Update on handicapped cockatiel, Stevie

[ZivaDiva]

I took her to the vet on Monday and he examined her leg. He said it's like a clubbed foot and she rests on her ankle. At first he said that surgery was too risky, not because of the actual procedure, but because of her being under anesthesia. He said the leg cannot be fixed and could only be amputated. He tried to think of ideas on a cage for her that wouldn't let her get her leg stuck, but couldn't really come up with anything. He said I could try a bamboo cage as many of them have the bars close together. I'm concerned she'll chew her way out or end up with splinters. I am going to do an internet search and see what's available. We talked about an acrylic cage but she uses her beak to get around so that won't work.

 

By the end of the visit, he said he thinks amputation might be the way to go. He said he was a little nervous about doing the surgery on her and would have to do it on a day when he had no other surgeries so he could concentrate on her. He quoted between $700-800 for the surgery. He said to think about it and let him know.

 

So, I took her home and then went out later that night. I came home around midnight and checked on all the birds and she had blood all over herself, the wall and her cage. There were pools of coagulated blood on the cage floor. I was surprised she was still alive and sitting up. I grabbed her and checked her foot but it turned out to be a blood feather that had broken straight across and was like a hose draining out her blood. I got the bleeding stopped and put her in her cage in a warm room. I am unable to pull a blood feather by myself and there wasn't anyone to help me at that hour and the ER's don't have bird vets. So, I took her in in the morning and she was given some kind of electrolytes to drink, kept warm and they let her stabilize for several hours before pulling the feather. I picked her up that night and they said as soon as she heard my voice, her crest went up and she came to the front of the cage.

 

I took her home and she's still kind of wiped out and not as active but is eating, drinking and wanting her head scratched. I have no idea how she broke her blood feather but she does fall every now and then. The bottom of her cage is lined with towels but I have no idea what happened.

 

That's the latest. I still don't know what I'm doing to do. I'm scared about putting her under but obviously don't want her to get her leg caught and severely injure herself. I just want her to be ok.

[Life is Greyt]

What a difficult decision...I hope you can figure out what works best for her, and really glad to hear that she's doing ok.

[Gwen]

It breaks my heart to read about her. My first cockatiel had a broken leg & was kept exclusively in a 20 gal. aquarium !!! They can still look out & see the world but are safe from harm... the only perch he had was a small triangular swing that was acrylic.. It had one step up, a top perch & one step down. It was on rockers & he loved it. I hung some little bells on it too.

For night-night cuddling, the little fur cuddle-ups worked fine to just stand up against flat & bury their little face...

 

Good luck with your baby...

[ZivaDiva]

Gwen - thanks for your reply. How sweet of you to take such good care of your bird with a broken leg. I've been contemplating an aquarium as they are so much cheaper than an acrylic cage but she absolutely loves climbing the bars and she uses her beak. She has several perches of different thicknesses and 2 of the jungle nests that hang from the ceiling. She spends a lot of time in them and also sleeps in one at night. I was trying to figure out a way I could hang one in an aquarium if I went that way. Did you have a top on it at all? I guess I could use one of the screen tops. I'd like to hear what else you had in there and how you set it up.

 

Last year I fostered 2 cockatiels that kept having night frights and chronic broken blood feathers and I kept them in a huge clear storage tub. I drilled a zillion air holes and holes to put in perches and to hang toys from the lid, etc and they didn't seem to have a problem with it. I'm starting to realize that I think of these things as cruel and as putting them in " a box" but in reality, a cage is kind of the same thing. I took them out and put them on a play gym on my bed whenever I was home and they were happy. I want her to be safe and happy so I need to really think about it and consider the different options.

 

I have a one legged conure that is really happy and he obviously survived surgery and I wish I knew that's what would happen with her. If I could keep her from getting her foot caught and snapping off her leg, then I don't have to put her thru surgery.

[Wingy]

Do you think she would accept some type of brace, boot or shoe to cover the leg and foot? http://orthopets.com/index.html

Edited April 22, 2012 by Wingy

[ZivaDiva]

Hi Wingy, thanks for the suggestion. I highly doubt she'd go for that. She also still uses the foot to grip the bars and I'm not sure how she'd do with it covered up. I'm sure she'd be opening and closing her foot all the time. I will take a closer look at the site just in case there seems to be anything on there that we might be able to use. I think I'm going to put vet wrap around some of her perches so they are softer for her.

[Gwen]

At first I covered half of the aquarium just so he could have the option of hiding or sleeping and feel security. I used paper towels to line the bottom & amazingly he pooped mostly in one corner...

I used a "lizard hammock" in the corner that he liked to pull himself up into to sleep.. You can find all sorts of bendy vines & toys with suction cups for placement for reps like bearded dragons..

As he got better I put the screen cover on & hung toys down so he could play

 

I love tiels but my heart still skips a beat and start pounding everytime my "Gabby" has a night fright. I always leave a nightlight on for my fids but the frights are just indictative of the breed. She knows I will rescue her & sit & cuddle her until she calms... I'm sorry you were gone when Stevie had the fright & blood feather

Please keep brainstorming & asking for ideas !! This forum is excellent for helping out & maybe someone can come up w/an answer..

[katana600]

My gut wrenches at the thought of what you are going through with your little one. I am also inspired by your dedication and searching for answers. I have full confidence you will find something that works for you and Stevie. I am getting some ideas but don't know if it will work. I am thinking PVC vertical bars wrapped with vet wrap, but if you could get bamboo in a smaller size than the smallest diameter of pvc, that wouldn't need vet wrap. If you have someone who could make a frame using 2X2 wood, with holes drilled to hold the bamboo, the only place she could get a foot caught would be the corners and you could modify that with vet wrap. I will see if I can find some supplies here and if I could make something that would work, I will send you emails and would mail you a "kit" to assemble if we could find a solution for her. I will send you my email at home by PM.

[Greywings]

Lots of crippled birds do just fine without amputation. One of the Greys here has a similar leg and still climbs and flies and has even learned how to use it to hold food. Leg is bent at a right angle away from the bird. I would not go with the amputation.

[ZivaDiva]

Stevie update - it's been over 2 weeks since Stevie has had a night fright and/or gotten her leg caught in the bars. No new injuries or having to untangle her from her cage. She's in with a 2 1/2 month old male, Lindsey. They pretend to hate each other at this point but seem to be working towards happily ignoring one another. I've rearranged the cage a few times making it easier for her to move around. Her favorite thing is to sit in her jungle nest which is like a hanging cuddle cup AKA a birdie hammock. She sleeps in it and spends a lot of time during the day in it. There are 2 hanging and her and Lindsey argue over them all the time. Lindsey wants to join her and she doesn't want to share.

 

At this point, I'm leaving things as they are. They are out when I'm home and they both enjoy walking around on my bed and the carpet. I'm hoping it stays this way and she doesn't get caught and injured any more.

 

Greywings - the reason we've been considering amputation is because she gets her leg caught between the cage bars and gets stuck and injures herself.

 

Katana - thanks for the offer. I haven't checked PM's yet.

 

Gwen - thanks so much for the info. I'm still tempted to move her into an aquarium but will wait and see how she does. Stevie and Gabby look alike. What a sweetie.