Odd behavior coming from your budgie will understandably worry you as a budgie owner.
Odd behavior may include the bird shaking its head. This article looks into why your budgie is shaking its head
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Why is my budgie shaking its head?
Head shaking in humans is a way of communicating that something is wrong.
Here is why your budgie may be shaking its head:
Water in the bird’s ears:
One reason why your little budgie may be shaking its head may be that the bird has water in its ears.
If your bird was exposed to water, if water was poured over the bird, or, if the bird was drenched in water, then the bird’s ear canal may be filled with water.
One sign of water stuck in the bird’s ears is vigorous head shaking.
What to do:
Water in the bird’s ear canal is not something odd or out of the ordinary, it can happen sometimes.
The bird shaking its head vigorously should be enough to get the water out.
If your bird’s head shaking continues to the next day then taking the bird to the vet is recommended.
The vet will be able to rule out, or point out, any infection.
Vomiting:
Another reason why your budgie may be shaking its head from side to side may be that the bird is vomiting.
Birds vomit and regurgitate. Regurgitation is controlled and vomiting is not.
Just as with human vomiting, bird vomiting happens when food from the bird’s crop, or stomach, comes up and fills the bird’s mouth.
The food that comes up will be partially digested.
This partially digested food will taste awful by the time it reaches the bird’s mouth, so, the bird will shake its head from side to side, with its mouth open, in order to get the vomit out.
A few of the main causes of vomiting in your budgie include bacterial infections, candida infections, trichomonas infections, or contamination of food or water by fecal matter.
What to do:
Vomiting is not normal or natural for birds so if our budgie is doing this then it needs medical attention.
There are too many possible diseases that may be causing your bird to vomit, so, taking your bird to be seen by a professional is recommended.
Take your bird to the vet, and if you can, take a sample of the bird’s vomit with you to the visit.
If you can’t immediately get your budgie to the vet then isolate the bird to keep it from possibly infecting other birds.
Also, give the bird its own food and water while it is in isolation.
Injury:
Another reason why your bird may be shaking its head may be that it suffered an injury to its head which caused neurological damage.
Your budgie may have been struck in a fight with another bird, or, it may have fallen head-first off of a high height.
This injury may have caused the head shaking that you’re seeing
What to do:
This is a medical emergency and is something that needs to be dealt with at the vet.
Take the bird to the vet as soon as you can.
If you can’t immediately get your budgie to the vet then place the bird in a dark quiet place until you can get it to the vet.
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: Why Is My Bird Flying Around My Room?, Why Can’t My Budgie Fly High?, Why Is My Budgie Flying Low And Shaking?, My Parrot Is Not Active, Why My Parrot Is Silent?, Why Does My Bird Look At Me Sideways?, Budgie Breathing Fast And Puffed Up While Sleeping,
