dkg362

Wellll... her sweetness occasionally disappears when she isn't getting her way! For instance, last night when she didn't want to step up, she chomped down instead. Hopefully it won't be a permanent part of her personality though! Funny, last night I gave her some raw carrot chunks. You should have seen the suspicious glare she gave me... like this: :angry: Of course, then she decided to take a bite. Her eyes starting pinning in excitement and she proceeded to wolf down the rest of them in a not-very-ladylike manner. :laugh: I was pretty happy, to say the least! The more I can entice her to eat some healthy stuff, the more it will help her recover and beat this disease. Dawn

Wow, what a cutie! And such a sweet face too. Is he as cuddly as he looks??

Ok, it's official. Her name has been changed to Bonnie. It suits her perfectly, I think. I also just got the final test result from the vet - she is negative for PBFD! Major relief. Now I just need to clear her psittacosis and she'll be good to go. Injections start Saturday morning. Does anyone have experience with their grey getting any kind of injections? I'm not sure what to expect. Is it very painful for them? Will she be sore afterward? I will ask the vet these questions also when I'm there, but I would love to hear some feedback from others who have gone through something similar. Thanks! Dawn

Hi there, After much searching, I found a former avian vet tech (used to work at the avian vet clinic I take my birds to) that will house and pet sit for me while I'm away. She has birds and other pets of her own, plus she stays at my place (so all my pets get to stay at home), so it's worth it to me to pay the extra cost for the peace of mind. You might want to ask around at vet clinics like I did, to see if any of their techs are interested. Dawn

Ok, here's what the vet said today when I talked to her. She actually did two different tests for the chlamydia - one tested for antibodies and the other for shedding. The shedding test was negative (relief!), but the antibodies were high which she thought indicated a current or recent infection. Not sure where she would have picked it up though, since her owner was in the hospital and she was confined to that tiny dark room. They did have another bird (cockatoo) in the house upstairs that I didn't see (I know, very unfortunate for that poor bird to be there)... it's possible she picked it up from that one. After reading up on this disease, it says the incubation period is 3-10 days. Since I had her tested within 48 hours of getting her, it's highly unlikely it came from me or my home, so that's good news. The vet feels that I'm doing everything I can to keep Frog and Tizzy safe. She also knows that they are healthy and feels that their immune systems should be strong enough to withstand any stray germs that might get out. And since we caught it so quickly and will start treating right away, we're looking pretty good. I just need to continue my quarantine for another 6 weeks... I feel so bad for her alone in that room! Oh, and I think her new name might be Bonnie! It was my brother-in-law's suggestion and I love the Clyde association and that it's a pretty name for a pretty girl. I hope changing her name isn't a bad idea. Dawn

luvparrots, Thanks for your thoughts. I'm hopeful that treatment will take care of this for Clyde, but my big worry right now is keeping my two other birds healthy and not spreading it to them. I'm definitely considering a better name for her. Something that popped into my head the other day was "Cameo". No idea where it came from, but it's a possibility. As far as the quarantine procedures I've been following, she's in a guest bedroom with the door shut. If the weather is decent (and it has been, mostly), the window in the room is open (screened of course) to let fresh air in. Her cage is fairly near the window. I haven't had the air/heat on since I got her, so no worries there. I also put something over the vent in that room, just in case. That room is right next to a guest bathroom, which I've been using to change clothes in before/after entering or leaving Clyde's room. However, the door to that room is very close to the living room where Frog and Tizzy (my other two) are. It isn't a perfect situation, but it's the best I could do. I've also been washing my hands after leaving Clyde's room (getting dishpan hands big time). But that doesn't mean it isn't in my hair or clinging to me somewhere else. Something else that worries me - I have wall-to-wall carpeting, so this stuff could get in the carpet and possibly be made airborne just by vacuuming. Trying not to worry, but I'm awfully good at it. :unsure:

The vet left me a voice mail message tonight with some of Clyde's test results. Ok, first of all, I'm pretty sure she said Clyde's DNA test shows FEMALE. I replayed the message a few times to make sure I heard it right. Hmmm, now to figure out what to do about his name. I mean her name. The test also showed her low on calcium, but hopefully an improved diet will help take care of that (and I'm working on it!). Unfortunately, Clyde's chlamydia test came back positive. I can't say I'm too surprised (I was expecting health issues), but I am certainly disappointed. The vet is recommending treatment of a weekly antibiotic injection for 4-5 weeks. I'm assuming I will need to keep her quarantined during this time, which is really a bummer (I really hate isolating her). I'll get more details from the vet tomorrow, but that's what I have so far. I think the only test result remaining is the PBFD. Has anyone had to go through this chlamydia treatment before? Any thoughts or experience you can pass along? I'm feeling a bit deflated right now. Sigh. :unsure: Dawn

Ok, I temporarily ran out of patience and called the vet to see if they had any updates for me yet... The CBC results are sitting on the vet's desk, waiting for her. GAAAAHHHH... Re-summoning my patience mantra now. :whistle:

