Wondering if we need to go to the vet?

Ive got a GWM who is now 11 months old who all the sudden turned lethargic today. I got him at 3 months and after a long winter for the last month I have taken advantage of taking him outside at a busy street corner next to a hospital. I am debating to take him to emergency since he has had the energy and determination of a typical toddler that gets into everything. He has free reign to some degree everywhere he goes with me. often 45 minute drives between my and my GF's house in the city where I have been what I call, "socializing" him to the general public every day. LOts of funny stories I could tell. Right now I'm worried and it could happen at a worse time.

I just had an emergency come up where i need to travel 2 hours south, so I went to pick up a u -haul truck and when I got back I noticed he hasn't moved, all his favorite mimics have stopped. He is as motionless as I have ever seen him unless he is napping on my shoulder. Won't take his favorite treat (pine nuts) wont drink his favorite drink warmed water to 105 degrees. I just got a loud screech.

Around noon I caught him in a large plastic box filled with miscellaneous screws nuts and bolts foraging if you will as he proceed to toss various odd objects out.. REmotes, computer keyboards, eyeglasses, electric wires are his favorite no-no items. He has hundreds of various objects strung together in a virtual jungle gym.

Comparatively to how I see others keep their birds, I think this is one spoiled rotten bird. His cage a 65" octogon has been used more for "time out" sessions than a residence. He does appear to be coming around a little more while I have been online searching for avian vets and 24 hour service in the Wilmington Delaware area and reading this entire thread

I'm stuck.. he sounds hoarse, losses his balance, and I ve got an emergency I need to hit the road on. not sure what the point of typing all this is. I dont spend a lot of time on the computer however coincidentally this is the time of the year I am most online with renting of a resort property.

All I know is this little guy is my "everything" and I am now kicking my myself for not establishing a rapport after researching for avian vets for a basic wellness check up. I took him from formula at 3 months and 1000 grams to his current 1250 grams. which I believe is underwieght however he is an extremely active bird and is free flighted to the extent of clipping his last 3 feathers will allow him.

He has quickly learned to mimic various phrases. My GF actually lets him tongue her which grosses me out , when she says give me a kiss. Says Hi Rudy. Whats your Name, I love you, He knows to hold still when people with those rectangular things, point them at him. He generally seems to like latina women best. I babble to procrastinate making a decision.

Plus I have general dislike of the stereotype that I've placed on vets and the bills they charge, but I swear its cheaper to take a human in for a checkup than a pet and have always felt like they play on peoples emotions. But hey, that s just me and my nasty opinion of mechanics, lawyers, health professionals and vets...

So I guess just because he tolerates the cold really well before shivering occurs, has bonded with me when no one else can, meets and greets people trustingly i can just brush his lethargic behavior off as he caught a cold, ate to many zinc coated screws, or just happens to read my mind and emails and know Ive got an emergency a hundred miles south that is going to keep him up till 2 in the morning in strange surrounding for the next five days and is faking he is sick.

stupid to waste time typing all this .. it doesnt make me feeel any better , hasnt persuaded me to make a decision and has only served to remind me that in spite of Rudy's charmed life to date

oh nevermind he seems to be coming around, sorry for the alarmist post. He is very unstable but just ate a handfull of pine nuts, a couple blue berries , mandarin oranges pieces, but damn, the way he is just staring at me is unsettling , its as if he is saying whats wrong with me , come fix it.......


Over and out

Re: Our GW is not doing well

Have a vet check for metal poisoning [too] Dont wait

Re: Our GW is not doing well

Pinkbirdy said:

Have a vet check for metal poisoning [too] Dont wait

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Absolutely right, don’t wait!
You must put your feelings about vets aside and act quickly. Are vets expensive? Yes, but unfortunately that is part of the responsibility that comes with owning a parrot.

I highly second metal toxicity test from vet.

Feed cilantro in the meantime if you can, this is a natural way to cleanse the body but it is not strong enough on its own to save your parrot so please see the vet.

Not just a vet. An Avian vet. Lethargy and imbalance are serious signals. Birds hide their symptoms until they are really sick.
I would, for Salty.

OK, was the statement regarding Zinc Screws a comment of humor or a really World event?

Understanding that you are dealing with a MAC here, it is just as possible that he is mad at you and screwing with your mind. Its one of the difficulties with MACs.

Remember that parrots are prey animals. As such, their instinct is to hide any weakness or illness to the best of their ability. If he is showing symptoms such as lethargy and, even more alarming, loss of balance, you should definitely take him to an avian vet.

The fact that your macaw was foraging in a box filled with electrical wires and any number of other miscellaneous small items means that he might have ingested something.

Another potential issue is that he regularly comes into tongue to tongue contact with your girlfriend. All mammals have gram negative bacteria in their saliva, and parrots do not have any defense against such an infection. Without medical intervention, such an infection could prove fatal.

So yes, you should get him to an avian vet as soon as possible.

DiscoDuck, I am extremely alarmed and deeply concerned about your bird. In the same situation, my bird would be my top priority. If it's impossible to cancel your trip, perhaps you could delay it long enough to get your bird to an avian vet and have him boarded at the clinic until you can return. It doesn't sound like your companion is healthy enough for a road trip. Please hope for the best while you are trying to avoid the worst that could happen.

I'll take you at your word that Rudy is your "everything," so that entitles him to a comprehensive avian vet workup ASAP. In addition to potential toxic ingestion from his "toy box," tonguing your GF exposes him to mouth organisms that can make him extremely sick.

Please do not delay!!

How is your baby doing today?

Flboy said:

How is your baby doing today?

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Worthy of a reply, albeit a severely delayed one. He is doing fantastically well!

I vaguely remember this incident. There hasn't been anything of the likes since then. Quite the contrary, in that I interact with him what be more than normal with a typical Macaw owner.

At the time this happened, I was working on rehabbing a home, something occurred that day that he ingested. There is no way I can be sure retroactively.

After Rudy became one year of age, I decided to take him to an Avian Vet for a wellness check. Interestingly, as I mentioned in my original post, my disdain. The wellness check 11/16 cost $425!! Seriously! I should have done my homework better. Part of the charge was $125 for a DNA test yet they couldn't tell me heredity. Only that he is a bird and only that he is male....

There is only one Avian Vet in the Wilmington DE area. I wonder what the charge might have been had I taken him there back then. I know that given how I wrote the post ..... oh nevermind..

Thank you for all that posted. I appreciate it.