to Tell If a Bird Is Choking to Death
If a bird is choking to death, it can show signs of distress, such as:
1. Difficulty Breathing
A choked bird cannot breathe due to some obstruction in the windpipe. It will produce labored breathing sounds, and its chest movements will be faster than usual.
So, how do you know if a bird can’t breathe?
If the breathing route is completely blocked, the bird:
1. Will not make any sound at all.
2. Widens its neck and body as it tries to push out the object
3. Bends its head.
4. Flutters the wings as a way of crying for help.
5. Appears highly anxious.
2. Changes in Color
As the bird is not getting enough oxygen, its comb turns bluish or pale.
3. Change in Behavior
If a bird has been choked, it may become agitated and bob its head more than usual. It may also stop eating or drinking as it is difficult to swallow.
4. Attempts to Regurgitate
Once the bird gets choked, it will try to help itself get rid of the object by coughing or gagging it up. Thus, if it’s not the breeding season and your bird keeps regurgitating continuously, you better check for any blockages to save your bird in good time.
5. Loss of Consciousness
Because of the low oxygen supply due to the blockage, the bird may become unresponsive.
What Happens If a Bird Chokes?
It is rare for birds to choke to death as they have a different anatomical structure as compared to human beings. A bird will choke when the object it’s trying to swallow is large enough to push against its windpipe to block air from accessing the lungs, whereas, in humans, the object gets into the windpipe.
Once the food is lodged in the windpipe, oxygen will be cut off, and air will not be able to reach the air sacs and the rest of the body.
How Do Birds Swallow Without Choking?
The birds tip their heads back to move the bite to the back of the throat. The tongue helps move the food into a good swallowing position. Also, saliva makes food easier to swallow.
Birds depend on gravity to push their food from the throat through the esophagus to the crop. Later, the food is propelled into the stomach by waves of peristalsis in the crop.
Is There a Way to Save a Dying Bird?
Birds have evolved to solve the choking issue on their own. Hence, many times, they can clear blockages on their own.
Choking on water causes a temporary blockage, and if the bird is not submerged in the water, the liquid will drain away down the throat, and the bird will recover. Sometimes, the bird will cough the water from its lungs and air sacs.
However, if your bird has choked on food or pieces of toys and has been in distress for more than 10 minutes, you need to step in and help your bird.
The following are ways to help a choking bird:
1. Give It Time to Cough the Object
At first, allow your bird to help itself as you speak calmly and reassuringly to it. This will enable your bird to relax. Avoid intervening earlier, as it can cause more harm to your bird.
2. Be Composed
Avoid panicking so as not to scare off your bird, which can distract it from helping itself.
3. Take Action
Place your hand around the bird’s middle. Lift it and turn the bird upside down. Gravity and coughing will help push the object out.
Since you have to assist and ensure that the process is safe and successful, always allow the bird to do its part.
4. Apply Pressure
If there is no improvement with the above steps, apply pressure to the keel to dislodge the object. You can also apply alternating pressure to the crop to help clear the throat.
For a bird that is drained and weak, you can help stimulate regurgitation by placing its beak between your fingers and applying pressure.
5. Seek Advice From the Veterinary
Your veterinarian must check your bird to determine if any injury occurred while removing the object and treat it to prevent infections if the process is successful.
The veterinarian can also conduct an endoscopy to remove objects stuck in circumstances where the bird swallowed a bone or an object with sharp edges.
How Do You Save a Bird That Won’t Breathe?
A bird that won’t breathe needs immediate medical attention. An injury, inhalation of toxins, infections, tumors, or airway obstructions may trigger the inability to breathe.
By taking your bird to the vet, he will conduct various tests to determine the cause of the underlying problem and prescribe medication.
The bird will be given oxygen therapy by placing it in an oxygen cage to aid it in breathing properly. Fluids will also be administered through an intravenous tube to help prevent dehydration.
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