ABSTRACT
Birds with cyanosis, tachypnea or dyspnea (open beak breathing, forced breathing, abnormal breathing sounds/stridor) need additional oxygen. Dyspnea in birds often has an extra-respiratory cause, such as a space-occupying lesion (e.g., an egg or enlarged organ) or free fluid in the body cavity, resulting in compression of the air sacs. Handling of these patients should be minimized and performed with as little pressure on the body as possible to avoid more severe dyspnea, or even death. In birds with dyspnea as a result of cardiovascular or respiratory diseases (e.g., lung, air sac or trachea disease), stress and handling should be minimized as well, as stress leads to more breathlessness. Dyspneic birds should be placed in an oxygen cage. Birds that are severely short of breath on entry should be stabilized this way first before being handled for the physical examination.
