So one of my peas hurt his leg a couple weeks ago (about 2.5 weeks now). I took him in to a vet, who was a bird vet but had only seen one pea before. She said it was almost certainly not broken (which I agree with) but the ankle joint was really swollen (like I couldn't close my fist around it type swollen). She prescribe an anti-inflammatory, amoxicillan, and baytril. He was on the three for a week, but it didn't improve at all. I decided to go ahead and lance the swelling, and clear fluid practically poured out. I took all of that information to the vet techs where I work, and they said to continue draining it and put a hot compress on it when I could. I went back to my vet, and she prescribed another week of metacam and amoxicillan (I asked to drop the baytril since the fluid was clear, indicating irritation not infection).
However, this week the fluid has started to turn yellow and viscous (thought there's far less of it now). The swelling has gone down some (more like walnut sized than fist sized), and he is "pretending" to use the leg rather than keep it up completely (he's putting it down and leaning like he will put weight on it, then he just hops with the other leg... it's very strange), but I'm worried there may be something else going on. I have never seen a slipped tendon before so I don't know what to look for, or whether that would cause this fluid. It's possible he chipped a bone and there's a tiny fragment irritating the joint, but I would have to get an xray to confirm that and I'd rather not if there's someone here who can give advice having had something similar. I'm also ok with just continuing to drain and compress and see if the swelling goes down over the next week like it has been.
He's still eating and drinking fine, taking treats if I offer them (he actually just eats the amoxicillan pills like they are a treat too). He hops around my room, has taken a few flights to the top of my snake's tank, and yesterday expressed his distress about the robin on my neighbor's roof by screaming and honking at it for half an hour until I banished him to the closet. So I am pretty sure he is FEELING ok, aside from the leg.
However, this week the fluid has started to turn yellow and viscous (thought there's far less of it now). The swelling has gone down some (more like walnut sized than fist sized), and he is "pretending" to use the leg rather than keep it up completely (he's putting it down and leaning like he will put weight on it, then he just hops with the other leg... it's very strange), but I'm worried there may be something else going on. I have never seen a slipped tendon before so I don't know what to look for, or whether that would cause this fluid. It's possible he chipped a bone and there's a tiny fragment irritating the joint, but I would have to get an xray to confirm that and I'd rather not if there's someone here who can give advice having had something similar. I'm also ok with just continuing to drain and compress and see if the swelling goes down over the next week like it has been.
He's still eating and drinking fine, taking treats if I offer them (he actually just eats the amoxicillan pills like they are a treat too). He hops around my room, has taken a few flights to the top of my snake's tank, and yesterday expressed his distress about the robin on my neighbor's roof by screaming and honking at it for half an hour until I banished him to the closet. So I am pretty sure he is FEELING ok, aside from the leg.
