Terrasage

Trying this as an image file...

Mary, I believe they will test their blood as part of an annual check up with an avian vet. My vet said that a lot of people don't do this because of the expense. I never took Smoky to the vet because he always seemed great and I didn't want to stress him out unnecessarily.

Let me try this again... [file name=Necropsy_report.pdf size=45137]http://www.greyforums.net/components/com_joomlaboard/uploaded/files/Necropsy_report.pdf'>http://www.greyforums.net/components/com_joomlaboard/uploaded/files/Necropsy_report.pdf[/file] [file name=Necropsy_report.pdf size=45137]http://www.greyforums.net/components/com_joomlaboard/uploaded/files/Necropsy_report.pdf[/file][code:1] Ok, I'm doing something wrong when trying to attach that file. I'm working on it....<br><br>Post edited by: Terrasage, at: 2008/06/29 16:07 Necropsy_report.pdf

Hi everyone, Well, a week later and it still hurts, but I feel a little better. Smoky's necropsy was done and I was able to discuss it with the vet yesterday. First of all, "he" turned out to be a "she"! She was unable to determine his age as there are no clear indicators until they hit about 60 years and possibly start developing arthritis. His body condition was not good. She said that the food I was feeding him was not ideal (Kaytee eXact). He had no discernible body fat. I was incredulous as he has been eating this food for at least ten years, plus added fruits and veggies. She said that a lot of research has been done on bird nutrition and that he probably was not metabolizing it correctly. I'm still a little confused by this as it sounds like he's been starving to death for the last ten years. Ultimately she feels that he died from hypocalcemia, which is common in greys. She said that if there is anything good about this whole thing, it's that he died from a chronic condition, not an acute one that could have been treated. I've attached the report for everyone's information, and if anyone is interested, you can view the video of him that the vet refers to in her report at http://picasaweb.google.com/tjligouri/VideoOfSmoky. Thanks again for your thoughts and prayers. Tracy [file name=Necropsy_report.pdf size=45137]http://www.greyforums.net/components/com_joomlaboard/uploaded/files/Necropsy_report.pdf[/file]<br><br>Post edited by: Terrasage, at: 2008/06/28 18:02 Necropsy_report.pdf

What a great group of people you are. Today somewhat of a miracle occurred. I had posted my experience with Smoky on one of our local chat boards, and someone referred me to a local certified avian vet who just opened a practice about 5 minutes away from where I live. I gave them a call, they were incredibly nice to deal with, and they charge only $100 for a necropsy. This sounds a bit macabre, but I exhumed Smoky and brought him in. They said as long as I hadn't frozen him, they should be able to get some reliable information--or at least that's how I interpreted it. I know even with Alex and all the resources available to his researchers, they could not determine what he died from. But I have to at least try. Even I can't believe how in shock I still am. Thank you for all of your kind words, I'll let you know the outcome. Sincerely, Tracy

Hello fellow bird lovers, On Saturday night, totally unexpectedly, my Timneh African Grey of 20 years, "Smoky", died. At about 4 PM I noticed him sitting on the bottom of his cage all fluffed up. When I held out a peanut, he managed to climb up to his perch, but when he put out a foot to take the peanut, it looked like he was off-balance and he did not take the peanut. He took it in his mouth and tried to eat it though, which seemed like a good sign. He was also still responsive to my clucks and clucked back, which also seemed like a good sign. I called Cornell emergency, and they suggested bringing him in so they could do some tests but also warned that the drive could stress him out. I then recalled there was an avian vet close by, so I called him and made arrangements to bring Smoky in. I had a heckuva time getting Smoky to come out of his cage, and had to "peel" his claws from around the cage bars. I had to take him out of his cage because it would not fit in our truck all in one piece and the vet wanted us to bring it with us. I cradled Smoky in my arms and covered him up with a towel. He struggled a bit, so I took the blanket off. He didn't seem to know where to put his wings, so I helped him tuck them into his body. He snuggled in, then he looked up at me, he panted a couple of times and made these little "mewing" sounds and that he would make when ever he and I would cuddle. I kissed his beak and he kissed me back. I walked outside to our truck, and the truck door hadn't even shut before Smoky was gone. We just buried him in our garden a little while ago. I wanted to get an autopsy, and I am so dumbfounded at how little time there was between discovering he was ill and then his death. However, an autopsy is $350.00. My own inspection found nothing obviously unusual. His vent was clean, there were no obvious injuries of any type, his droppings looked normal. His appetite had not changed observably. Can anyone give me any insight at all as to what might have happened? There was nothing unusual in his environment, routines, etc. I am so shocked and confused and not handling this very well. Any help will be so very appreciated. Thank you, Tracy