Need help/advice for goose not eating and wobbly

[Miss Lydia]

What a long morning. I overslept and rushed to get the birds out of the house and onto doctors and Petsmart. I got the Kaytee Exact baby bird formula as pictured on the tube feeding thread. Also picked up some of the silicone airline tubing I saw on needlessjunk's thread because it looked a bit more flexible and softer. I think I'm ready to do this when hubby finally gets home from work.

The minute I got home I started cleaning out the birds house in hopes to find that S hook (plus it was due to be cleaned anyway). Even ran the magnet over again afterwards. No luck. Meanwhile... Diamond is firmly tapping her bill at the confinement area door and yelling and honking loudly at me saying (if she could actually formulate words) "let me the H.E. double toothpicks out of here, NOW! I finally opened the door and she rushed past me into the main part of the house. I reached to grab a flake of straw and low and behold there is the S hook. It was in with Diamond the whole time (couldn't have been in a safer place all considering, LOL). I AM SO RELIEVED it has been found

.

I scrubbed out her waterer and gave her some fresh Corid mixture with warm water which she seems to like. She is back to drinking quite a bit again. I also got a weight on her and she is a wee bit over 4 lbs. I know she has lost weight but I don't know what a healthy 6 mo. old goose should weigh and there is no possibility to catch Blackfoot for comparison (I tried). But Diamond has always been visually larger than Blackfoot even though they are exactly the same age. They were both one day old when they arrived.

And while she is still not eating (It's day 11 now) she is still feisty, lively, perky, and talkative. She is also getting very comfortable with me handling her. Her poops are back to runny/clear/watery and I am looking forward to trying to get some food into her. I do fear for her lack of nutrition. I cannot believe how hardy she is - she's one tough bird.

That's all for now. More to come later when I have more news.

Wow awesome you found it that is a big relief!! Sure hope the tube feeding gets her appetite back .

 

[Free Spirit]

Update:

First try at tube feeding just some warm water. SUCCESS !! It took some gentle encouragement to keep her still as she has a very long wiggly neck with pretty strong neck muscles. But she was a very good girl. Once I got the tube in her she held pretty still for the feeding.

She'll get another dose of warm water in a while then a little baby bird formula before bed. So two more feedings to go tonight. Let's hope it goes just as well or easier the next time(s) around

.

Thank you all for the encouragement I needed to attempt this.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Update:

First try at tube feeding just some warm water. SUCCESS !! It took some gentle encouragement to keep her still as she has a very long wiggly neck with pretty strong neck muscles. But she was a very good girl. Once I got the tube in her she held pretty still for the feeding.

She'll get another dose of warm water in a while then a little baby bird formula before bed. So two more feedings to go tonight. Let's hope it goes just as well or easier the next time(s) around

.

Thank you all for the encouragement I needed to attempt this.

Awesome report you are doing great.

 

[Free Spirit]

Second round with just warm water again went very well. Will be doing another round in a couple of hours with the baby bird formula. She doesn't like the tube (who would, right?) but she is taking it like a true champ.

 

[Free Spirit]

Round three with the baby bird formula has just been given. We finally got a little bit of food in her

. This was only a 30ml dose. Since she hasn't eaten in so long the approach is to build it up gradually and give her body a chance to readjust to having food in her system again.

I still get a bit nervous every time I go out to tube her. It really isn't so bad. If anyone thinks they can't do this - they can. A great coach makes a big difference - Thank you Kathy !!

My advise to anyone needing to tube feed - Just get really familiar with the procedure before attempting. It's a great confidence builder and avoids any mistakes. If I can do it with a long neck goose - you can do it with a duck or chicken.

Now keep in mind that Diamond is starting to show signs of malnutrition so she is still not out of the woods. It has been over a week and a half since she has eaten. We are still in danger. But she appears strong willed so I still have hope we can pull her through.

 

[casportpony]

Thanks for the update!

-Kathy

 

[Free Spirit]

Day 12 Update:

It's Thursday 5:30am. Got 40ml of baby food tubed in her before hubby leaves for work. She also got a daily dose of wormer first. She really doesn't like getting tubed but she is being a very good girl and it gets easier every time we do it. Will update when I have more news.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Day 12 Update:

It's Thursday 5:30am. Got 40ml of baby food tubed in her before hubby leaves for work. She also got a daily dose of wormer first. She really doesn't like getting tubed but she is being a very good girl and it gets easier every time we do it. Will update when I have more news.

Awesome your doing a great job and hopefully Diamond will show great improvement because of it. Thanks for update!!

 

[Allears]

Day 12 Update:

It's Thursday 5:30am. Got 40ml of baby food tubed in her before hubby leaves for work. She also got a daily dose of wormer first. She really doesn't like getting tubed but she is being a very good girl and it gets easier every time we do it. Will update when I have more news.

Hoping to hear good news soon and hope that you are also feeling stronger

 

[Free Spirit]

Afternoon (still day 12) update:

It's currently 4:40 pm and another long day and a bit of a scare.

When we went and did the 5:30 am tube feeding with wormer added it was very dark outside and she was just laying down quietly. She was easy to pick up hold and all went smoothly. When I checked on her about an hour later she was still in the same spot. She couldn't get up and was trying to scoot with wings at full extension. I gently picked her up and set her on her feet and she waddled away from me. Apparently she can walk but lacked the strength to lift herself. I know it's malnutrition from not eating and at this point she had only been tubed with a small amount twice.

I had some errands (yet again but last one for at least two weeks) to run and didn't get back home until 11:30 am. I only had a few hours left on the 5 day Corid treatment so I went ahead and changed it out and replaced it with electrolytes and probiotics water. Then I gave her a warm bath water with some Nutri-Drench added to it. I had no one to help me with the next feeding, so around noon I made an attempt to do it by myself - Success ! Shortly after the feeding she pooped and it was lime neon green and some that was pea soup green that looked like colored baby bird formula. So the formula is getting through but it is definitely malnutrition and a possible (but unconfirmed) bacterial infection.

After the noon feeding she is able to get up and down and in and out of her bath water. I'm hoping that it is a sign that the feeding is helping

. But since every day seems to be something different, better, or worse it's still a wait and see.

There will be four additional days of worming and tube feeding every 4 hours or so while gradually increasing the amount of feed given (currently at 45ml per tubing). We want to get her nutrition quickly but avoid shocking the system. This is going to be a delicate dance.

As long as she is perky, walking, and talking there is still hope. She'll get one more feeding later tonight just before bed.