Help! My Ameracauna can barely stand - other birds are fine, but she's just bone & feathers!!

[Squawk!]

Ameracauna, 9 mos old, weight - light as feathers and bone!

Acted fine yesterday and before. Still eating & drinking, but she sort of "fell" out of the hen house this morning. I stood her up and she ate, walked over to water and drank. Checked vent while she was standing. Her wings are drooping.

Let me point out that I check on the birds several times a day & my hubby does after gets home. Her behavior's been normal until this morning.She has so much feathering hiding this that I was shocked when I checked her crop - just neck bone! her breast bones are easily felt (sticking out?) and she's light as a feather - far less than an Ameracauna that size should. Wouldn't be surprised if my Sultans weigh more and my much smaller campine weighs far more (maybe double). I haven't handled her in a few weeks.

Noticed slightly runny mustard colored feces ( a couple) over the last 10 days or so. Checking the "Chatsworth"(sp?) poo chart, this is normal caecal droppings, altho' I've never seen it in my other birds. She has not laid yet, so eggbound or peritonitus was my first concern. I can't imagine her forming eggs in her state. She is just bones and now she's having a hard time getting up once she sits down.

No car, No pedialyte, No Gatorade. Have electrolyte H2O, Karo syrup, yogurt. Also 2:1 carb to protein ratio whey and dairy based drink w/naturally occuring electrolytes. Apple sauce, but only cranberry juice. Please help. My chicken vet is far away. Hubby is picking chicken food today - anything from feed store I can try? I don't want to lose her - very, very docile sweet bird that I should (and would) have spent more time holding. Me kidney stones and my dog's liver nearly blew out, we have extra meds for dog but I dont want to medicate right now.

Any assistance will be greatly appreciated...
Meredith

 

[casportpony]

The poop chart is wrong! 95% of their poop should be well formed with a white cap. What does 95% of her poop look like? If its mustard, I'd say that she has coccidiosis or blackhead. Can you post a picture of her poop?

 

[Squawk!]

Like an idiot I grabbed the 2 globs of it w/a paper towel. I'll try to post a pic (never figured out how on here). Right now I'm going to call our local vet. Bouncing between here and the Valley Permaculture Society. (I'm in the Phoenix-area). Any tips for what I can give her so she wont stress out at vet (afraid that might be a final blow).

Thanks,
Meredith

 

[casportpony]

Unless you know how to tube feed or give SC fluids, I don't think you can do anything for her at home. Transporting her might kill her, but I don't think you have a choice. As thin as she is, I bet she's hypothermic, so easy on the AC and you might want to place her on some hot water bottles.

FWIW, one vet told me that they rarely come back once they're this thin, so don't get your hopes up.
Fingers crossed for you!

 

[Squawk!]

My dog has diabetes so handling needles is not a problem. Where to inject and what to inject? But nada on an IV unless I rig something. I can get flow down to 1 or 2 drops/second using aquatic airline tubing, but honestly I think this is completely beyond my abilities since I can't guarantee sterility. My local vet doesn't handle birds

What if its Marek's? that would explain why the others aren't getting sick. The bird came from a breeder w/stellar rep. I'm still going to find out if this bird was vaccinated, because the symptoms fit. She's due to start laying and that's often when it hits & the symptoms are in accordance.

Thanks,
Meredith

 

[casportpony]

If the vet is not an option, make sure she's warm, then tube a small amount of warmed fluids orally. If her crop clears, give more, but don't give too much.

 

[casportpony]

This is a copy and paste from another post of mine.
When mine get sick, this is what I do:

• *Thorough* physical exam which includes inserting a gloved, lubed finger into the cloaca to check for an egg, check for cuts, bruising lumps, smells, etc.
• Dust for mites/lice with poultry dust even if I cannot see any. DE does not work.
• Weigh on digital kitchen scale (see avatar), record weight and weigh daily. any weight loss is bad.
• Place bird in a warm, quiet place on towel with food and water that it can't drown in.
• De-worm with Safeguard or Panacur, liquid or paste (fenbendazole 10%) 50mg/kg by mouth and repeat in 10 days. Warning - Safeguard/Panacur should not be used during a molt.
• Once warm, if not drinking and crop is empty, hydrate with warmed Pedialyte or lactated ringers with a feeding tube - 30ml/kg every 6-8 hours.
• If not eating after 24 hours and crop is empty, tube feed baby bird food mixed with Pedialyte
• Inspect poop.
• If I suspect a stuck egg, treat for egg binding.
• If I suspect a bacterial infection, treat with antibiotics.
• If I suspect a fungal infection, treat with Nystatin.
• If I suspect coccidiosis, treat with Corid (amprolium).
• If I suspect canker or histomoniaisis (blackhead), treat with Metronidazole.

From: http://www.harrisonsbirdfoods.com/avmed/cam/07_emergency_and_critical_care.pdf
Supportive Care
SICK-BIRD ENCLOSURES
Sick birds are often hypothermic and should be placed
in heated (brooder-type) enclosures


b (Fig 7.7) in a quiet
environment (see Chapter 1, Clinical Practice). A temperature
of 85° F (29° C) with 70% humidity is desirable
for most sick birds. If brooders are not equipped with a
humidity source, placing a small dish of water in the
enclosure will often supply adequate humidity. A moist
towel that is heated and placed on the bottom of a cage
or incubator rapidly humidifies the environment, as indicated​

by the fogging of the acrylic cage front.

