emergency please need help ASAP (Oh no.. now Mr perty is feeling bad)Graphic description

[PeepsCA]

Finding nothing even remotely hinting to the cause of death has to be a terribly bittersweet result for you... at least you know that you didn't overlook an underlying health issue that could have been fixed/prevented, but at the same time the mystery continues and there is yet again no closure for you. The worst part (to me anyway) has to be the not knowing... always having that in the back of your mind, checking on your flock over and over thru each day to see if there's any indication of who might be next... and probably waking up with that being the first thing you think about. Ugh, I'd be a mess.

I used BYC's new "Search this forum" feature last night and looked up all the pics of Mr Perty that I could find and read thru all of the posts... such a shame you lost him, he was so beautiful, with such vibrant colors, beautiful feathers and such elegance. Your pics of him showed how much personality he (and Lady Di) had, as well as how comfortable they were with the life you'd given them. From reading thru all of your posts it's obvious how much joy your Peafowl have brought you, and it's nothing less than horrible that you have lost 2 in such a short timespan... and have no definitive answers as to why, or if the deaths are related or if whatever the cause is will continue to take your birds from you

I hope you find what you are looking for when you do a dissection of his head so there are no more losses

Again, so sorry for your loss

 

[MinxFox]

Oh Zazouse....

I was really hopping you wouldn't lose another one especially so soon.

Uhh this is horrible I hope that you will be able to find out what is going on and I really really hope that none of the other peafowl get to acting funny. Maybe you should pen the others to keep an eye on them? I don't know...What a horrible time for this to happen right when Mr. Perty was beginning to look so nice for the upcoming breeding season. He was one of my favorite birds of yours and it just isn't right that you didn't get to see him at his full beauty which was just around the corner. I am soo sorry.

 

[Resolution]

RIP
MR .Perty
I am soo soo sad i couldn't save him.

So what can be deduced from these two mortalities ? Here's what I've taken away from this thread.

1. No one can treat your birds via the internet.
2. Treating birds "feeling bad" with toxic chemicals to ostensibly kill parasites they may or may not have or with strong antibiotics for ailments they may or may not have may be intuitive to some but the efficacy of this strategy leaves much to be desired.
3. When you lose a bird take it for a proper necropsy. Take the guessing straight out of it and you'll save yourself some considerable heartache.


When a bird is down it's generally too late because as we all know, they don't look unwell until they're half-dead. That's the secret of staying alive when you're a bird, which have miraculous healing capacity.

What I've got to reiterate here no matter how many times it's necessary nor how threatening it may be to the big hatch hobbyist set-
Please Peeps- at the first sign of illness, help your birds boost their own immune systems before, (as well as during and after) treatment.
I've outlined how to help boost a bird's immune function and will gladly share this information freely once and again for anyone that needs to improve their husbandry protocols.

For those of you waiting to bark or bite, rather than take umbrage with the messenger, please do go back and take some data for yourselves. Write down every time that a forum contributor on BYC has written in with a health problem with their birds. Read the replies- specifically searching out treatments and let your own data support or negate whether these protocols, however well-intentioned have actually proven successful. Something no one can debate is the level of genuine empathy shared by all forum writers. This is a fine and supportive community.

Antibiotics are rough on the immune system. If you treat the bird for something your specific antibiotic does not cover, you've just inadvertently assaulted the immune function of the animal you are treating. The same goes with wormers and other treatments. Not treating until it's too late is also problematic as has been thoroughly covered on this forum. But the manner in which we go about treating is problematic. Firstly, boost the immune system and then take the appropriate course with a level head and measured approach. Leaping two feet into an opaque pond may not end well, no matter what the cool kids may be urging.

We all must remember that this time of year- check your egg diary for what happened last year and the year before and the year before that- my egg diaries go back to 1984- with a few years missing- and many incomplete- but existence none the less. This time of year- like the fall is exceedingly stressful for birds because of the fact that hormones are flowing in preparation for reproduction- rapid growth- completion of moult- egg production- that string of soft pearls is already beginning formation-long before the first egg is laid.

In the fall, birds are dealing with moult -and the stress of regenerating so much cellular material.

But right now is the time to prepare birds for the reproductive cycle (adults) or rapid growth /moult completion- that's the first step.
You may well decide not do this because so and so doesn't and his flock is just fine, or you can decide your flock isn't just like theirs and some of the factors going on at your facilities are not identical to theirs. Your stock may not be identical with theirs and the birds espoused to be perfectly healthy may not prove to be after all. Mycoplasma is created in the captive environment but sinusisitis and psuedomonas, infectious coryza are carried by other birds. You never know what you are receiving in the mail. It may not have symptoms because it's been treated adequately or it never surfaced in that individual bird but if the flock it came from has suffered from whatever "it" is, the likelihood of them being carriers is a given. It's just like sending your kids to daycare. They are going to be bringing back some nasty bug to the house and they aren't going to always remember to wash their hands and faces before opening the refrigerator or leaning in for hugs and kisses- you follow me?
No bad guys- no one to blame designate- no one is a crummy aviculturist or bird breeder- and not a single person on this forum is anything but an animal lover. It is what it is not what it aint.

 

[PeepsCA]

Any revelations from the head dissection Zaz? Any pics? I'd like to see, just for educational purposes... Maybe you can PM some to me if you took any (if they are too graphic to post)? I need to learn as much as I can...

Are you and the rest of your flock doing OK? Hope so

. With all the great pics and stories you share, each time you have lost a bird it's almost like I've lost one of my own

I am still so sorry for your losses, I think about you and Mr Perty and Lady Di every time I am in or around my Pea pen (my IB male is a 2 yr old, but doesn't have much of a train because he's still penned, with some butthead Guineas that will NOT leave his train alone, grrrrrr

).

I've found that I am checking on the Peas more often than I used to, I've even been catching and holding them, carrying them around and petting them every few days now (which they hate, but are getting better about dealing with it all) and while I have a hold of them I'm checking their weight/breast area, looking closely at their heads/faces, making sure their eyes are bright and alert, looking at their poops and looking for any sign of mucous discharge or anything weird from any orafice (lol) , and making sure they all race to the treat pans when I bring them yummies etc every time... I'm suuuuper paranoid, they are just so fragile. My peas are precious to me, I'd lose it if I lost one

Thank you for sharing your Pea pics, stories and experiences with us. Because of them, I'm way more in tune with my Peas now than I ever used to be.

 

[deerman]

check the 2nd post...picof what gape worms look like

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/548030/little-help-with-gape-worm