Hi everyone! Heads up--- Completely impractical chicken keeper here 
It has been ages since I have been on BYC. I practically lived here when I first started keeping hens.
So, I have a situation with my favorite girl. Her name is Gerti, and she has a beak deformity. She is a little over four years old and I have been dropper feeding her twice daily since she was a few weeks old. Needless to say, with that much interaction we are very bonded. She's my little buddy and I am absolutely crazy about her.
She started acting puffy and having diarrhea a month ago. I took her to our avian vet and we did a fecal and a full blood panel. Her liver enzymes were very elevated, so the vet prescribed an antibiotic (cipro) and milk thistle for liver support. His thinking was that if it was just an infection the antibiotic would clear it up. We scheduled a recheck for a month later, which was yesterday, After the meds she no longer has diarrhea, and seems to be feeling a bit better and has put on weight. We did blood work again yesterday and her liver enzymes were the same. He is now thinking we are looking at a chronic liver condition, such as hepatitis, fatty liver or even a liver tumor. He wants to put her under general anesthesia, do an endoscopy and biopsy her liver to figure out exactly what we are dealing with.
So....I am trying to decide what to do. I am VERY wary of putting her under anesthesia. As far as I know, birds are super sensitive to anesthesia to begin with, add to that a liver issue and my feeling is that it is very risky, I lost a cat who had fatty liver syndrome coming out of anesthesia from a procedure that was supposed to save her life, so I have a bad taste in my mouth about anesthesia and liver conditions. Add to that a birds sensitivity to anesthetics and the fact that she has been breathing heavy and panting today, and I am very concerned about putting her under.
My question is.....is there anyone else out there who is an impractical enough chicken keeper to have gone through something similar? And if so, what did you find out and what was the result? I am awaiting a response from our vet, who I emailed a list of questions today. They are a very reputable avian and exotic animal vet clinic, so I know he has a good handle on treating birds.But I am not confidant.
Some back up information in case there is someone who has experience in this and has questions: She is underweight, so this is not an obesity issue. She gets organic layer feed mixed with kaytee exact handfeeding formula for baby birds and water via a dropper twice daily (I do not tube feed her because I was concerned about her aspirating, which I understand is an increased risk). She occasionally gets greek yogurt and OACV. Her comb is bright pink. I have noticed that since the weather got cooler this year she has not been drinking much water. She is able to drink on her own, although she gets quite wet in the process....I'm wondering if maybe that had compounded whatever the issue is. I do give her water daily while I am dropper feeding her, and since she has been ill I have been trying to give her additional water daily when I am not at work. The heaving breathing has just come up today, and is adding to my concerns...although it really confuses me that her comb still looks good. She is pooping normally, although food is staying in her crop for longer than usual.
I'd love to hear your thoughts/experiences and suggestions if there is anyone who has gone through this or something similar. Gerti is very special to me. I love her to bits and I want to do right by her.
Thank you! Here is a picture of us <3
It has been ages since I have been on BYC. I practically lived here when I first started keeping hens.
So, I have a situation with my favorite girl. Her name is Gerti, and she has a beak deformity. She is a little over four years old and I have been dropper feeding her twice daily since she was a few weeks old. Needless to say, with that much interaction we are very bonded. She's my little buddy and I am absolutely crazy about her.
She started acting puffy and having diarrhea a month ago. I took her to our avian vet and we did a fecal and a full blood panel. Her liver enzymes were very elevated, so the vet prescribed an antibiotic (cipro) and milk thistle for liver support. His thinking was that if it was just an infection the antibiotic would clear it up. We scheduled a recheck for a month later, which was yesterday, After the meds she no longer has diarrhea, and seems to be feeling a bit better and has put on weight. We did blood work again yesterday and her liver enzymes were the same. He is now thinking we are looking at a chronic liver condition, such as hepatitis, fatty liver or even a liver tumor. He wants to put her under general anesthesia, do an endoscopy and biopsy her liver to figure out exactly what we are dealing with.
So....I am trying to decide what to do. I am VERY wary of putting her under anesthesia. As far as I know, birds are super sensitive to anesthesia to begin with, add to that a liver issue and my feeling is that it is very risky, I lost a cat who had fatty liver syndrome coming out of anesthesia from a procedure that was supposed to save her life, so I have a bad taste in my mouth about anesthesia and liver conditions. Add to that a birds sensitivity to anesthetics and the fact that she has been breathing heavy and panting today, and I am very concerned about putting her under.
My question is.....is there anyone else out there who is an impractical enough chicken keeper to have gone through something similar? And if so, what did you find out and what was the result? I am awaiting a response from our vet, who I emailed a list of questions today. They are a very reputable avian and exotic animal vet clinic, so I know he has a good handle on treating birds.But I am not confidant.
Some back up information in case there is someone who has experience in this and has questions: She is underweight, so this is not an obesity issue. She gets organic layer feed mixed with kaytee exact handfeeding formula for baby birds and water via a dropper twice daily (I do not tube feed her because I was concerned about her aspirating, which I understand is an increased risk). She occasionally gets greek yogurt and OACV. Her comb is bright pink. I have noticed that since the weather got cooler this year she has not been drinking much water. She is able to drink on her own, although she gets quite wet in the process....I'm wondering if maybe that had compounded whatever the issue is. I do give her water daily while I am dropper feeding her, and since she has been ill I have been trying to give her additional water daily when I am not at work. The heaving breathing has just come up today, and is adding to my concerns...although it really confuses me that her comb still looks good. She is pooping normally, although food is staying in her crop for longer than usual.
I'd love to hear your thoughts/experiences and suggestions if there is anyone who has gone through this or something similar. Gerti is very special to me. I love her to bits and I want to do right by her.
Thank you! Here is a picture of us <3
