Ask Lafeber

Cockatiel renal failure – Dr. Lamb Webinar Sept 16

I have a 20 year old cockatiel that has had high thirst and high urine output for more than two years. Initially I thought diabetes – but when I took him to a vet for an unrelated problem (sudden blindness and lethargy). He is ok now but the vet indicated separately about the high thirst was related to irreversible age-related renal failure. He is very well hydrated and his mood is good but I wanted to confirm that just giving him water and keeping him comfortable is all I can do. He has actually lived longer than I expected. He is taking Metacam for general inflammation / pain mgmt.

Hi David,

Here is Dr. Lamb’s response:

It depends on what his kidney values are. If he hasn’t had recent blood work to check his kidney values I would recommend doing that. Other things that could be necessary include allopurinol, omega-3 fatty acids and nutritional changes. But fluids are a great way to start helping those kidneys by maintaining adequate hydration and blood flow to the kidneys.