Help-I know nothing about pigeons-and now I found a strange injured one!

[lorly]

I am hoping someone can help or advise me. I found an injured pigeon lying in the road. I assumed it was hit by a car. After reading some info. I can not rule out a virus?-here is what I am observing-pigeon has no balance-I have her/him in a bird cage (covered.) The pigeon pushes itself to the corner and burys its head because its head is twisted sideways and is kept low on the ground. It seems to do this as a way to hold itself still.
I am giving it sugar/salt water with a syringe. It does not open its beak on its own but will drink it and seems to even recognize what it is when I administer it, and almost lets me feed it.
I need to help this little creature, any thoughts? There are no rehabilitators nearby. Thank you.

[Pidgey]

Well, there's no way to tell where it's PMV, a disease or trauma at this point. I've seen them hit on the road and dehydrated to the point where they were laying down on their side and pretty "out of it" for a couple days. It sounds like for the moment that you're doing what you can. Where, roughly, are you?

Pidgey

[lorly]

Originally Posted by Pidgey

Well, there's no way to tell where it's PMV, a disease or trauma at this point. I've seen them hit on the road and dehydrated to the point where they were laying down on their side and pretty "out of it" for a couple days. It sounds like for the moment that you're doing what you can. Where, roughly, are you?

Pidgey

I am new at forums and posting, so sorry if this comes through twice. I am in NJ. If it is possibly a virus, is there any medications I should look into? If it's trauma, can something like this "reverse" itself. I am at a loss to understand what I am dealing with. Also, should I consider some sort of "more solid" food? Thanks again!

[AZWhitefeather]

Hi Lorly, welcome to Pigeon-Talk.

Thank you for rescuing this poor pij.

Before administering any food please click on the following link.
These steps are vital in helping to save this bird's life.
http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=8822

Thanks,
Cindy

[Feefo]

Hi Lorly

Thank you for saving this pigeon!

Although it is not possible to say for certain that he has PMV or concussion at this stage, it would be best if you treated it as if it has PMV because PMV requires supportive care only (it is a virus that and therefore there is no medication).

This is a link to a thread on PMV. http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showth...referrerid=560

Can you let us know whether he develops any other symptoms like seed tossing?

Can he eat on his own? If not it will need hand feeding, this is a link to a video of how to do that. It would be best if to start with you gave him soaked dog biscuits as this will increase the amount of water he is taking.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uU1SO0ZJoow

Because pigeons are seed eaters they need a lot of water (over 20 mls a day)
Can you try putting water is a tall but narrow dish ( something like a coffee cup) and dipping his beak in it. If he is thirsty that will stimulate him to drink.

Can you describe his poops? Colour, consistency and quantity. Poops can be a good indicator of health.

Cynthia

[Trees Gray]

Hello and thank you for rescuing this pigeon. Please follow advice that has been given as this will be the best bet for this birds recovery. The supportive care is crucial.

There have been other pigeons rescued in NJ with PMV, so it is a strong possibility this is what you are seeing in the bird.

[pdpbison]

Originally Posted by lorly

I am new at forums and posting, so sorry if this comes through twice. I am in NJ. If it is possibly a virus, is there any medications I should look into? If it's trauma, can something like this "reverse" itself. I am at a loss to understand what I am dealing with. Also, should I consider some sort of "more solid" food? Thanks again!

Hi Lorly,



If the Pigeon had food in his Crop, or has been pooping since you brought him home, it is not likely a Virus which has incapacitated him, but rather, blunt trauma or gunshot or something physically traumatic...or else poison, or toxic problems from eating bad or tainted food.


Keep him propped up gently with soft rolled cloths, so his head gets to be higher than the rest of him, or at least not lower than the rest of him.


Provide warmth if it is chilly there...

Are there poops? And if so, can you describe them?



Can you gently examine him to see if there are disturbed Feathers not laying flat, or signs of injury, bites, punctures, scabs? Punctures do not always bleed...and can be small and hard to find...


His Crop is below his Neck, and on his front...below his Crop is his 'Keel' or central Breast Bone which runs up and down.


