Behaving Drunk!

[Cricket]

Hey Zuse has been through a lot since I have found him. Each time I think he is almost 100% recovered, something else manifests. He is now ruffled up and mostly staying in one corner. I have not seen as much poop the past few days. He is drinking and eating. When I went to put fresh paper and litter down this morning, I noticed he seemed wobbily. He always trys to get away from me and this morning he wobbled away like he was drunk. He actually fell forward! His eyes are clear, he has no discharge, he looks better but this is obviously not good. It is Sunday, and my vet will not be reachable. Please send your expert opionions asap.

[AZWhitefeather]

Originally Posted by Cricket

Hey Zuse has been through a lot since I have found him. Each time I think he is almost 100% recovered, something else manifests. He is now ruffled up and mostly staying in one corner. I have not seen as much poop the past few days.

He is drinking and eating. When I went to put fresh paper and litter down this morning, I noticed he seemed wobbily. He always trys to get away from me and this morning he wobbled away like he was drunk. He actually fell forward!

Hello Cricket,
Are you certain Hey Zuse is drinking enough water? Becoming 'wobbily' & 'falling face forward' are two signs of dehydration. He may need a bit of an electrolyte boost.
Just a suggestion, you might want to replace plain water with a rehydrating solution.

'To a cup of room temperature water add a pinch each of salt & sugar.'

Put as much of this solution in his regular drinking dish as you would the plain water.

Please keep us posted.

Cindy

[Snow White]

Hi Cricket, he sure sounds like he's sick and maybe disorientated (acting drunk). I don't know his circumstances when you found him, but hang on, someone will be along soon. Hope he feels better soon. Do you maybe have an emergency contact through your vet (sometimes they leave them on their voicemail)?

[Lin Hansen]

Hi Cricket,

In addition to Cindy's good advice about rehydrating, perhaps some additional heat for Hey Zues would also be helpful....Here is "Saving the Life of a Pigeon/Dove" courtesy of Cindy...

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=8822

Good luck with Hey Zues...hope he will be doing better soon.

Linda

[Cricket]

He is still in a hospital cage with a heating pad under half of it. That is the corner he prefers. As far as drinking, I change his water every am and pm and each time I do, some is missing and it is dirty (ish) So I am pretty comfortable saying he is drinking. However, I have not seen him do so lately. I will fill a syringe with the water boost mix and make sure some gets in him. I am starting to get discouraged. He is not pooping as much, so maybe this dehydration theory is correct. It is always hard to tell how much he has eaten, he is a picky eater and scatters the seed mix about. I can't believe how long this sick bird has been under special treatment. Is this normal? I mean, for a found sick bird? Has anyone else ever gone through so many ailments one after another? Will he ever get better? Maybe he misses where he came from? A mate perhaps? I feel lousy for him. I have had him for at least 12 or 13 weeks now. Ugh. More later.

[feralpigeon]

Hi Cricket,

JMO, but you've gotten some good advice on the re-hydrating solution, I've experienced that same problem w/rescues (falling forward even after being here for a while) and this will truly help. Another suggestion that I'd like to put out there is that you get a heating pad and set on low w/a towel over it on bottom of cage. Looks like your located in CT/New England and things should be getting a bit nippy up there.

Also, take a look at where cage/carrier is located. Is it drafty there? You may want to start covering at night w/a blanket or the like. I'm in California, but we are starting to have nippy nights and I'm pulling out the heating pads for cats and birds and covering bird cages/carriers @ night.

fp

[Trees Gray]

Hi Cricket,

I'm sorry the bird isn't feeling well. It is sometimes difficult to get them over the hump when different health issues keep coming along.

Once he has been thru the hydration period, you may need to hand feed. He should eat about a tablespoon of seed with each meal, 2 times per day.

Have you given him the human pro biotics? That also helps build up the immune system by allowing healthy gut bacteria to thrive, as well as help generate an appetite.

[feralpigeon]

Hi Cricket,

Guess you've got the heating pad....is it one that stays on continuously or is it the kind that automatically shuts off on its own after being on for a limited time--I really can't stand those, got one by mistake before I realized that it was a "new feature".

Have you checked inside the mouth lately??
Also, is there any odor to the poops that you notice? Try not to bump your nose in it when you check it out .

What have you treated for so far?

fp

[Cricket]

Thanks fp, This guy is inside my house now for many weeks. He is set up in my sunroom and has the heating pad under half the cage. I also cover the cage with a large towel. I only uncover half the cage when it is daylight so he can watch the wild birds outside on the feeder. He loves to watch them. He also watches us build the Pigeon Loft! I swear he is ordering us around. Anyway, he is warm and not in any such drafts. I took him inside when he fell ill way back. I want to get him back to 100% and he will not be going outside until he is 100% and for a few weeks after that. Knowing me, he will probably winter inside even if the loft is ready just to make sure... My husband does not know this so don't tell him! Thanks for the advice.

[Cricket]

He was first attacked by mites! Then an eye infection. Then he was tested and it was found that he had an extreme case of coccidia and capallaria. Then his eyes cleared up and got bad again. Now he is dehydrated! He has been treated with Batrum, I think, and a shot in the muscle two times over a period of 10 days for the capallaria. I use Colloidal Silver drops in the eyes and one drop in his water. I have hand feeding formula, but have not had to use it yet. I had been mixing the human probiotics in his water a few weeks ago when we were treating the coccidia. I will start that up again, but for how long should I do this? The heating pad is old school. It is on continuously. I did not know about that new feature, so I guess I am lucky. I am about to give him his water by mouth so when I do, I will check inside there to see if anything appears different. I will write again once I have accomplished this.

[feralpigeon]

Hi Cricket,

Think I'd probably scoop some fresh poop and drop it off @ the vets for fecal float. Even tho you've treated for coccidiosis, it could be that they didn't get knocked down enuf and the pij needs to be treated again. Although, Treesa uses Colloidal Silver for coccidiosis, so you could dose for that w/the silver.

One tbls. of AppleCidarVinegar to a gallon of water 2-3 times a week in water is a great way to help replenish good gut flora as it creates an acidic environment that good bacteria thrives in.

Also, have you treated for worms?? Have you ever treated for air sac mites??

fp

[Cricket]

All appears good inside his mouth. He drank the syringe water without a fight. I gave him about 3 cc worth. When I put him back in the cage, he flopped around to his corner. He doesn't have his feet under him at all. Maybe the food and water are better off closer to him? I have moved it all almost under his nose. He also pooped while I was right there and it looks like pure liquid. That is why I am not seeing so much poop. It is not normal poop. It is liquid. I have newspaper down with that recycled paper litter scattered around. It must be soaking it up so I was not aware of how wet this poop is. Is that a sign of dehydration?

[Cricket]

I will bring more poop if I can get some? What are air sac mites?

[AZWhitefeather]

Cricket,
If you haven't already done so, please click on the link Lin Hansen provided, paying particular attention to the 'degrees of dehydration' section. This describes the different stages of dehydration, which may be helpful in determining if this little one might have become dehydrated among other possible problems.

Also have you checked his keel (breast) bone for 'sharpness'. It should have some muscle around it.

Cindy

[feralpigeon]

Hi Cricket,

When I get a feral, I treat for worms, mites, coccidiosis and canker if I believe them to have it. This on general principle. Sometimes a bird can be treated for coccidiosis only to have the count go back up again and the need to treat again. This is why I suggested another fecal float to be sure....

Over time as their situation stablilzes, their food and water source a constant,
their health also becomes more consistently stable.

fp