Need help.. Sick & lethargic

[Yoda]

Thanks for the reply. We have a 2nd sick bird. Not as sick, but walked into the pen this am and observed him laying down, slow to rise, and not wanting to get out and about. I grabbed him, stood him up, and he stood, but his wings were droopy, and he was lethargic. We grabbed him up and started him on electrolytes and put in some Tetracycaline with the water. His droppings were normal, and have become a little runny after the electrolytes.

We've noticed that the birds that we get from reputable breeders don't have the problems that these guys do. Is there a good inoculation drug that we can give them sorta like what they get shipped with? They're approximately 6mos old.

We are quite good at giving horses shots, but no idea about how to give a bird a shot. I'm going to check YouTube to see if I can get started there, and any input on your part would be appreciated. What antibiotic would you recommend?

To treat for blackhead go to a fish store or aquarium and by fishzole. give 3 tablets to a gallon of water. Let all your peas drink it. You should start seeing results within 3 days, 5 days tops. If not then treat for coccidia which id Corid powder and it would be one teaspoon per gallon for the same 3-5 days
I do not weigh my birds. I mix the above and if they do not drink when I dip the beak into the water mixture I will use an eye dropper and slowly let the water mixture into the mouth. If your bird is sick the more stressed the faster it will go downhill. I do not shove things down the throat, by them slowly drinking it I know they are swallowing the meds.

 

[PeaDaddy]

So....

Wow what a tough couple of days. I carefully watched the other 2 today and when they balked at eating this afternoon, I went to pick up the Metronidozol. When I got home, they were nestled closely to the heat lamp we have outside (it's 25 minutes each way into town).

They have since had a dosage of both the Metro, and the Baytril. They're inside the house on a heating pad and covered in towels, which they have remained under.

I have a small problem... It sounds as though I got some down the wrong pipe. Is this cause for alarm, or other medications?

I'm not going to weigh them tonight, but I'll post weights tomorrow.

We're doing everything we can to keep these guys alive, and it's frustrating to lose 2, and face the prospect of losing the other two.

Is there ANYTHING I should be doing that I'm not?

 

[new 2 pfowl]

Some tips for your next round of oral dosing (from Craig Hopkins again):
http://www.peafowl.org/ARTICLES/24/

Best of luck with these guys, it seems as though you are doing all you can.

 

[Yoda]

When I got some down the wrong one (which is why I do not put things down the throat anymore) I held the bird by the feet and let it hang (other hand against it's chest), the water came out cause the bird is upside down.
I never mix meds. Baytril is an antibiotic and will do nothing for blackhead or coccidia so why are you dosing with it? I use it when the bird has a respiratory infection or a cut.

 

[casportpony]

So....


Wow what a tough couple of days. I carefully watched the other 2 today and when they balked at eating this afternoon, I went to pick up the Metronidozol. When I got home, they were nestled closely to the heat lamp we have outside (it's 25 minutes each way into town).


They have since had a dosage of both the Metro, and the Baytril. They're inside the house on a heating pad and covered in towels, which they have remained under.


I have a small problem... It sounds as though I got some down the wrong pipe. Is this cause for alarm, or other medications?  


I'm not going to weigh them tonight, but I'll post weights tomorrow. 


We're doing everything we can to keep these guys alive, and it's frustrating to lose 2, and face the prospect of losing the other two. 


Is there ANYTHING I should be doing that I'm not? 

If they aspirated, at least it was antibiotics, not food. You'll probably want to ask your vet what to do if they have lost weight. Mine told me to tube feed, which I'm quite comfortable doing, and she showed me how to give sub-q fluids, but that took a few times to get it right.

 

[casportpony]

When I got some down the wrong one (which is why I do not put things down the throat anymore) I held the bird by the feet and let it hang (other hand against it's chest), the water came out cause the bird is upside down.
I never mix meds. Baytril is an antibiotic and will do nothing for blackhead or coccidia so why are you dosing with it? I use it when the bird has a respiratory infection or a cut.

The *only* antibiotic that works for blackhead is metronidazole. Baytril is often prescribed with it to target bacteria that aren't sensitive to metronidazole.

 

[PeaDaddy]

Baytril is an antibiotic and will do nothing for blackhead or coccidia so why are you dosing with it? I use it when the bird has a respiratory infection or a cut.

Good question. A couple of reasons....

1. The vet prescribed Baytril last night, and the Metro was the "last resort". The bird died last night hours after being injected with the Baytril (sub-q), so the results of the Baytril was inconclusive. After reading here, I was convinced that if I don't try the Metro, that I've got a better than high chance of having two more dead birds.

2. When we treat horses, we take a "rule nothing out" approach, and treat for everything. I know that these aren't horses, but until we have an idea of what is making these birds sick, my judgement says to approach this from a "rule nothing out" POV.

 

[PeaDaddy]

If they aspirated, at least it was antibiotics, not food. You'll probably want to ask your vet what to do if they have lost weight. Mine told me to tube feed, which I'm quite comfortable doing, and she showed me how to give sub-q fluids, but that took a few times to get it right.

We're meeting Friday (tomorrow) to talk about the necropsy. We talked briefly about tube feeding them during our meeting yesterday, and I think we can do a live specimen demo, which is always better than trying it on our own.

 

[casportpony]

As a horse person, have you heard the term "foals fade fast"? It's the same with young peafowl and blackhead.

 

[casportpony]

Since you are considering tube feeding read this thread, it might be helpful. https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...cken-and-give-subcutaneous-fluid#post_9910754