PDD Proventricular Dilitation Disease

Keeper of the Stars

I previously mentioned that it is my personal belief aviculture survives because of dedicated individuals working behind the scenes to make life better for our feathered friends.  One of those dedicated individuals is Valerie Wixen.  Because of her tragic loss of her beloved Mocha, she works tirelessly to raise funds for research to end the devastation of PDD, a disease that can tragically hit any of us with avian companions. It is with much appreciation and thanks to Valerie that this page came to be.

PDD (Proventicular Dilitation Disease) strikes over 50 species of parrots.  It can lurk in your parrot and you may not even know it is there because your bird is healthy, active, and eating right.  However, once it becomes clinical, PDD IS ALWAYS FATAL.

There is a wealth of information on the internet to assist you in learning more about PDD. Much of that information will be gleaned from following the links posted here.  PLEASE, if you are a bird owner, companion and lover, READ all you can, LEARN all you can and GIVE all you can to help erradicate this terrible tragedy.

To read some stories of birds that have succombed to this frightful disease follow these links: Mocha's Story Porky's Story Sambird's Story Zeke's Story Xena's Story Kiko & Zuba's Story

Dr Branson Ritchie, DVM, Ph.D., and his colleagues at the University of Georgia, Athens, College of Veterinary Medicine have dedicated themselves to researching this terrible disease.  For some of the published research check the following: Progress in Understanding Proventricular Dilitation Disease Report on PDD to the International Aviculturists Society

WHAT CAN WE DO?

Make sure your avian companions receive routine quality veterinary care.  Hopefully, you are fortunate enough to have an avian vet in your area.  If you do not, make sure your local vet stays in contact with the avian vet department at your state's College of Veterinary Medicine.  It is very important that any disease even resembling PDD be thoroughly evaluated and referred to specialists.  Do it for yourself, this is a personally & emotionally devastating illness;  do it for your avian companion, PDD is a fatal disease; and, do it for the safety and well-being of any other avian companions you have.

Keep yourself up to date on avian research.  For the latest on PDD Research, and research into other avian diseases, follow the links on this page often.  Click on Big Bird Search for your avian-specific searches.

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