Severely injured juvenile Snow Goose

[Miss Lydia]

I can't imagine she could sustain health on nothing but greens[romaine] maybe you can find a small bag of Mazuri on sale and try her with it. She needs a lot of good calories to get that bone mended.

 

[Lelilamom]

I can't imagine she could sustain health on nothing but greens[romaine] maybe you can find a small bag of Mazuri on sale and try her with it. She needs a lot of good calories to get that bone mended.

I'm skittish of giving her manmade food. She wouldn't be getting Mazuri or any other feed in the wild. I tried giving her cracked corn and she wouldn't touch it. If she does eat the feed she might not go back to eating greens. I'm afraid I've already ruined things by giving her lettuce.

 

[nminusyplusm]

I think the advice you're getting on giving her Mazuri is great. There's no way you'll be able to give her what she'd eat in the wild and she needs nutrition and calories to heal.

 

[Iain Utah]

Happy to share info. I had a gander that received a lot of extra vet care, including breaking his leg to correct deformities, in addition to my scovy girl who was injured, so I know that while they start to attempt weight and will look better in a couple of weeks (especially true with wild birds), it really takes a month to "soft set."

Mazuri is what she would be fed at the vet clinic and/or rescue/rehab group. I've seen lots of wild birds rehabbed at my local rescue on manmade food (waterfowl get mazuri) and no issues with release. I fed the wild magpie mazuri and cooked eggs when kenneled, and he released just fine.

It is important she get good nutrition for healing quicker. Plus, since mazuri floats in water, you can toss the kibble onto her water dish, which will encourage her to eat.

 

[Sunshine Flock]

I was going to suggest adding water to make a mash.

And try varying the greens. Dandelion or mustard greens and cilantro, which has some medicinal properties.

And if you have a health food store nearby and don't mind a little extra expense, Arnica and Symphonium homeopathic remedies could help significantly with the healing process. They're maybe $10 for a 100-pellet vial, so you'll have some leftover to add to your emergency kit for your chickens.

Put a couple pellets in a small round bowl and she may take them herself.

 

[Lelilamom]

Merry Christmas everyone. A small update this morning. I noticed a day or so ago that the foot on the injured leg was looking a bit swollen and this morning it looked quite swollen. We took off the bandage and the leg is healed very nicely. We re-wrapped the leg without gauze and not so tightly and started therapy on the ankle, bending slowly and very slightly encouraging blood flow.

Should I let her swim in the tub? She's not keen on human contact and I'm afraid in an open space like the bathroom she'll fly around and get injured.

 

[Ravynscroft]

Merry Christmas everyone. A small update this morning. I noticed a day or so ago that the foot on the injured leg was looking a bit swollen and this morning it looked quite swollen. We took off the bandage and the leg is healed very nicely. We re-wrapped the leg without gauze and not so tightly and started therapy on the ankle, bending slowly and very slightly encouraging blood flow.

Should I let her swim in the tub? She's not keen on human contact and I'm afraid in an open space like the bathroom she'll fly around and get injured.

I would wait on tub time until she is more healed, jmo...

 

[Lelilamom]

Hello All. Our goose is just not eating. With several feed stores within a 50 mile radius, none sell Mazuri feeds, except one and only Alpaca, which they stock for the no less than 22 Alpaca farms in the area. Who knew?
Our local feed store suggested a mash that they make and add warm water to make a thin gruel. I did and she won't touch it. She hasn't eaten anything in 2 days and I'm getting worried she isn't going to survive due to lack of nutrition. I'm sure if I tube feed her it'll do more harm than good.

 

[Ravynscroft]

Hello All. Our goose is just not eating. With several feed stores within a 50 mile radius, none sell Mazuri feeds, except one and only Alpaca, which they stock for the no less than 22 Alpaca farms in the area. Who knew?
Our local feed store suggested a mash that they make and add warm water to make a thin gruel. I did and she won't touch it. She hasn't eaten anything in 2 days and I'm getting worried she isn't going to survive due to lack of nutrition. I'm sure if I tube feed her it'll do more harm than good.

Maybe try some floating catfish/koi pellets? It's a bit higher protein than gamebird feed, but floats and has fish meal in it... see if anyone near you stocks that and try a handful in her water bowl...

 

[Lelilamom]

Happy New Year Friends! I've continued to make calls and finally found a veterinarian who also cares for migratory birds. She works are several clinics and I dropped off our goose today. The vet promised to take good care of her and rehab her to be returned to the wild. Hopefully a happy ending. I just hope she doesn't send me a bill!