sweet pigeon with broken wing!

[Lauri]

gonna need a bit of advice!
have a sweet snuggly pigeon in my driveway yesterday with a broken wing,have taken measures to stabilize the leg with vet wrap around broken wing in natural position and around body and under good wing. so bird wing is totally stable and bird can still breathe well.
now I understand birds equalibrium is toast as of now because I have that wing in the bandage, so now bird falls over on side.
concern lies in the fact that bird lays there and does not move. I have no bird cage, but have a modified rabbit carrier fro shows, which has drip tray under it for debris to fall thru and not get on pretty bird!
I need to know what to feed this bird? and how do I know if it is a male or a female?
I call it a her and call her Pidge!
can anyone help me out?
Thanks alot in advance!

[Lauri]

ok....since I typed the previous message the sweet little houdini has slipped out of her burrito skin of bandages!
any suggestions? I am afraid to wrap it much tighter for fear of squishing her HALLLLLLPPPPPPP.
now mind you pidge is quite content with the wraps off! and perched herself up on the water crock! silly goose!!!!!!!(just shaking my head and saying to self! man what a bright twitterpaiter!)

[TAWhatley]

Hi Lauri and welcome to pigeons.com! Thank you for helping this needy bird!

Wild bird seed and fresh water will be fine as regards the cuisine.

Taping the wing to the leg might be effective as far as stablizing but you are seeing the result. Untape it all and tape the wing (about 2/3 of the way back from the front) to the tail feathers .. very tightly. This will keep the wing in position and also allow the bird to move fairly normally. There are pictures of this here somewhere .. will try to find them and bump up for you.

Terry Whatley

[Lauri]

was an error in typing on my part to say I taped to leg! apologies! was simply wrapped burrito style around bad wing and under good wing repeated till wrap ran out! but obviously bird needs it tighter!
silly thing!
it insists on perching on anything other than the floor! ggggg
so I put in a shoe box full of shredded paper for it, and a dowel affixed to the wire on the cage wall so as not to move on her!.

[turkey]

http://community.webshots.com/user/jujubear29

I have uploaded some wing wrap pictures with instructions to my photo album. I recommend that you click on all of the pictures and read all of the instructions in order to get it right.

I have never done this myself.

Good Luck!

Julie

[Lauri]

I worry that the tape will rip her feathers out when removed?
and how are you to wrap when it is the bone closest to the body? it is under the main portion of the wing.the Humerous? would it be wrapped in the natural position to the body? she seems quite content today!
I will try to get a photo top send you of the exact damaged area. there is a blood stain where the initial damage was done.
I have been talking to a vet regarding her but he does not specialize in birds, and in my rural area there is no one within a reasonable distance to take her to.
So I am her Dr until she can get away.
My daughter (15 yrs) would very much like to have Pidge as a pet if she can not fly. But I am dubious about this! do they make good pets?
I hear such horrible stories about lice, and other problems stemming from birds, can anyone elaborate?
Thanks for your wisdom and concern.
Lauri & Pidge

[Nanci]

Hi,

Pigeons make the BEST pets! (I've had _everything...) They bond very closely with people and are sweet and loveable.

A newly-acquired pigeon might have some sort of parasites, but you can buy spray at a pet store, or Sevin dust, and once the lice/mites are gone, they should stay gone. Pigeons also do not carry diseases that humans can catch.

With any luck, you should have a wonderful pet for many years!

Nanci

[Trees Gray]

Pijjies are wonderful pets! They are easy to take care of if you give them what they need.
Did you check ou the "basic Care" on the first page of website?

Lice and mites on pigeons are so much easier to get rid of than fleas! You can use parakiet spray on them to get rid of most bugs. If you have only one bird it will be even easier! Pigeons are by nature clean birds, they love to take baths and showers! I have 43 pigeons and keeping them clean is no problem. I clean their coop daily and spray them maybe only once a month as they are so clean.

Also, when a pijjie is in "rehab" he is not going to let you know if he is a male or female, once he is more comfortable and able to move around more, he will start cooing, etc. Also, once they get around other pijjies they really show their gender!
Treesa

[ddpowell]

If you can get a hold of some vet wrap or "coban" dressing (sold at most pharmacies), that would be best as far as not sticking to the feathers.

For lice and mites, I use Scalex spray sold at most pet stores. Good luck! Until you can get it, try baking soda...sprinkle it on and rub in.

[Lauri]

well if anyone has ever read the story about how to wash a cat! well then you are pretty close in hilarity to what sweet Pidge does when I get her taped up!
she flops around like a bug on a skillet, and then she slowly and meticulously backs out of the wrap! no matter how many times I wrap her she gets out! think it is time to change her name to Houdiniette!
anyhow, will it work to simply keep her caged so she does not flap that wing?
or does it really need to be wrapped?
she cant seem to walk with the wrap on and she looks so pitiful as she bounces off the sides of the cage!

[turkey]

That would depend on the condition of the wing. It could be that the break is old and will not ever fix. It could be that she has only sprained it or that is is actually broken and needs immediate attention.

Do you have pictures?

I can only advise that you find a rehabber or a vet that can help because I believe that time is important to whether or not the wing can be repaired for flying again.

Julie

[Lauri]

New update on Pidgee........ today she is puffed up by fluffing her feathers all up making herself look very large, and when I tried to hold her she actually pecked me! nothing to worry about in pain levels for me, but I begin to wonder if she is ok?
I have no idea if she is eating or simple scattering the millett around the cage when she walks and bumps into things?
I am concerned I went to the vet today and got vitamin drops, he does not treat birds but special ordered these vitamin drops for Pidgee, I put 3-4 drops per ounce of water in her dish! but that too I am not so sure she is drinking?
How does one know?
I worry about this sweet baby!

[Trees Gray]

Hi Laurie

Thank you for helping this bird.

Julie is right, you need to find a rehabber, someone who can tell you exactly what is wrong with this bird. Besides the wing problem, she is now displaying signs of disease. If she puffs up her feathers continuously, and not doing much, she is not feeling good. Does she still have a bandage on the wing? If she doesn't and is walking into things, this is a sign of more serious disease.
I am very concerned about this pigeon.Look for bird rehabber or maybe you local pigeon club knows someone who is an expert with pigeons, or they can recommend someone.
Treesa

[turkey]

If she is puffing up really big and it's not because you are reaching in her cage then she could be very sick. Going to a vet that can give her proper treatment will be the difference of life or death for your pigeon.

Time is very important in this case.

Stress will bring on Coccidiosis. A sign of Coccidiosis is puffing up. Coccidiosis untreated will kill a pigeon.

Julie

[turkey]

I see that you live in Oregon. I will see if anyone knows of a vet or rehabber near you that will treat pigeons.

Julie