See if his Keel feels 'sharp'...or sharp-ish...and let us know...



Best wishes...


Phil
Las Vegas

[Feefo]

If the Pigeon had food in his Crop, or has been pooping since you brought him home, it is not likely a Virus which has incapacitated him

Sorry to correct you Phil, but the pigeons that I have found incapacitated by Paramyxovirus were able to eat, drink and poop. Had it been otherwise I doubt that the first ones that I found would have survived as I knew so little about pigeons then. I provided food, water and shelter and they did the rest. It was their inability to fly and in Feefo's case, to compete with fitter pigeons for food, that caused them to be ground-bound. It was a few months before they were able to fly again.

Feefo was my first PMV rescue and caught my attention by taking so long to walk to the place where I was feeding the pigeons (instead of flying) and then by tossing the seed she managed to pick up. When I got her home and put her in a cage she immediately started pecking for food. I found Hurdy in the market place, he was eating bread and coping well but when he tried to fly off he started twirling in the air and crashing into things. Gurdy was also eating when I found him pecking at a piece of bread in the middle of the road...his head was upside down and when I went to catch him he crashed into a wall. Speckie wasn't too badly affected, I managed to grab her when she was eating raw peanuts. Dear little Blackie was starving, but she was only a cobbie then and pecking and missing when I found her. She needed hand feeding for a few weeks.

Cynthia

[pdpbison]

Originally Posted by cyro51

Sorry to correct you Phil, but the pigeons that I have found incapacitated by Paramyxovirus were able to eat, drink and poop. Had it been otherwise I doubt that the first ones that I found would have survived as I knew so little about pigeons then. I provided food, water and shelter and they did the rest. It was their inability to fly and in Feefo's case, to compete with fitter pigeons for food, that caused them to be ground-bound. It was a few months before they were able to fly again.

Feefo was my first PMV rescue and caught my attention by taking so long to walk to the place where I was feeding the pigeons (instead of flying) and then by tossing the seed she managed to pick up. When I got her home and put her in a cage she immediately started pecking for food. I found Hurdy in the market place, he was eating bread and coping well but when he tried to fly off he started twirling in the air and crashing into things. Gurdy was also eating when I found him pecking at a piece of bread in the middle of the road...his head was upside down and when I went to catch him he crashed into a wall. Speckie wasn't too badly affected, I managed to grab her when she was eating raw peanuts. Dear little Blackie was starving, but she was only a cobbie then and pecking and missing when I found her. She needed hand feeding for a few weeks.

Cynthia

Hi Cynthia,


Oh, sure...I understand what you mean here...


Just that when a feral Pigeon can not fly, for whatever reason, it soon has an empty Crop, unless it happens to be somewhere where Seeds are...even if it will gladly eat when Seeds are provided.


Hence, to my reasoning, if this Bird had a full Crop when found, or if there are plenty of poops since being found, if he has a full muscled Keel, and was not flying, and was having 'balance problems', I would wish to look for signs not only of poisoning, or mysterious fast onset illness ( Botulism? Ergot poisoning?) , but, also, to look for signs of blunt or other trauma, which maybe had occasioned his not-flying and balance issues, to have begun not long before I found him.

What has been described so far, does not sound typical to me of PPMV behaviours, but too, every one can be different...

...while, the behaviors do sound consistant with poisoning, tainted or spoiled food, food-poisoning, some kinds of illness, or blunt trauma scenarios.

If there are very many poops since being found, this would suggest he was still flying shortly before being found...and if PPMV, this could still be so of course...!

But I felt less likely than other things vexing him...


Thats all I meant...

Not that because of PPMV they will cease to eat-drink-and-poop in captivity, but that ( if ) he had eaten in the wild shortly before, or had a full Crop when found...or been pooping decent amounts since being found, to affirm he had been eating till right before being found...which suggests then, to my mind, that he had still been flying till right before being found...and if so, then PPMV would seem not likely to me. NOt ruling it out, just saying seems less likely than other scenarios.


Like that...that's all, just that thought...


Thanks!


Best wishes!


Phil
Las Vegas