Hello everyone,
It has been a long time since I posed although I have occasionally lurked.
I have a bit of a crisis here. Have lost 2 birds in my loft over past few weeks, and now a third one is very sick.
Pasquale first showed symptoms of losing weight and being picked on by other pidges around a month ago (he's a 9 year old feral rescue, unreleasable).
I gave him 8 days of sulfatrim and did some peas and corn handfeeding. Also treated him for a week with Ronidazole, although there was no phlegm and his mouth looked clear. He seemed to get his energy back and his weight did increase.
Returned him to loft and he seemed quite fine for a week, eating, re-establishing himself, sunning himself in the aviary, bathing, etc.
Then about 4 days ago I came out one morning and he was being brutally pecked at by two other males. I got to him and brought him inside, started him on amoxytabs one 10mg tab/daily. Also started metronidazole along with ACV+ water (1cc ACV to 8 oz water) as there were signs he had the beginnings of crop stasis (regurgitating solid food, slow crop emptying).
The crop restarted and he began pooping well. He was still eating a bit on his own and I augmented this with around 25 pieces of peas/corn a day and 2cc's Kaytee formula, syringe-fed which he takes well.
At the end of day 2 things seemed pretty OK. He was pooping, he was still eating some on his own, and he had the augmentive feedings.
But had some bad episodes the early morning of day 3 - thrashing about cage a few times, disoriented, unable to stand firmly. I put him in an 80-degree heated bathroom and made a towel donut for him for rest of night - BUT by yesterday afternoon he began showing signs of significant unsteadyness on feet/balance issues PLUS the beginning of an odd head movement:
NOT head bobbing, NOT head twisting. More like head moving laterally left to right and back and forth (sorta like snakecharmers in those old movies, if you get my drift).
By yesterday evening (day 3 evening) he was refusing peas and corn and could not seem to take liquid syringe-fed food well at all, so I didn't wanna push the latter. By nightfall he had had a few 'flailing', palsey-like episodes and his head was falling forward, eyes half closed, his feet seemed to seize up and I figured he would pass shortly... but he did not.
By middle of last night he had regained some motor control and awareness of surroundings, and nestled himself BACK into the donut. But his lateral head movement continued all night long (again, in donut in cage, room ambient temperature was 80 degrees +).
I figured again by this morn he would be gone, but in fact he seems more 'together' today. More aware, stronger. I have fed him the peas and corn which he managed to take around 12 pieces of per feeding, before it seems he is becoming too tired to take more. I put him back in donut, heated room, and he is 'out of it' for maybe the first 10 minutes - unsteady on feet and stumbling...then again settles into donut. But head movement continues, although it is less pronounced than last night.
Thoughts ? (the other 2 pidges that passed before him did NOT show these neurological signs...one showed crop stasis and severe underweightedness, I solved the stasis but could not get her to regain weight; the second literally was of good weight and healthy activity one afternoon, and dead by the next morning)
....does this sound bacterial or viral ???? I have no idea how to proceed at this point beyond continued supportive care (veggies, heat). Do I keep going with Amoxy ? Do I switch to something else (I have Doxy and Enroflaxin too). It wouldn't matter, of course, if virus.
It has been a long time since I posed although I have occasionally lurked.
I have a bit of a crisis here. Have lost 2 birds in my loft over past few weeks, and now a third one is very sick.
Pasquale first showed symptoms of losing weight and being picked on by other pidges around a month ago (he's a 9 year old feral rescue, unreleasable).
I gave him 8 days of sulfatrim and did some peas and corn handfeeding. Also treated him for a week with Ronidazole, although there was no phlegm and his mouth looked clear. He seemed to get his energy back and his weight did increase.
Returned him to loft and he seemed quite fine for a week, eating, re-establishing himself, sunning himself in the aviary, bathing, etc.
Then about 4 days ago I came out one morning and he was being brutally pecked at by two other males. I got to him and brought him inside, started him on amoxytabs one 10mg tab/daily. Also started metronidazole along with ACV+ water (1cc ACV to 8 oz water) as there were signs he had the beginnings of crop stasis (regurgitating solid food, slow crop emptying).
The crop restarted and he began pooping well. He was still eating a bit on his own and I augmented this with around 25 pieces of peas/corn a day and 2cc's Kaytee formula, syringe-fed which he takes well.
At the end of day 2 things seemed pretty OK. He was pooping, he was still eating some on his own, and he had the augmentive feedings.
But had some bad episodes the early morning of day 3 - thrashing about cage a few times, disoriented, unable to stand firmly. I put him in an 80-degree heated bathroom and made a towel donut for him for rest of night - BUT by yesterday afternoon he began showing signs of significant unsteadyness on feet/balance issues PLUS the beginning of an odd head movement:
NOT head bobbing, NOT head twisting. More like head moving laterally left to right and back and forth (sorta like snakecharmers in those old movies, if you get my drift).
By yesterday evening (day 3 evening) he was refusing peas and corn and could not seem to take liquid syringe-fed food well at all, so I didn't wanna push the latter. By nightfall he had had a few 'flailing', palsey-like episodes and his head was falling forward, eyes half closed, his feet seemed to seize up and I figured he would pass shortly... but he did not.
By middle of last night he had regained some motor control and awareness of surroundings, and nestled himself BACK into the donut. But his lateral head movement continued all night long (again, in donut in cage, room ambient temperature was 80 degrees +).
I figured again by this morn he would be gone, but in fact he seems more 'together' today. More aware, stronger. I have fed him the peas and corn which he managed to take around 12 pieces of per feeding, before it seems he is becoming too tired to take more. I put him back in donut, heated room, and he is 'out of it' for maybe the first 10 minutes - unsteady on feet and stumbling...then again settles into donut. But head movement continues, although it is less pronounced than last night.
Thoughts ? (the other 2 pidges that passed before him did NOT show these neurological signs...one showed crop stasis and severe underweightedness, I solved the stasis but could not get her to regain weight; the second literally was of good weight and healthy activity one afternoon, and dead by the next morning)
....does this sound bacterial or viral ???? I have no idea how to proceed at this point beyond continued supportive care (veggies, heat). Do I keep going with Amoxy ? Do I switch to something else (I have Doxy and Enroflaxin too). It wouldn't matter, of course, if virus.