Peafowl Poop - Normal and Abnormal - Lots of poop pictures

[casportpony]

Normal from @zazouse

Merry Christmas

-Kathy

 

[Bovee]

Thanks for this thread that empowered me to save 7 of my 9 birds. Blackhead followed by Coccidiosis!

I have had peacocks for about 10 years now. The first pair was given to me by an older couple that was quitting. My first male lost a battle with a Muscovy drake and was replaced. The original hen would lay and sit in pen and hatched 6 chicks through the years. I have had one male show up (no kidding) and purchased one hen.
I have made many mistakes: Three of the first four chicks were consumed by a snake that went through the chicken wire. I didn't find out about wormer until the hen purchase a couple of years ago - Then I was told Wazine once a month was sufficient. I built one pen in the woods - because I thought the cover would be nice. This wet year had me using this site for novice diagnosing of some very sick birds.

Thank goodness for these poop pictures because I was able to identify Blackhead poop and obtain Emtryl.
One month later I need to return to diagnose coccidiosis poop and obtain Corid.

Here's my story if you are a novice and need timelines and hope.

In March I separated my flock to give the low-in-pecking-order birds some relief and protect hens through laying season. The low order birds were in a pen in the woods. In early July I noticed some strange looking poop in my woods pen. Later in that month my 1-yr-old birds in that pen were listless, fluffed up, sleepy looking and not interested in food. We have no vet that will treat birds in our area so I started my online research. I learned my worming program (Wazine) was no enough and so initiated parasite treatment with Safe-Guard. The young birds didn't seem to be getting better so I added a erythromycin. Then I found the poop thread and discovered my strange poop - that mustard yellow slime - was indicative of blackhead. I, thank goodness, found Emtryl online but it did not arrive in time to save the first two birds.They stopped going to the perch at night and were dead within 48 hrs.

When their mother got sick a few days later - I was ready. She was so weak I caged her and administered medicine directly with a small syringe (no needle) to squirt the dose in her mouth. I had trouble determining the direct dose of Emtryl because the descriptions I found mixed it with a gallon of water and container describes dosing is for pigeons (a considerably smaller body mass). I ended up finding a very official link somewhere in BYC that recommended a mg dosing. I got a scale and determined the individual dose was roughly the size of 1.5 pencil erasers (on the end of a wooden pencil). [I don't recommend anyone approach this problem in this way IF they can find vet assistance. I took the gamble because I knew I was going to lose her if I didn't.] Each day for 5 days she got Emtryl and wormer via syringe in the mouth (again - thanks BYC for showing me side of the mouth). Then huzzah she began to peck and eat.

There was a peacock in the same pen so I began to dose him too. He wasn't catchable so I cut cores out of blueberries and loaded the meds in those. I'm telling you this part because one day I thought I would fix some loaded blueberries for her too. He got his head into her cage and ate some before I could stop him and proceeded to look drunk for the rest of the day. Turns out - no surprise - Emtryl is toxic and can kill a bird if the dosing isn't right. If you have crossed the line only a little - they will have trouble with balance. So you see - be extra careful and responsible about dosing.

So for a few weeks, I was so grateful for my saved birds. Then, due to extended travel from death in family - I had to put all the hens in one pen for pet sitter to tend. About a week after we were home, one of the previously uncontaminated birds looked sickly. I frantically began searching for poo samples in the pen and found something totally new - dark diarrhea a little green and a little yellow, some with bloody chunks. I started the pen dosing of Emtryl in water (because I found comments in here that I should have treated for 10-14 days) but didn't see improvement and the poo got greener and one sample each day (over 3 successive days) looked like it had cranberries. These 'berries' had a tissue consistency rather than berry feel. Thanks to poo picks I determined - coccidiosis. Ran right to the feed store, knew to get Corid, knew the acute dose. Started a new round of Safe-Guard for 4 days (it had been a month), continued the Emtryl (at maintenance dose of 1.5 teaspoons/gallon - goal 14 days) and added the Corid 2 teaspoon/gallon dose in drinking water for the pen. Five days into this process - my sickest bird is improving and pecking at food again, most stools are nice and no blood in the lose ones. Today I drop back to maintenance dose on Corid.

So thank you all. And to newbies without vet assistance - you can save a bird that has already started stumbling. But you need to make sure you have meds in your supply cabinet. Use this site to guide your worming program and to help you with diagnoses. Healthy peacocks are a joy that can't be measured!

 

[casportpony]

All Abnormal - All birds still alive and most recovered with metronidaloze and fenbendazole, but a few needed Baytril, too.
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[Garden Peas]

Is there some way to give this whole thread an ovation? I think it is incredibly helpful and it's going to be an extremely helpful reference for us when folks write in about "my bird is sick and I don't know why."

Great job, to everyone who's putting up their photos

 

[KsKingBee]

They all have normal poo today.

I would still give them the meds to make sure they do not bring in something you don't want shared with your flock.

 

[mandyok]

Just an update she is doing really well this morning eating bread and peanuts and a little grain. I did not tube her this morning because of this I am keeping her in the pen for a few more days to be sure. I think I would have woke up this morning to a dead bird if I had not had Kathy's help to tube feed her. I will continue to give her the safegaurd and corrid water.

 

[new 2 pfowl]

@pipAchick ...when you get ready to ask questions, I suggest you start a new thread...so the peapeople don't think you are just asking about poop!

 

[skylezmom]

What did his poops look like before treatment?

Poops varied from just a small chalky splat to thick and, "egg yolky". Today he actually had some real feces (normal green) mixed with white, very small amounts but then he hasn't really eaten for 2 days prior to this. I've been giving him fluids by mouth until today, to keep him hydrated, as it's been hot and he wasn't taking in much, if any, on his own.

 

[KsKingBee]

When they start showing signs of getting better is when I worry the most.

 

[KsKingBee]

Not normal, round worms.