FLUID THERAPY
Oral Administration
Oral administration is the ideal method of giving fluids.
This method is more commonly used in mildly dehydrated
birds or in conjunction with subcutaneous (SC)
or intravenous (IV) therapy. Oral rehydration (30 ml/kg
PO q 6-8 h) also may be used in larger birds (eg, waterfowl)
that are difficult to restrain for parenteral fluid​

therapy.

ORAL NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS
Below are listed some of the oral nutritional supplements
that can be gavage-fed to debilitated birds. Various
hand-feeding formulas are on the market and, as a
whole, are far superior to the homemade formulas used
decades ago that contained monkey biscuits, peanut butter
and ground seeds. Commercially available hand-feeding
formulas for baby birds are often utilized in the treatment
of sick and debilitated adult birds. The quantity
that can be fed at one time to a sick bird is greatly
reduced from that of baby birds. On the average, a baby
parrot can accommodate 10% of its body weight per
feeding due to the elasticity of the crop and its rapid
emptying. Adult birds have a greatly decreased crop
capacity, averaging 3% of their body weight. Additionally,
sick birds are less tolerant of food in the crop and care
must be taken to avoid regurgitation and/or aspiration.
A sick or debilitated bird should always have its
hydration corrected prior to attempting to initiate​

oral gavage-feeding.






Here is a list that I'm working on. Let me know what else I should have!

Medications - With the exception of Clavamox, all can be purchased without a prescription for tropical fish or pigeons. If you need help finding any of them, let me know.​

• Metronidazole 250mg, 100mg and 50mg/ml liquid (banned for use in food animals)
• Nystatin (antifungal)
• Amoxicillin 250mg
• Cephalexin 250mg
• Tylan (tylosin)
• Clavamox 250 mg
• Baytril 10% (banned for use in food animals)
• Corid (amprolium - coccistat)
• Sulmet
• Terramycin Antibiotic Ophthalmic Ointment
• Neosporin
• Safeguard wormer (fenbendazole 10%)
• Praziquantel
• Calcium
• Vitamin D

Supplies​

• Pedialyte for tubing
• Catheter for tube feeding
• Baby bird food for tubing
• Catheter tip syringe for tube feeding
• Lactated ringers for tubing or SC fluids
• Heat lamps
• Heating Pad
• Boxes and crates
• Poultry dust
• Digital kitchen scale
• Gram scale
• Needles and syringes of many sizes
• Mineral Oil
• Petroleum Jelly
• Vet Wrap
• Gauze Roll
• Gauze Pads
• Telfa Pads
• Raw, Unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar
• Isopropyl alcohol
• Latex Gloves
• Betadine
• Epsom Salts

Books

• Plumb's Veterinary Drug Handbook
• AAAP Avian Disease Manual
• Diseases of Poultry
• Clinical Avian Medicine
• Penn State Poultry Health Handbook

Online poultry books:

[URL]http://www.harrisonsbirdfoods.com/avmed/cam.html[/URL]
Download the entire book (two volumes): Clinical Avian Medicine
(Large file - please allow several moments to download)

Another two book set:
[URL]http://www.harrisonsbirdfoods.com/avmed/chapters.html[/URL]

Penn State Poultry Health Handbook
[URL]http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/freepubs/pdfs/agrs52.pdf[/URL]

 

[casportpony]

Here is info on tubing:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...cken-and-give-subcutaneous-fluid#post_9910754

 

[realsis]

I'm so sorry about this. my dog has diabetes too! as for your bird my health book says yellow watery foamy diarrhea could be colibacallosis which is common Its symptoms looks like Marked symptoms include lameness listlessness ruffled feathers yellow diarrhea fever swollen joints and emaciation! which means extremely thin. treatment says keep bird warm feed with high proteins vitamin E and antibiotic. like oxytetracycline says antibiotic may not be effective unless given at the beginning but can be tried. cause is a bacteria found in poultry environment often occurs as a secondary infection after a respiratory illness. I hope this helps. I would surely try this treatment. it says this disease is common. only way to know for sure is to get a blood test. however if she were mine I'd give this treatment a try. best of luck

 

[Haunted55]

My dog has diabetes so handling needles is not a problem. Where to inject and what to inject? But nada on an IV unless I rig something. I can get flow down to 1 or 2 drops/second using aquatic airline tubing, but honestly I think this is completely beyond my abilities since I can't guarantee sterility. My local vet doesn't handle birds

What if its Marek's? that would explain why the others aren't getting sick. The bird came from a breeder w/stellar rep. I'm still going to find out if this bird was vaccinated, because the symptoms fit. She's due to start laying and that's often when it hits & the symptoms are in accordance.

Thanks,
Meredith

Look, listen to Casportpony. If it is Marek's, it's already too late so let's not go there right now. Follow Casportpony's instructions and this bird may make it through. If you can't tube, take a poultry vitamin, mix it and place drops of it on her beak or in it. Either way she needs help and she needs it now. Without the tube it's going to be time consumming and drawn out but it an be done. Experience talking.