karl Posted January 9, 2011 Share Posted January 9, 2011 Pickle my 7 month old CAG has had a slow fall into the couch and continued to flap on front then on his back with neck flapping too. This was terrifying to watch i have nursed back into the cage and he came round in 10 seconds what has happened. Please help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barbara2 Posted January 9, 2011 Share Posted January 9, 2011 I looked up seizures in african greys and they did say that this is something related to low calcium. I hope you can get an answer and get this under control soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdhouse Posted January 9, 2011 Share Posted January 9, 2011 I'm sorry I don't have enough knowledge to help. It would be a good idea to call your vet & see if you can leave a message with an answering service to have them give you a call. Also, try PM Dave007. He is probably most likely to be able to help. As I see you're a first time poster, just go to any thread he answered, or the members list & click on his name to get the option. to pm. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 I would advise you to make an appointment to get Pickle in to see an avian vet ASAP, it could very well have been a seizure but he needs medical attention and no one here is a vet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcusCAG Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 How is your dear Pickle doing now? I felt so horrible when I read your post, I hope he's doing better... thinking of you both... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 They can be such klutzes sometimes and if frightened on top of it it takes a moment or two to right themselves especially when young. do get him checked to find out if there is an underlying issue with diet or health and let us all know what the results might be. they can really give us a scare sometimes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karl Posted January 10, 2011 Author Share Posted January 10, 2011 Many thanks for all concern and help Pickle has been fine today i have left him in cage and will seek vets advice Karl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 I does sound like your grey experienced a seizure, seeing the vet asap is the best thing to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvparrots Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 (edited) You really should take Pickles to an avian vet for a check up. It might be that he is lacking/low on blood calcium and needs lots of sunlight and good green leafy vegetables to help him on his way. Edited January 11, 2011 by luvparrots Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdhouse Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Thanks for the update. I'm glad to hear Pickles looks better & glad to hear you're going to the vet. Birds are very tough about how well they hide symptoms. So, I'm hoping you get an appointment immediately & find out what caused all the excitement. Please let us know how it goes. And maybe once the dust settles, you can post a pic or two & tell us the story of you & Pickles...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karl Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 I have visited the vet and returned with a complete Harrisons organic food, a uv light and calcium to administer every day. This all has been very traumatic for us both pickle is still only a baby at 7 months and i certainly wasnt expecting this. I am watching him closely and although he is a little cautious on the perch he seems to like the complete food so this is not going to be a problem. I wil keep you all informed and get a picture up Many thanks for your support Karl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvparrots Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 This is great news Karl that the vet was able to help get Pickles on the road to recovery. You are a good and loving parront!!!! I look forward to seeing some pictures of Pickles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karl Posted January 14, 2011 Author Share Posted January 14, 2011 many thanks for your posts after visiting the vet i came home with a UV lamp some calcium drops and a change of diet to harrisons complete. Pickle has improved and although i am a little worried when he comes out of the cage he did have a little fly last night with no drama. Pickle likes the harrisons food and i hope this will make a difference to the seed diet. Behavior of pickle has changed a little he now likes to bite me which until the seizure he never bit in anger. I will keep you informed Many thanks for your help Karl & Pickle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 Thanks Karl for the update on Pickle and I hope he continues to improve with the changes you are implementing and maybe the biting is just a temporary thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caleigha Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 Glad you were able to take him in & I hope he gets better. I have to tell you I just love the name Pickles. It just makes me giggle, in such a great way. What a fun name!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 It's good to hear the vet got you on a new regimen. The blood tests when lab analysis is completed will give a lot more specifics on what could be an underling cause for the calcium and vitamin D deficiency Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chezron Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 I never understood the importance of sunshine (or full-spectrum lighting) for greys. My grey experienced a seizure, and the next day we were at the vet's. Turns out that 15 minutes a day of outdoor sunlight, most days, is enough to help them make the proper form of Vitamin D that will allow their body to assimilate calcium. Without sunlight or any full-spectrum lighting greys become deficient in calcium. No amount of supplemental calcium will rectify the situation. Only supplemental light in combination with good diet will correct calcium imbalance. You have to remember these birds are from equatorial Africa where the sunlight is intense and long-lasting. They have evolved to need some sunlight in order to function optimally. Upon taking Brutus to the vet we immediately instituted a daily program of going outside, weather-permitting, (in a travel cage, of course) for fifteen minutes. On days that are too cold or cloudy, we leave Brutus in his cage with a full spectrum light above his cage for an hour. For supplemental calcium we feed him a chicken drumstick bone once a week. To say he LOVES eating the marrow, full of calcium, is an understatement! Karl---Brutus NEVER had another seizure because of the changes we made. I wish you and Pickles the best. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cynttex1 Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 I am sorry to her what Pickle went through. I am no expert or a vet but I will tell you my grey did that a couple times last year and it was a low calcium problem. I started giving him a scrambled eggs with the shell broken up in it and more fruits and veggies and it never happened again. When it happened he would fall off his perch, be sqawking loudly and shake, then it was like he didn't have control of one of his legs and he would just hold it up, same thing it would last about 10 seconds. My grey is 15 so he is much older than Pickle. If it continues I would take him to a vet to be sure you find out what's wrong. Good Luck! Keep us updated on Pickle's condition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherrie Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 Those seizures are traumatic for both bird and owner! My 28 yr Mccaw had history of siezures but this was not mentioned to me at the time that I rescued him so the 1st time I witnessed one was just devastating for me. It seemed like when ever he got overly excited he would have one. I learned that his diet (before me) consisted of high amnts of sugar which thier poor systems can not tolerate and eventually damaged his liver. The last seizure he had caused his brain to swell and I had to put him to sleep. So PLEASE everyone...SUGAR IS A NO NO TO YOUR BIRD!!!! Good luck with Pickles! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 Glad he is on a healthier path, good to know that you shared your lesson as well you may help more birds than you know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morana Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 I learned that his diet (before me) consisted of high amnts of sugar which thier poor systems can not tolerate and eventually damaged his liver. Poor bird! :-( I wanted to ask, how did he get sugar? Like the citchen/cooking sugar or sugar in some type of foods? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherrie Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 Hi Morana, His previous owner had this brilliant idea to give Robyn Children's cereals..(fruit loops,captain crunch, cheerios,rice crispies etc..) there were about 6 dif boxes of cereal this guy would mix up "to have a variety" of foods.. His thinking on this was if it's "healthy" for children then it should be "healthy" for birds! you wanna hear something else? he was a manager at a large pet store chain here!!!!!!! TOTALLY UNBELIEVABLE FOR ME TO FATHOM EVEN TODAY!!! it took me about a month of just taking him off cereals completely and introducing him to real food for him-- He never had another bite of junk again once I had him-- but the damage was already done-- He was in pathetic shape-when I got him-- I cry even as I write this-- He was such an awesome bird and I miss him deeply-- I am very honored to have had the time I did with him and He was a really happy boy and lived out his days knowing that not all humans are bad and he learned how to be a BIRD!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chezron Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 Thanks for the cautionary tale Sherrie. You can kinda see how it could happen. Our media bombards us with cereal and fast food ads, and you start to believe. I am so glad your macaw had some happiness in his last years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 Thanks Sherrie for sharing that story of Robyn, how stupid can a person be but so glad that you gave him a few good years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now