Parrot ate birth control pills. Please help!

kelseyjo · Jul 31, 2015

Please give me advice.

My female eclectus got into my birth control pills and crushed several of them up while I was out of the room. I know she had to have ingested a little bit, but I'm not sure how much. The label says the pills are drospirenone and ethinyl estradiol tablets 3mg/0.03mg.

Has anybody had this happen? Or do you know if this is enough to actually hurt her. It's been about 24 hours now. She seemed normal this morning before work and when I came home she seems very calm. She didn't eat much today. I feed her a mix of pellets and seeds. I only see some hulls of sunflower seeds broken. She ate a little more of her veggies which was broccoli, cauliflower and a grape. I'm freaking out at this point. Please give me any advice you can.

Thank you.

-Kelsey

Bandespresso · Jul 31, 2015

Take your bird to the vet immediately.

Birdman666 · Jul 31, 2015

Well...

I guess you won't be needing that nest box for awhile...

Call a vet. This is beyond our area of expertise.

Oh, and unless YOU want to spend time in the nest box, I'd abstain for a little while, until your prescription can be renewed.

Allee · Jul 31, 2015

Your bird needs immediate vet care. It's impossible to know how much she ingested but she should be seen by a vet.

Number 6 in the following link.

Human Medications Poisonous to Pets - Meds Toxic to Dog and Cats

OOwl · Jul 31, 2015

Wow, that's a unique problem, both for you and the parrot. PLEASE consult a vet, but also please report back on what do to when/if that happens. I just had by favorite pet parrot at the vet yesterday for his yearly physical and I bent her ear on everything I could think to ask her (I believe in getting my office call fee's worth

) but I never even thought to ask about this contingency. I hope your parrot will be just fine. Hoping for the best.

kelseyjo · Jul 31, 2015

Hello everyone,

Thank you so much for your advice. I called the emergency vet in the nearest town to me and she directed me to call ASPCA poison control. I talked to the nice lady and gave her all the information that I could and she consulted a senior vet on staff. He went through all past cases and came up with the conclusion that Scarlett, my birdy, was the first that they knew of who had gotten into this particular type of birth control pill. She had eaten probably 1 - 1 & 1/2 pills with the actual hormone in them and 2 pills without them. He said that they can lead to anemia and bone marrow suppression, but given the evidence he didn't think that would happen. I was instructed to watch her for the rest of the night pretty closely and in the morning if she wasn't as enthusiastic about her food and moving around more to then make an appointment with the vet.

I actually hand fed her some pellets and she ate them readily and that perked her up some. I also gave her a shower, which she absolutely loves, and she was acting way more normal during and after. So I'm already seeing improvements just from encouraging her to eat and giving her a good, warm bath. Thank you all so much for replying so quickly and giving me the advice to call! I was about to get in the car and drive an hour to the nearest emergency vet that does birds. I'm hoping she'll be good and chipper in the morning. She's already terrorizing my little budgie again, which on a regular occasion I wouldn't be thrilled with, but for now I'm happy with it. =P

Thank you all again so much for your helpful advice! I hope none of you have to go through the same panic with your feathered friends! =)

SilverSage · Jul 31, 2015

Please wrote this down and be SURE to mention both that it happened and what the vet said any time you take her in for a health concern. This could lead to problems do
Wn the road and having this info readily on hand for a future vet is vital.

Flboy · Jul 31, 2015

FYI,if you need immediate help, I was 'fixed' years ago!

Allee · Aug 1, 2015

kelseyjo said:
Hello everyone,

Thank you so much for your advice. I called the emergency vet in the nearest town to me and she directed me to call ASPCA poison control. I talked to the nice lady and gave her all the information that I could and she consulted a senior vet on staff. He went through all past cases and came up with the conclusion that Scarlett, my birdy, was the first that they knew of who had gotten into this particular type of birth control pill. She had eaten probably 1 - 1 & 1/2 pills with the actual hormone in them and 2 pills without them. He said that they can lead to anemia and bone marrow suppression, but given the evidence he didn't think that would happen. I was instructed to watch her for the rest of the night pretty closely and in the morning if she wasn't as enthusiastic about her food and moving around more to then make an appointment with the vet.

I actually hand fed her some pellets and she ate them readily and that perked her up some. I also gave her a shower, which she absolutely loves, and she was acting way more normal during and after. So I'm already seeing improvements just from encouraging her to eat and giving her a good, warm bath. Thank you all so much for replying so quickly and giving me the advice to call! I was about to get in the car and drive an hour to the nearest emergency vet that does birds. I'm hoping she'll be good and chipper in the morning. She's already terrorizing my little budgie again, which on a regular occasion I wouldn't be thrilled with, but for now I'm happy with it. =P

Thank you all again so much for your helpful advice! I hope none of you have to go through the same panic with your feathered friends! =)

Kelseyjo, thank you for this update! I am so glad your girl is going to be okay. I hope there are no lasting effects.

Kiwibird · Aug 1, 2015

Wow. What a situation! I'm glad she's ok and hope there is no lasting affects. Maybe she lucked out that human and parrot hormones differ so greatly that her body just didn't respond at all to them. I guess that certain pills need to go in a case or cabinet from now on

kelseyjo · Aug 1, 2015

Yes, I definitely put everything away in drawers so there's nothing out she can get into. =P She's been eating a bit this morning and she seems like she feels better. She drank a ton of water last night during her bath as well and of course regurgitated it. Gross! I hope that might've gotten some of the pills back up and out. I'll most likely make a vet appointment sometime within the next few weeks and take her in for a regular check up. But as for now she's looking good!

Thanks again for all your help everyone!!

OOwl · Aug 1, 2015

I'm glad she's feeling better today. That is one really unique problem, one that even seems to have stumped vets on staff at the poison control. Hormones really can have long-lasting effects, though, so you'll want to pay really close attention to her for the months to come. In the '80s, I got a liquid hormone used to regulate mares' seasons on my bare hands. At first, it seemed like I'd be just fine. . . only I wasn't. I had years of issues from that exposure. But, maybe your girl did more tearing up than ingesting it. I hope so. I am going to mention this case to my vet when I see her next, just so she has a plan if she ever has a patient with the same issue, or maybe she already has.

drlisaort · Aug 1, 2015

How scary for you! I hope all is well now...no aftermath....

kelseyjo · Aug 1, 2015

Yea, I will definitely keep an eye on her from now on. I was out of the room and she flew into my bathroom and I didn't even hear her and all of this happened. I poured all the leftover crumbs into a ziploc and it actually looks like she ingested less than I thought, so that's good.

She's now acting completely normal, back to her crazy self. Always getting into trouble! She's been fluffing and trying to take jabs at my budgie again, so I think we're out of the super danger zone! I'll definitely let my vet know when I take her in next time.

drlisaort · Aug 2, 2015

Wonderful news! I bet you are taking a huge sigh of relief. Thank you for sharing your hear- felt experience....we can all learn from you....

Parrot ate birth control pills. Please help!

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