Help---pigeon Wounded By Cat

[Feefo]

You are doing fine. However, defrosted frozen peas are preferable to tinned ones, the tinned ones are cooked and might have additives, the raw ones will be richer in vitamins and part of a wood pigeon's natural diet. If you defrost them by placing them in hot water they will be agreeably warm when the pigeon eats them.

Cynthia

[WildlifeVetToBe]

Ok, so long as eating peas on their own is ok for now because he's eating alot of them! His poo is a bit pea like, does this mean that hes not digesting it or is it just that hes eaten so many because he has eaten about three large handfuls since yesterday.
Im really afraid that Ive just found he has canker. He actually ate pea i was holding and i noticed that right after he swallows he swallowed again and then started "coughing or wheezing". I was able to get close enough to see something yellow down his throat.
What should I do?

[Pidgey]

Probably get some Metronidazole. I'll give Cynthia and John a ring to look in.

Pidgey

[WildlifeVetToBe]

Thanks, he'll be going to th vets tomorrow but theyre not really equipped for wildlife, but ill ask about it. I looked up the symptoms of canker and he's only wheezing after eating. After about 60-90 seconds he settles down and stops. He hasnt stopped eating and there is not eye/nosev discharge. I can see a yellow "blob" at the back of his throat though.

[Pidgey]

Well, you'll need to address that. Given your occupation, it shouldn't be too hard to get Metronidazole (Flagyl) in some form or another. The formularies run the gamut from the old 10-30 mg/kg, PO, BID (10 to 30 milligrams of pure medicine per kilogram of bird, orally, twice daily) up to 200-250 mg/kg, PO, QD (once daily) and several in between. I'd get him on the stuff today and hold it for a week to ten days.

Pidgey

[WildlifeVetToBe]

Will do, Im a work experience student at the vets or "Voluntary Assistant Nurse"! My mums a midwife so will prob be able to get some on monday, although its in tablet form. I will definately ask at the vets tomorrow.

[WildlifeVetToBe]

Would it help if i posted a picture?

[Pidgey]

You probably don't want to wait that long--it'd be far better to start as soon as possible. Sometimes canker can get really bad really fast and it's not worth the risk.

Pidgey

[Pidgey]

Originally Posted by WildlifeVetToBe

Would it help if i posted a picture?

A picture's almost always better than a description.

Pidgey

[WildlifeVetToBe]

OK, sorry about the quality, ive put an arrow on the photo which shows it the most! Its about pea size. The other images to show what the rest of his mouth is like and what he's like at the moment, he's in his cage and you can see all his poos, will be cleaning him out soon!



p.s. i think you get bigger versions by clicking on them

[Pidgey]

It's kinda' hard to see in there. Maybe a description would be better in this case... does the yellow button look like a lump of wet cheese and how big is it in millimeters?

Pidgey

[Pidgey]

Oh! You said "pea sized"... yeah, gotta' watch that. Is it down near the airway behind it, beside it, in front of it, on the top side of his throat or what?

Pidgey

[WildlifeVetToBe]

It looks like its on his tongue, when I first noticed it was when he was wheezing and it was like moving up and down when i was wheezing.

[WildlifeVetToBe]

whats his chances of survival??If I pay for some metronydazole tomorrow will he be ok. He seems to still be lively and isnt wheezing all the time. Is there anything I can do to try and slow down the growth before tomorrow or shall I wait for tomorrow to get the meds?

[Feefo]

I have found Spartix, which you can get without a prescription, to be very effective. For severe cases we use Spartrix and Metronidazole at the same time, but that is a prescription drug.

I would send you some Spartrix but it would not arrive until Monday at the earliest and I have no idea whether the strike is completely over and whether they are dealing with a backlog.

This is a link to canker on our website:

http://www.pigeon-aid.pigeon.net/canker.htm

Don't feel bad about not being able ro see it earlier, it is hard to spot when it is in the throat, but we often find that weakened wood pigeons have canker.


Cynthia