Help!

My granddaughter's Turquoise Conure got his foot tangled in a thread from one of his toys and it swelled up. She got him to an emergency vet who said he doesn't usually treat birds, but saw them, and ordered antibiotics for the bird after removing the string from around his foot, and removing his band, too. She said the antibiotics expired shortly after the time she was to give them to Carswell, and now 2 of his toes are very swollen and the 3rd in almost shriveled and he won't let her touch his foot. She said there are no avian vets where she lives (I understand that as there are none where we live, either). She's beside herself. She called me for help, but I don't know what to do either. She lives near Tacoma, Wa. The ER vet she went to is 1.5 hrs away. She's pregnant and due in about 6 wks, and her husband, in the Army, is away on maneuvers. She said she could bring him to me, but I'm south of Eugene, so it's also a very long drive away. I'm not sure what I'm asking...maybe there is someone from that area that knows what to do??? Or knows of an avian there that no one else seems to know about??? She said she's called several vets but they can't help, and when they'd made a suggestion of an avian, she's called to find there is none there.
She said she tried calling a rescue center, but they were of no help. She's afraid he will either lose his leg, or worse, get gangrene and die.

Dr. Sharla Ansorge in Port Orchard. Sorry that’s the closest one I know of but she’s great! Don’t think they do after hours emergency though...

Kitsap Veterinary Hospital

3036 Bethel Rd. SE
Port Orchard, WA98366
T: 360-876-2021

Hello Genie51,

I'm so sorry to read this. I'm not sure there is anything else to do. The Vet did remove the thread and his band.
I would call up the Vet and tell them the antibiotics expired and get a new prescription.

Can you post pictures?
Also, please share with us the toy that caused the injury.

Good Luck & please keep us posted.

Oh I'm so sorry, what an aweful situation. The shriveled toe lost circulation for to long from the string, it's a dead toe at this point. It will likely fall off.......I sadly had this happen to my budgie when my GCC bit it mostly off... Ugh...
Your bird will be fine without the toe...
But the other swelling is likely infection, and a good certified avain vet visit is going to be a must. I think you should wait to handle till regular office hours, and hopefully some one can drive the bird there.
You can add a few drops of dilute betadine to warm water so it's a very light tea color and soak paper towel or wash cloth in it and hold very gentle to the foot or see if the bird will stand on the soaked towel. Or gentle poor it over the foot. Betadine cleans the sound and warm water helps it feel better and improved blood supply to the area. Betadine stains terrible so be careful of clothes furniture. But it's ok to wait till office hours tomorrow to let a certified avain vet specialist treat, one who onkybsees birds... The vet my elect to cut the toe off or depending let it happen on its own... I'm so sorry. If it's comforting to you at all I did have to go through this, and my bird is fine now ...

You could check CBEAM in Bothell Bothell Animal Hospital | The Center for Bird and Exotic Animal Medicine. I don’t think it’s terribly far from Tacoma, they have a certified avian vet on staff and they have an after hours emergency phone number listed. I have taken my birds there during regular hours to see their avian vet and had a good experience, but can’t speak for their emergency service.

Thank you all for your wonderful help. I will certainly pass this info on to my granddgt...she'll be so relieved. After I posted the HELP, I called my sister in Ca who has extensive experience with birds of all kinds (the county used to send rescued birds to her to rehabilitate, if possible, to return to nature. Sometimes she had to just keep them.). She said she has had a few that their feet/legs were injured to the point that the damage had already been done so the only thing to do was make sure they were eating and drinking normally, and the damaged part usually just fell off, and the birds were fine otherwise. My granddgt's bird is young and otherwise doing just fine.
Thank you all again.

I don't know how to post a picture. It keeps asking for URL of photo. There is no URL. It's on my computer.

Genie51 said:

I don't know how to post a picture. It keeps asking for URL of photo. There is no URL. It's on my computer.

Click to expand...

Hope this helps!

http://www.parrotforums.com/technical-support/6287-how-post-pictures.html

I just talked to my grdgt...she said that's the place she took him too. She's going to call them tomorrow during the day and see what they say. Thanks again.

Genie51 said:

I just talked to my grdgt...she said that's the place she took him too. She's going to call them tomorrow during the day and see what they say. Thanks again.

Click to expand...

Which place? In Port Orchard or Bothell?

Oh dang, what a nightmare. These guys get themselves into spots! So, when exactly did this happen? What did the vet prescribe? I wouldn't worry too much about the expiration date, once they mix the drug up it is usually set to expire shortly thereafter and is no indication of the strength. And if it's an injectable, they are good for a few months after the expiration (in NO WAY am I saying it's okay to give expired meds, but if it's an antibiotic and it expires during the course of treatment in all likelihood the drug will be fine).

A vet would be the natural first choice, but it seems as if you are in a pickle. One of my GCC had a green thread wrapped around her ankle and 2 toes. I have no idea how long it was like that but I freaked out. The thread had cut in deep around the ankle and one of the wrapped toes was HUGE. I found this after 8 pm at night. Hubby and I performed a little mini surgery and removed the string and treated the cuts as Laurasea outline above with betadine. The big toe was actually even bigger the next morning and I was pretty sure she was going to lose it. Thank goodness the toe pulled through but it still remains slightly large and darker than the others 6 months later.

