Bird Boarding

Going on holidays and need somewhere to leave your birds while you’re away? If you’re not comfortable with asking your neighbours to look after them or with having a stranger come into your house, we may have an answer for you.

The West Toowoomba Vet Surgery is now able to offer bird boarding as a service to bird owners. What are the advantages to us looking after your bird?

Well, firstly your birds will be looked after by vets and vet nurses trained and experienced in caring for birds and detecting early signs of illness. You will not be able to find better carers for your loved pets. Your bird will be weighed every day to detect very early signs of illness or stress.

Secondly, your bird will be boarded away from sick birds and other animals. They will not be subjected to the risk of catching disease or the stress of being surrounded by dogs and cats.

Thirdly, your bird’s feed and water will be changed daily. Every bird boarded at the West Toowoomba Vet Surgery is offered fresh vegetables and fruit every day. If your bird still eats seed, we will attempt to convert it to a healthier diet during its stay (but only if you are agreeable to that). If your bird has special dietary requirements we will make every effort possible to meet them.

And finally, your bird’s cage will be cleaned at least once daily by staff who understand only too well the vital importance of maintaining strict hygiene.

We do have some requirements for you, though.

1) All birds boarding must have passed a health check by one of our vets within the previous 12 months. This health check may include screening for diseases that could be contagious to other birds, or flare up in your bird if it is stressed by being in a strange environment. As some of these screening tests can take up to 2 weeks to get the results back, health checks must be scheduled well in advance of the date you anticipate boarding your bird with us. If you choose to have a health check performed by another veterinarian you will need to notify us well in advance. Very few vets are trained to examine a bird carefully, and we will not recognise a health check performed by a vet we do not consider to be trained in this procedure.

2) All birds being boarded will be housed in a cage provided by us. This is to ensure that our staff are able to clean the cage easily, efficiently and effectively. However, familiar and much loved toys are more than welcome and will be cared for by our staff.

3) If your bird should become ill while he/she is with us, we must be able to contact you to authorise treatment. If we are unable to contact you, you must authorise us to treat your bird within reasonable limits until we can contact you. The fees for any treatment given will be in addition to your boarding fees.

So, if you would like to board your bird with us over the holidays, please contact us on 07 4636 2027 during normal business hours. If you would like to look at our boarding area prior to leaving your birds with us, please feel free to arrange an inspection with our staff.