Awww... thanks everyone! I'm glad you like the updates. Here I was thinking I was babbling on about boring stuff. tycos_mom, unfortunately Clyde is still quarantined from my other birds until I get the thumbs-up back from the vet. That means he doesn't get much "flock time" yet or get to be a part of the every day activity. He does get out-of-cage time for about an hour every morning and an hour or so every night. I've also been trying to take him outside in the travel cage (weather permitting) after work every day, so he can hang out with me there while I'm doing yard work. Yesterday he critiqued my bush pruning techniques and offered pointers... well, I'm sure that's what all his jabber was about. :laugh: I've given him a few misting showers while outside in the travel cage, but he doesn't love it, so I don't want to do it every time (that whole negative association with the travel cage thing). His feathers look about the same, but they are definitely starting to lose their cigarette smell (which I'm thrilled about). Last night during our out-of-cage time together (and before the biting episode), I was treated to beak-grinding, sleepy, contented birdy sounds... first time he's done that with me. It was nice to hear. I wish the vet would call with test results. And I'm waiting on the DNA test before deciding on what to do about his name. Dawn

Ok, first of all, I'm not sure I like his name (which he came with), but that's a whole 'nother topic. I'm still waiting on test results from the vet. The only one I've received so far was the gram stain, which was normal. Clyde has started talking more, although most of it I can't understand. His previous owner had a pretty thick southern drawl, so I'm not surprised I can't quite make it out. :lol: He has picked up some new sounds: the squeak the floor makes when I leave the room, my sneeze, my wimpy attempt at a whistle and my voice saying hello. That last one I heard today for the first time, which caught me totally by surprise. :laugh: Something I'm very happy about - he's discovered that pellets are actually food and they aren't too bad. I've been spending time with him every night before bed and he's mostly just hung out on my hand or leg with one foot tucked up and getting sleepy eyes. I've been giving him scritches most nights, which he seems to love (although tonight was not one of those nights... lol). I've discovered that what I thought was part of what I thought was a breathing problem is actually... uh... hormonal behavior. The droopy wings and then the fact that it always stopped when I put him back on his perch clued me in. He hadn't tried to bite me again... until tonight. I went to put him back in his cage for the night and he didn't want to go back in. It wasn't as hard of a bite as the day I first met him, but I could tell he was testing me. I ignored it and continued asking him to step up, which he did - but he gave me a "I'm not pleased" look, lol. Stinker. Instead of putting him right into his cage though, I kept him out on my hand for a few minutes and talked to him until he seemed relaxed again. Not sure if that was the right approach, but I was going on instinct. So that's where we are. If anyone has any pointers to offer or thoughts on what I might expect behavior-wise in the coming weeks, I'm all ears. Meanwhile, I'll continue reading through past threads on this forum. You guys are great - thanks! Dawn

Well, I've gotten the gram stain result back and that was normal. I think I should have the rest of the test results back by early next week. I can't wait until this quarantine is over and I'm very hopeful that everything will look good. I'm anxious to get him in the living room so he can be with the rest of the bird/animal family and hang out. He's got to be lonely in there by himself. I got him a new rope perch yesterday (so far he's only looking at it suspiciously) and also a new toy that I hope he will investigate today. Also hopeful that he may want to take another bath today... Dawn

Either that or I am a convenient preening tool. Last night I spent about an hour with him in his quarantine room (spare bedroom). He shared some cereal with me (just a little - organic and whole grain!), which I was happy about (it wasn't seed!). I then brought him over to the bed and was half-sitting/lying down with him perched on my hand. He stepped off of it onto my stomach and walked up to my chest. I was a bit nervous having him that close to my face (with memories of his biting attack when we met), but I just kept a very close eye on his expression and decided to go with it and just be ready to move him off me immediately if his demeanor changed. Well, he totally surprised me. He slowly put his head down near my chin and asked for head and neck scratches. After a few minutes of scratches (he looked very content with his eyes closed), he decided to settle in and was almost lying down (kind of like a bird sitting on a nest)! He stayed there for about 15 min and then went back to my hand to perch, tucked up one foot and started to go into "sleepy birdy" mode. I was absolutely thrilled and so amazed that he was able to be that trusting with me already. My nanday will cuddle with me like that, but only after years of building our relationship. I kept wishing someone was there to get a picture so I had proof! Now I'm starting to believe he might actually like me and his good behavior isn't just a result of changing his environment... {Feel-good-00020114} Dawn

As requested, a few photos from his first and second day with me. Dawn

doubletefarm, I keep the vets in business also with my crew... I'm right there with you! Tycos_mom, thanks for your good wishes. Yes, I was lucky that Clyde's previous owner had a good relationship with him. I'm amazed this is the same bird that tried to take chunks out of my hand when I first met him though! The guy had told me that I was the first woman who could hold him and not freak out when he got aggressive... but yet the vet and vet tech were women also. I have a feeling that the change in environment is what had something to do with it. My thought is that maybe Clyde was protective around his previous owner or his home/cage (I was right next to his cage when he went after me). In any case, I'm hopeful this change is permanent. We'll see as he gets more comfortable in his new home. Dawn

Gram stain test results are back and are normal. One down!