Canker and eye infection

[fred128]

The lines of demarcation in this area are never clear. Of course a pigeon that is temporarily paralyzed should not be put to sleep and of course if a pigeon can be made into a pet and live a relatively comfortable life, that is the way to go. I'm talking about permanent suffering where there is not much of a chance for the bird to have any kind of quality of life. I don't believe in euthanasia either as a choice when we don't really know how the bird will do. Most of the birds that I've taken in either die on their own or heal from whatever the problem is. Sometimes, they are not releasable but so far for me, they are lucky because I was able to place them. When it comes to a life or death decision, everything possible should be done to make sure that the bird can have a decent quality of life before even considering whether a life should be taken. That's why a decision like this should not be made until and only after everything else has been exausted, when there is no option left.
We don't disagree on this.

[KIPPY]

jack has too much life euthanasia is not an option. i wish his beak would go back just a little. jack kinda freaks me out when he looks at me.
cindy, you maybe seeing jack again and i guess i may be building "another cage." with this canker i'm not too crazy about putting jack in with my other pij's. the cage jacks in now is too small.

[AZWhitefeather]

jack has too much life euthanasia is not an option.
I don't think it would be fair to make a snap decision regarding the fate of any pigeon that appears to have 'scissor' beak as a result of canker, until the canker has been taken care of.
By no means is Jack ready to retire his feathers.

cindy, you maybe seeing jack again
That would be great!

i guess i may be building "another cage." with this canker i'm not too crazy about putting jack in with my other pij's.
Even if canker wasn't an issue, Kippy is going to get her feathers ruffled if she has to contend with another roommate.
You're becoming a regular little carpenter aren't you?

Are you planning to release Smack this weekend?

Cindy

[KIPPY]

Are you planning to release Smack this weekend?

No, I am going to wait till next weekend. i worry about the dogs and birds during the 4th of july weekend. we already have had bottle rockets going off for the past week.

then i can put jack in that cage that smack is in but i don't think that one is big enough either.

smack with a bad tongue and jack with a bad beak. canker sure leaves its mark.

[AZWhitefeather]

'Are you planning to release Smack this weekend?'
No, I am going to wait till next weekend. i worry about the dogs and birds during the 4th of july weekend.
Geez, short memory I have!
I wasn't even thinking this was the 4th of July weekend. Sure wish I could gather all my backyard buddies & put them in the AZ room.

Cindy

[Lin Hansen]

Hi Fred,

How is your patient doing? Any improvement?

Linda

[fred128]

Linda,
Thanks very much for asking. He passed away very quietly on the third day. Afterwards, I took a look inside and he was better off going. One continuous mass of hard canker had reached the base of the skull, completely filled the sinus cavities, pushed against the right eye and then continued downward deep into the throat. He must have been in a great deal of pain and if he had survived, would have needed major surgery to remove the huge mass. This was one that was brought to me way too late.
Here is one that was brought to me on Friday night. He must have gotten his leg caught in something and then when he tried to pull himself out, he left the lower part of his leg behind. He's standing on one leg and that is a very big plus. He's on antibiotics to prevent an infection in the leg and calcium to build up his bone strength in the remaining leg. When he's strong enough and the danger of infection has passed, he'll go to an aviary for handicapped pigeons so there will be a place in the sun for him.

[Lin Hansen]

Fred,

I'm so sorry about the first bird....poor thing had hung on so long in such bad condition, guess we were all hoping for a miracle.

And now look at this poor baby! Bless you for taking such good care of these poor birds. At least the prognosis looks good for this one, but God, I feel so sorry that they have these things happen to them and have to go through such pain. Guess bad things can happen anywhere, but do you think the birds have more chance for injury in cities (like where you are) than in rural places? Although, I guess in rural settings there is more chance for attacks from natural predators. Jeez, I am no vegetarian, but I hate this food chain business....

Thanks for the update, and again, sorry the poor pidge didn't make it.

Linda

[fred128]

Thanks Linda. I always have hope even though my gut instincts tell me that any particular bird will not make it. There is no harm in trying. The leg injury bird will definitely do well. I don't know how pigeons do elsewhere but this accident could have happened anywhere. They do get caught in various things.

[Karen 210773]

Hi, I too have had a pigeon (Woody) with scissor beak, Helen suggested that i used a syrgical tape to tape it together for 12 hours (Overnight), which I did (avoiding the nostiels!) just the bit at the end, It certainly did improve the beak no end, although still scissor'd but not to the extent it was . Maybe I was just lucky, but I think worth a shot.

[AZWhitefeather]

Hi, I too have had a pigeon (Woody) with scissor beak, Helen suggested that i used a syrgical tape to tape it together for 12 hours (Overnight), which I did (avoiding the nostiels!) just the bit at the end, It certainly did improve the beak no end, although still scissor'd but not to the extent it was . Maybe I was just lucky, but I think worth a shot.

Thanks Karen, for sharing your experience, by following Helen's suggestion, with a 'scissor beaked' pijjie. This is yet another case in point that we should never underestimate a situation that has the potential of being corrected.

Cindy