Spirit - the amazing grey dewlap toulouse gander!

[Iain Utah]

I think it looks better, but I'll let you know what Scott thinks after his visit.

 

[servpolice]

On this day of giving thanks, I would like to pay tribute to my young grey dewlap toulouse, Spirit, who has enriched my life so much since he hatched on May 12[SUP]th[/SUP]. The past spring, I purchased hatching eggs from a random ebay seller with Holderread show stock. The eggs were scrambled in the mail and none should have developed. But Pete55 taught me how to nurse troubled eggs while incubating and with Spirit’s strong fight to live, he made it to lockdown. At lockdown, when candling, there was an obvious leg positioning problem, but Spirit internally & externally pipped unassisted in proper position. Then, when it came time to zip, it became obvious Spirit could not rotate, so I assisted. When he popped out, his right leg was rotated and both feet were curled in fists. Yet, from the first instant he looked at me, I knew he had the determination to survive against all odds. I named him Spirit after the Disney horse, because it suited him perfectly. The next day, I raced him to the local vet and was told to wait and see if it resolves. Spirit could not stay upright and would roll onto back, so I stayed with him constantly, making sure he was ok. Most people would have euthanized him, but he had this amazing will to live despite his deformities. I had to help give him a chance at life if I could. So, for 5 weeks I took him weekly to the vet and otherwise did what I could to assist him along. He was making good progress, learning how to use his deformed limbs. Then, he started to fail and the vet told me to euthanize. Not willing to give up, I then went to a specialist vet…Dr. Scott Echols… who told me he could help. He began by stretching tendons on club foot, as well as transitioning him to live outside in a portable pen so he could always been in deep grass. Spirit began to flourish under Dr. Echols’ care. Dr. Echols advised me that we would likely need to correct his bone structure, but could not perform that procedure until he finished growing. We moved happily into fall and Spirit finished growing. But, with the dying off of the summer grass, he became less mobile on his deformed legs. So, on Tuesday, November 6th, Dr. Echols performed cutting edge corrective orthopedic surgery on Spirit’s right leg. Within 24 hours, Spirit was standing. Within a few days, Spirit began taking his first steps. As of yesterday, Spirit is again enjoying afternoons outside and getting stronger on his new leg every day. The process will be long and tough for Spirit. Dr. Echols anticipates it taking another 10-12 weeks to get all the hardware out of Spirit’s leg and for him to resume living full-time with the rest of the flock. But, the prognosis is good so far. Spirit has taught me that no obstacles are too great to overcome with determination, patience and a positive attitude. I look forward to seeing him running around outside on two good legs in the spring, making babies and being a happy gander. And I am thankful for his unconditional love and complete trust. He is an inspiration to me.

i only read it now and that baby is very lucky to have some one like you good job i mean it I once had a duckling with the same foot problem and i didnt do anything to it and 3 years later it got so bad the foot curled and she couldent walk anymore so i had to eat her :'(

 

[Miss Lydia]

I think it looks better, but I'll let you know what Scott thinks after his visit.

Maybe you can tell us what all you have been doing to treat him, since I know there have been a few lately who's geese had bumble.

 

[Iain Utah]

Scott just left after having a wonderful visit. He said Spirit looked really good and his joints felt great. The bumblefoot is completely cleared up on his one foot and the other foot is well on its way toward healing, is not painful to Spirit, and Scott expects it to resolve on its own. He said Spirit is overweight, even with his restricted diet, but with winter setting in, we hope that he will burn up the excess fat on his own without changing his diet.

Bumblefoot treatment program per Scott: 15 days of 1-2x daily 10-15 minute betadine diluted soaks (diluted to color of light tea), daily 2cc metacam, slowly tapered off after 10 days, and daily 1/2 caplet fish oil to be continued forever. He also had me move Spirit's pen to deeper softer grass section in my yard to eliminate all hardpack surfaces. That's it. It was very simple with rather remarkable results.

 

[SummerChick]

What a beautiful gander! Brought tears to my eyes! He had a great spirit and so do you! Thanks for sharing this. More pics when he's up to it... Give him a hug for me please.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Scott just left after having a wonderful visit. He said Spirit looked really good and his joints felt great. The bumblefoot is completely cleared up on his one foot and the other foot is well on its way toward healing, is not painful to Spirit, and Scott expects it to resolve on its own. He said Spirit is overweight, even with his restricted diet, but with winter setting in, we hope that he will burn up the excess fat on his own without changing his diet.

Bumblefoot treatment program per Scott: 15 days of 1-2x daily 10-15 minute betadine diluted soaks (diluted to color of light tea), daily 2cc metacam, slowly tapered off after 10 days, and daily 1/2 caplet fish oil to be continued forever. He also had me move Spirit's pen to deeper softer grass section in my yard to eliminate all hardpack surfaces. That's it. It was very simple with rather remarkable results.

So happy to hear he is doing so well and bumbles about gone!! He may need the extra chubbiness going into winter. I have been giving Ernie some Glucosamine Chondroitin & MSM haven't got the fish oil yet.

 

[Iain Utah]

Thank you Serv & Summer. I am glad you both enjoyed reading about Spirit's journey.

Thanks Patti! By the way, I would recommend adding fish oil to Ernie's diet as I think he would benefit from it. It is a wonderful supplement.

 

[servpolice]

I dont like winter in ireland for my geese becoz it rains and freezes at the same time non stop and the ground gets soggy .i want winter to pass and start breeding season

Bumble foot when young in waterfowl is extreme but when the goose is old and gets bumble it rarely curls ,instead it becomes fat and swollen and they start limping ive a few geese that had bumble and it got away and the goslings here that get bumble suffer ,cant walk ,turn skinny and die so Utah your little gosyis lucky to have you as a mum :-D

 

[Iain Utah]

Very sweet of you to say, Serv. I dealt with bumblefoot quite a bit last year when I rescued a big group of geese from a breeding mill. Some took months to heal, but luckily all eventually recovered without any invasive action. Patience, diligent wound cleaning, and soft damp grass were the keys to successful treatment.

I bet winter in Ireland is pretty gloomy like Seattle, with super short days. But at least you do not get massive amounts of snow or extreme cold temps, which are no fun for animals or their humans. Then, when it gets to where you can't take the cold/snow any more, breeding season starts up! Uh oh, I'm already looking forward to next July, when breeding season is over and the weather is warm again.

 

[psue]

J just got caught up here. Spirit is looking great

. Sorry to hear about Ember

. Hope we all have a great hatching season.