HeatherStrella Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 I took AnnaBella to the vet for her 6 month check up. She had started chewing her wing feathers right before the last time I took her...6 months ago. I've noticed her doing it more and more. Sometimes when she's doing it, she acts like she's trying to get at something...but can't. She seems frustrated sometimes. I thought maybe it was dry, itchy skin...I've been giving her palm oil forever...misting her...anyway, the vet looked and noticed she's only chewing the right side. Because it's ONLY the right side, she thinks something might be wrong. She could be in pain...it could be...just about anything. She flies fine...she flaps both wings the same...I have noticed recently that she's kinda fiddling with her right foot a lot. She kinda picks at her right foot with her beak. She's doing it really softly...almost like she's eating crumbs stuck to her foot but there's nothing there. She acts fine other than those two things...the feather chewing and foot fiddling. So, my vet wants to knock her out to do x-rays. I voiced my concerns about anestheisa...she said she would try Valium first and that Valium is totally safe for birds. If it doesn't knock her out enough, then she'll do a quick anesthesia. She said it would be very fast and she wouldn't be under long...just enough time to do the x-rays. I totally trust my vet. She works with a lot of birds...pet birds and wild birds brought in by people who find them injured. I saw two hawks come in once when I was there. I am a little worried about the other staff there...the vet techs. I'm worried that AB is fully flighted and might get away from them when they take her out for the procedure. Or, a dog walking by will grab her. I'm thinking of all these things and it's freaking me out. Has anyone else had this kind of thing done for their bird? Like I said, I totally trust my vet...I wouldn't let any other vet do this. I want what's best for AnnaBella...I want her to be happy and healthy...pain free. But, if something happens to her during this whole thing, I'll be crushed. Any comments? PS My vet did a poop test and all checked out fine... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdhouse Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 (edited) Phenix came to me sick & it took a couple of years to get him healthy. A couple of years after that he got a bad infection & was at Tufts for a week. Bad enough for any animal we love to go thru this, but birds seem so much more fragile & vulnerable. I remember very well all the things you can fear. But veterinary practices that are licensed to treat wild birds are pretty rare. Much more scarce even than normal avian vets & we know how few of them there are. Think how well equipt they have to be to handle all those different types of sick & injured totally wild birds. How fast & fragile wrens are. How strong & dangerous are hawks? This is the type of place that just seems to attract people who genuinely love animals. Where you find the best overall care, not just treatment for the patients. You're very lucky to have a veterinary facility like this for AnnaBella. She really is going to be in very good hands. Edited January 5, 2011 by birdhouse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Any time an animal has to go under anesthesia there is always a slight risk, that includes for us humans too but if you trust your vet completely then I don't see a problem with it to get x-rays, as far as worrying about her escaping from their hands and getting caught by a dog who may be walking by forget about it for they are well practiced in the procedures necessary to keep her safe, in other words an avian vet knows all the precautions. Don't worry and fret unnecessarily, your vet is a professional and she is in good hands, let us know what you find out Heather. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kellync Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Please let me know what the outcome is! My CAG, Georgie, is a year and a half years old. He has chewed and picked his primary feathers out on only one wing. You are the first person I have found with a similar problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeatherStrella Posted January 9, 2011 Author Share Posted January 9, 2011 Thank you for the kind words. I know AB will be in good hands...my vet is the best. Kelly, I'll write what happens after the appt. Her appt is Thursday, January 13. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morana Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Hope your birdie will be fine in no time! :-) I am always afraid when I bring my Zak to the vet that he will fly away through slightly opened windows so I bug the staff till they close all the windows. And yes, I also worry about the dogs but nothing ever happened. Hearing about your vet, I think you can be assured nothing bad will happen to your pretty AB :-) She sounds like a really good vet! ----------------------- This has absolutely nothing with your bird but this sentence: " I have noticed recently that she's kinda fiddling with her right foot a lot. She kinda picks at her right foot with her beak. She's doing it really softly...almost like she's eating crumbs stuck to her foot but there's nothing there." reminded me about my cousin who had a stroke and has problem just with one side of his body. Is it the same for the birds? Would they even be able to survive a stroke? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingles Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 sounds like your vet is very experienced with birds, it's hard not to worry about our babies, but she sounds like she's at the best possible place for this. Since they've delt with hawks, I'm sure that they know how to handle a grey. Plus, I would think they would be taking her right to the x-ray place (which is probably in a room) and then straight back to where she was knocked out... with no dogs along the way. Any of your fears that you are thinking of, seek the truth of what they've done in the past. That should put your fears away Good luck and let us know what they find! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 that is a very professional sounding clinic and I am certain they do not take undue chances with escape or exposure to another animal or birds. She should be in very safe hands and they must be trained to respond as needed if there is an unexpected situation to deal with. All the best awaiting the test results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeatherStrella Posted January 17, 2011 Author Share Posted January 17, 2011 Well, she had her x-rays done last Thursday. She was knocked out enough on the valium so she didn't need the anesthesia. The x-rays showed some irregularities around her heart and lungs. The vet said it could be her air sacs. There was also something around her stomach but she thought it may have been the skins from grapes she had earlier in the day...I guess the skins take longer to digest. I will find out her blood test results tomorrow...which will answer some of the questions the x-rays showed. The vet said she might have allergies which could be why there were funny areas around her lungs. We will know more tomorrow...I hope. If the blood test comes up good, she'll be xrayed again in a couple months to see if anything has changed. I'll let you all know what I hear about the blood test. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morana Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 I will keep my fingers crossed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Thanks Heather for the update on AnnaBella and I hope the tests show nothing serious, keeping good thoughts for her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Appreciate your keeping us informed, give her some scritches for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Hoping for the best with Anna Bella. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talon Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Glad all seems okay so far... Rikki lightly chews her left wing, just about an inch long spot. She doesn't pull the feathers, just a bit of ragged looking ones. I never see her doing it, but they always look a bit ragged.....never worried much about it as it's never gotten worse. Her recent vet check up came back great, and my vet has never mentioned it. It's not very noticeable. Please keep us posted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvparrots Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Good thoughts coming Annabelle's way and prayers in abundance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chezron Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Have the vet done a blood test? How is her calcium level? Does she get regular full-spectrum light or trips outside for regular sunlight? Good luck with your bird. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeatherStrella Posted January 17, 2011 Author Share Posted January 17, 2011 Chezron, Yes, they did blood test...I'm waiting for the vet to call with the results...she said she'd call today. She gets full spectrum lighting... Thank you all for the replies...I hate waiting for stuff like this...I'm hoping since she didn't call first thing this morning that all is good...I hope. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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