Kidney And Urinary Tract Disorders in Birds

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Even birds can suffer from kidney and urinary tract disorders like humans and other animals.

Symptoms and Types

A bird can show different symptoms depending on the actual kidney and urinary tract disorder. Generally, one or more of the following symptoms are seen.

• Increased urination
• Change in color of urine
• Blood in urine
• Chemical imbalance in the blood
• Increased or decreased thirst
• Difficulty in walking or movement
• Lethargy
• Depression

Depending on the reason, there are many kidney and urinary tract disorders. The most common are:

• Gout – Uric acid deposits in the joints and surrounding tissues due to kidney damage cause gout. There is difficulty in movement with red and swollen joints.
• Stones – There can be stones in the kidney or urinary tract of the bird. The bird will urinate less due to pain and there may be blood present in the urine.
• Infections – Poxvirus and psittacosis are two deadly infections that cause multiple organ damage, including kidney and urinary tract disorders. Other infections can also cause kidney and urinary tract disorders.
• Renal failure – The kidneys could stop functioning due to a severe or untreated kidney, or urinary tract disorders.

Causes

Kidney and urinary tract disorders in birds can be due many reasons, including:

• Infection
• Injury
• Disease
• Tumor or cancer
• Damage to other organs
• Nutritional deficiencies
• Excess of Calcium, vitamin D and Phosphorus
• Dehydration