We don’t usually associate animals with smelling bad or having bad breath for that matter. Any foul smell that an animal gives off is usually a self-defence mechanism to prevent other animals from eating it but what about animals like birds? Why would birds have bad breath and what can you do about the issue? This article looks into it. If you’re a concerned bird owner then this article is for you.
One of the reasons why a bird may have bad breath is that it has a bacterial infection in its digestive system. Birds in the wild have variety in their diets and this gives the bird fresher breath but pet birds can be stuck eating the same things making infections easy to harbour. If changing the bird’s diet does not work then take the bird to the vet.
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My bird’s breath smells bad, why and what to do
A bird breath is likely to smell like the food in its diet. If the smell is foul, then that is an indication of a likely bacterial infection in the bird’s digestive system. If your bird does not have a balanced diet it can lack in vitamin A, a lack of this vitamin can increase the bird risk of developing some infections that can cause halitosis.
To combat this, change the bird’s diet after consulting with a pet food specialist and wait to see if that improves the situation, you can wait for a day or two. If it does not change, then take the bird to the vet for a diagnosis on the cause of your animal’s bad breath. Conditions that cause bad breath in birds can be treated with medication.
How do wild birds keep their breath fresh?
Wild birds have an advantage that pet birds don’t. Variety! Wild birds can vary their diet, they immediately notice when a nutrient is lacking. Also, it would be hard to find a bird with bad breath in the wild because some flocking birds eject birds that seem sick, they kick them out of the flock. These ejected birds will likely die of starvation or predation.
Birds come with an instinct that guides them to search for natural supplements to their diet, this helps them avoid conditions that may cause bird breath. Some parrots have been known to eat salty riverbank soil to improve their digestion.
Will lemon water improve a bird’s breath?
Lemon contains ascorbic acid which helps in fighting alkaline infections in the crop and strengthens the immune system. So, lemon water is good for the bird’s breath, since the most likely reason for bad breath is crop infection.
When preparing lemon water for the bird dilute the lemon water to ensure it suits the bird. It is recommended to have equal parts water and lemon water to make it suitable for a bird. Lemon water also helps stomach digestion by stimulating healthy bacteria growth.
Do I have to brush my bird’s mouth?
It is not necessary to brush a bird’s mouth for cleanness and fresh breath. A bird will instinctively, clean its beak outside and inside by natural means.
Some birds rub the outside of their beaks on tree bark or other hard surfaces, while others splash water with their beaks in a gurgle-like reflex to clear food particles.
Birds eat their food by swallowing it in whole chunks, so food doesn’t have much of a chance to remain in the beak. This also eliminates the need to clean its beak of food particles and bacteria that could have fed on the food particles that produce bad breath.
Do birds have teeth?
Birds have teeth-like structures in their beaks to help them hold food and cut plants to smaller bits for swallowing. That being said, these structures are not classified as teeth as they are not made of bone. The teeth-like spikes that birds have are made of keratin, the same material that human nails are made of. It is unnecessary to wash them as the birds will clean naturally clean them.
A lot of food breakdown happens in the gizzard where stomach juices and bits of sand particles grind the food for better absorption into the body. This reduces the number of food particles that remain in the bird’s beak as it mostly swallows large portions of its food.
Conclusion
In conclusion, your bird may have bad breath because it has a bacterial infection. An imbalance in the bird’s diet or a lack of vitamin A can cause the bird to develop infections easier and thus develop bad breath.
Birds in the wild don’t have bad breath because they have variety in their diets. Lemon water can help with the bad breath but the bird will generally be able to clean its mouth itself.
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other bird related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Do pet birds poop everywhere?, Why does my bird smell like fish?, My bird smells like vomit, why and what to do, Purple bird poop stain, how to get it out of surfaces