Parrots regurgitate undigested food for their bonded mates and hatchlings through the crop. You’ll observe the parrot bobbing its head while purposefully directing the release of food.
Vomiting involves forcefully ejecting partially or fully digested food from the stomach. This leads to the involuntary expulsion of food through the beak in a panicked, messy, and disorderly way.
Parrot Throwing Up
Vomiting (emesis) isn’t necessarily out of the ordinary but must never be ignored. If a parrot is throwing up, something has gone awry at some point in the digestive process.
Digestion Basics
- After swallowing food, it’s moved into the crop (a pouch at the base of the esophagus). The crop moistens and softens food, storing it until it can be moved further down the digestive tract.
- Food is passed to the proventriculus, the first of a parrot’s two stomachs, via peristalsis (regular contraction and relaxation of the crop muscles).
- The proventriculus releases enzymes and acids that break down the food and commence with digestion, then moves it to the ventriculus.
- The ventriculus is a parrot’s second stomach. Here, the food treated with acids and enzymes within the proventriculus is ground and macerated by a series of muscles.
- Upon leaving the ventriculus, the food is passed to the small intestine. The first part of this intestine is the duodenal loop, where food is digested. Then, nutrients are passed to the second part of the organ, the lower small intestine.
If a parrot vomits, food is forcefully expelled from the body before the third or fourth stages are complete. It has no control over this process, vomiting through its beak.
Parrot Vomit vs. Regurgitation
Vomiting is where a parrot’s proventriculus forcibly expels digested food, while regurgitation involves releasing food from the esophagus before the digestive process begins.
The difference between vomiting and regurgitation is the parrot will have no control over vomiting. A parrot that vomits may show obvious signs of distress.
Regurgitation will be calmer and quieter, and the parrot will decide where to release the food.
Regurgitation is more common than vomiting. While regurgitation may result from stress or excitement, it’s associated with avian courtship rituals and caring for baby parrots (hatchlings).
What Parrot Vomit Looks Like
The color of a parrot’s vomit varies depending on its meal.
Macerated food can be identified within the vomit. This is usually accompanied by stomach acids from the proventriculus that result in a green or yellow tint.
What It Means When A Parrot Throws Up
If a parrot vomits, it’ll likely be for one of these reasons:
Excess Food Intake
If a parrot eats to excess, and the stomach can’t process all the food, it may be expelled.
Parrots don’t always know when to stop eating, especially if they lack a reliable and consistent feeding schedule. If a parrot is fed inconsistently, it may overeat in a single sitting.
Over-Active After Eating
It takes parrots 60 to 90 minutes to digest food. If a parrot is active shortly after eating, especially in the morning, it may experience gastrointestinal distress and bring up its meal.
Dietary Change
A sudden change of diet can unsettle a parrot’s digestive system. If you’re making wholesale dietary changes on medical or lifestyle grounds, gradually transition to a new meal plan.
Start by offering the parrot a meal of 90% familiar and 10% new foods. Over several weeks, steadily reverse these ratios so the parrot eats more of the new food.
Environmental Stress
Ensure the parrot is comfortable in its living environment during and after eating. Examples of environmental stressors that can lead to vomiting include:
- Consistent exposure to temperatures above 95°F, which can cause heatstroke.
- Excessive humidity (above 80%) slows digestion.
- Loud noises or sounds that startle parrots.
- Other pets unsettle the nerves.
The more relaxed a parrot feels, the likelier it is to eat and digest food.
Digestive Blockage
A parrot may have swallowed something it can’t digest. Even if it has no object trapped in the crop or digestive tract, swallowing string fibers or wooden splinters can cause irritation and inflammation.
Parrots can develop salivary stones in the crop. These initially cause no harm or irritation but will attract mucus. Over time, the mucus hardens and forms a hard stone that compromises digestion.
Obstructions in the crop or digestive tract must be removed.
A vet will attempt to dissolve anything lodged so it can be passed as waste. If this is unsuccessful, they’ll remove them via the throat following an endoscopy or perform surgery.
Bacteria
A parrot may involuntarily vomit if it consumes rotten food or drinks tainted water.
Once bacterial microbes enter the digestive tract, they spread. A parrot may also start vomiting mucus due to inflammation of the mucus membranes in the crop.
A parrot will need vet-prescribed antibiotics to clear up a bacterial infection.
Parasites
A captive parrot is unlikely to encounter Trichomonas gallinae, heximata, Giardia, or coccida unless it plays outside in the soil or shares a food source with wild birds or backyard poultry.
Parrots can still get tapeworms and roundworms, leading to gastric distress, including vomiting.
Yeast Infection
Veterinarni Medicina details a case of two blue-fronted Amazon parrots that were vomiting. They were diagnosed with candidiasis of the crop, a yeast infection caused by the fungus Candida albicans.
Candida grows within the digestive tract of parrots, leading to a sour crop. Oral antifungal medications will be prescribed if a parrot has a yeast infection caused by excess Candida.
Toxicity or Allergies
Vomiting involves a parrot expelling toxins from the body as a defensive measure. It may be allergic to a new food or have eaten something toxic. Examples of toxic foods include:
- Chocolate (dark chocolate.)
- Avocado.
- Onion and garlic.
- Artificial sweeteners like Xylitol.
- Caffeine.
- Alcohol.
The toxicity could be due to something a parrot inhaled. Birds have efficient respiratory systems but are vulnerable to airborne toxins like non-stick coatings on cookware heated to 536℉.
Miscellaneous Illness
Illnesses like diabetes, gastrointestinal cancer, and renal or liver failure can cause vomiting but may not manifest outward symptoms.
A parrot may also be experiencing the side effects of a prescription medication or supplement.
What To Do If A Parrot is Vomiting
A parrot should vomit once and stop. If the vomiting continues, seek veterinary guidance.
A parrot vomiting clear liquid, especially if it continues attempting to purge its stomach, is more concerning. It has no food left in its digestive tract but remains distressed.
Vomiting blood is a medical emergency, warning of significant toxicity or internal bleeding.
Vomiting shouldn’t be an everyday occurrence. If a parrot vomits (not just regurgitating food), a vet must determine why it’s involuntarily expelling its stomach contents.