If I knew how long ago the incident took place, that would provide a pretty good indication as to the reason for swelling. If the injury is still acute, the swelling just may be part of the natural course for healing. If it is 3 or more days and the swelling had gone down but now suddenly reappeared that points to a probable infection. And of course there is the possibility of necrosis/gangrene. If you have been giving the antibiotics for over 24 hours and things are taking a definite turn for the worse, it could be possible that the antibiotic prescribed to you isn't effective against whatever bacteria is involved. I would never normally even think about it, but if it likely an infection that has a good chance of being fatal, perhaps you need to start brainstorming about getting the "right" antibiotics into him. Perhaps asking the original non-bird vet to provide another drug? Or a phone or online consultation with an avian vet who can prescribe?

For now, there are steps you can take to help the bird whatever the cause. First, make sure his living quarters are as sterile as possible. Make sure the bird is kept warm, warmer than the ambient household temperature. You can use a heating pad or other "safe" heating element. No heat lights or fan heaters, ever. Aim for a temperature of 85 degrees or so. Keep a close eye on how the bird responds. Puffy birds are cold birds and panting and/or wings held out are hot birds. Make sure he has a place to rest that doesn't involve his foot having to grip something. If it were me (I am NO expert and would double check this one), I would consider supplementing his water with pedialyte. Minimize all "avoidable" stressors. Remember, sick birds hide their illnesses way too well. They are a prey animal and if they "looked sick" in the wild, they would be the first one picked off by a predator. And if it is too hard to soak the foot as Lauraesa described, I would be using a similar solution and drenching that entire foot/leg every 6 hours. And try to make sure he eats, even if you spoil him for now with junk. His body needs calories to heal.

I can't think of anything else and I'm sure I'm missing tons. Hopefully you'll get some additional advice from others who know more.

Oh my gosh! I'm just reading this... I do hope your granddaughter is able to find an avian vet! Please keep us posted. Hugs and prayers!!

I didn't get a chance to see your note last night as I was talking to my grnddgt at the time, and off and on till late. You gave some good advice, as did my sister, who took in rescued birds from the county (ie: birds of prey, as well as domestics, ducks, pigeons, and the like) so my grnddgt is talking with her, too. She said she would also be calling the vet she originally went to as during the day, they have an avian vet there. Like you, she didn't notice the problem until late the night it happened, then she called me and I told her to find an emergency vet immediately. This happened 4 wks ago. She said the foot seemed to be getting better, then swelled up again. I agree about infection. So I urged her to call them today. Didn't think of the pedialyte (my youngest gives that to her dragons after they lay, to bring their strength back up). I did tell my grnddgt to give him whatever he wants to eat and she did. She said he was happily sitting in the middle of the bowl of food, picking thru it, and tossing what he didn't want.
Thank you again for your response.

Yes, we have a vet name for her to call. Thank you.

Ok, so now that we have a vet for my granddgt in Wa, does anyone know of another bird and exotic pet vet in Eugene, Or? My local vet always suggests one particular place but when we contact them, we're always told they don't treat any animals other than cats and dogs, even tho their site says otherwise. Last time we tried to call them, they said they once had an exotic pet vet but that person left a long time ago and was never replaced. Why is it so hard to find them in the NW? I'm from So Ca and they are EVERYWHERE! It's frustrating trying to find someone when you really need them. Thanks!

Ok, I'm not sure where you are at in this situation..? I could not veiw picture sorry.
The parts I'm hearing that are concerning, are the reappearance of the swelling, that is not good. The fact that the antibiotics just expired isn't a big deal, but the fact that they may be the wrong antibiotics for the infection is.

Also the appearance that your bird is otherwise fine, is an illusion. Birds hide being sick, they evolved this way. They usually don't appear sick until they are hours from death. Infact many people don't know their bird is sick at all untill they find it dead.

While I said the toe is likely a lost cause. It's like how they castrate bulls with a rubber band or how they used to do tail docking. I did say that the swelling of the other toes is s big deal, and needs treatment by an avain vet. You could loose the whole foot, and that's a big deal for the bird. It can manage minius a toe. But without a foot is pretty stress ful on the bird as you can imagine. Also your bird is in a lot of pain.

The betadine treatment will help some with the infection, and help some to improve healing. But bottom line this bird very much needs the help of af veterinarian. Pain relief, new antibiotics, possible bandage to help provide relief to the other toes and foot. Please get this bird to the avain vet, most of us have to drive a couple of hours to get to an avain vet specialist.
Ok please keep us updated...

Yes, thank you. I have passed on all the info to my granddgt. She hasn't contacted me yet, but she was going to call them today.
Thank you again...

If you are looking for an avian vet in Eugene - this is a good link to start with. https://www.aav.org/search/custom.asp?id=1803