Noodles update (seizures?)

noodles123

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Jul 11, 2018
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Umbrella Cockatoo- 15? years old..I think?
So, vet #2 isn't convinced that they are seizures, but he and vet #1 went to school together and are close friends (oy). I told him to call her if he wanted and he said he would. I only mentioned her name at the very end (after he mentioned it)....so there was no bias.

He also is going to post some videos on an international vet consult page (just in case--although he also thinks the behavior is sexual).

Today was HELL though, because after all of the seizure stuff, I asked if they wanted to give her a dose of the anti-fungal that the other vet prescribed (brought the bottle--single-handedly, I cannot administer).
The vet agreed and attempted---very slowly and carefully (nicely done, vet)...He also said there was no way I could give it at home after seeing her reaction to it (she's a gem in general, but she hates this medicine like nothing I have ever seen)...Many compliments on how good she was---even when getting her sinuses washed (but she certainly wiggled her head like a mad-woman when they attempted to give the meds...even when toweled).

She didn't aspirate it, some of it got into her nose through her mouth, so then she had to have 4 saline flushes and it was HELL.....I have never been so freaked out...
She is no longer coughing and sneezing, but for a bit it was like 20+ coughs/sneezes a minute and I about died (she is sleeping now and before she went to bed, she was eating and the coughs etc decreased to 0 per minute for over an hour)..We made it through... Overall, it was good that her sinuses were flushed, because I think there was a lot of junk in there before the meds..

WHAT A DAY...........
 
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Scott

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RIP Gandalf and Big Bird, you are missed.
Hopefully Noodles is not susceptible to seizures and nasal flushes will clear the problems. Close observation of course!
 

Terry57

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I hope they can get to the bottom of the issues she is having, and I'm glad that everything turned out okay yesterday. That does sound like a stressful day:(
 
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noodles123

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Umbrella Cockatoo- 15? years old..I think?
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Well, the saga continues. Today she was not herself at all when she woke up, and wouldn't eat much, so I freaked out and got her back to the vet. She never lets me have a moment's peace in the morning, but today, that was all I got and she was acting weak...so, that, coupled with other concerns, seemed very alarming (especially given the one vet's opinion about the "seizure").

She stayed there all day and reportedly was "off" this morning (quiet, not eating etc).

They gave her an oral dose of benebac a little before lunch (which she takes daily but hasn't been getting much of since the 13 day course of antibiotics likely killed her appetite--just a guess). Anyway, between the Nystatin/saline flushes/exhaustion and the lack of good flora, I am wondering if that could have been enough to make her feel ill and tired (hoping that is not wishful thinking---certainly going to be very vigilant). A bit after the probiotic, she started eating a ton and talking etc. I got there around 4:30 (near tears) and she made me look like a liar--I was legitimately thinking I might lose her when I dropped her off....and when I showed up, she was acting fairly normal (just a bit quieter), but very active and alert (and mocking conversations). They saw very little of the behavior I witnessed prior to bringing her in...Granted, she didn't eat until the afternoon and she was quiet in the morning.

We just had blood work and x-rays a few months back, so they didn't redo that, but her gram stain, fecal float and oral swab were all good (just not a lot of bacteria of any kind).

I am not sure what the deal with her behavior was this morning...I know she was exhausted from yesterday, and she is also annoyed with me because she is being super quiet and wanting to snuggle but then jerking her head in an annoyed way. She IS eating here though, which is better than her picky attitude this morning and last night. She seemed very weak...it was certainly alarming, but now I am wondering if it wasn't just due to a combination of factors (some behavioral).

I am hoping this quiet/moody phase that she is going through is behavioral and not health related, but it certainly got my attention this morning.
Vet will be checking in tonight and again at 8AM tomorrow...
Keep us in your thoughts. Today was the WORST.
Things are very uncertain in my mind, but I am hoping this passes without any major issues...ugh

I will say, after that crazy coughing fit following the saline/nystatin yesterday, her voice hasn't sounded quite typical (but her lungs sound clear and the vet said there is no way she aspirated it but that some likely got in her cloana (sp?), hence the flush)--- I heard her say a few things in her normal low-tone, but as a rule, her voice sounds a bit higher and she is talking to me at lot less since the flush etc yesterday evening (although she was apparently talking at the vet).




So stressful....

Avian vet didn't see what I saw at home this morning...I feel like something is up, but maybe she is just mad at me and super tired....
For those of you who are fans of Game of Thrones, I feel like owning a cockatoo is like joining "The Nights Watch" (SERIOUSLY LOL!!!)
 
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wrench13

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When we first got Salty he had a series of nasal nfections, and had nasal flushes a few times. He was always subdued for awhile after, not his usual perky/cheeky/active self. I hope Noodles improves - a sick parrot is so stressing on both the parrot and the parront.

Valar Morgolis !
 
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noodles123

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Okay, so...without jinxing it....things appear to be on the up-and-up today....

Her poop does continue to concern me, so I have sent an image to the vet because, as much as I hate to do it, I am wondering if we don't need another round of blood-work... it isn't cheap and she has already had her blood tested a few times this year, but we shall see!

Poop issues aside, she is eating normally again, and although her energy is slightly lower, she is talking in a normal pitch (not as high as yesterday) and moving around/ being bossy again. If I didn't see her strange poop and if I didn't know about the last 2 days, I probably wouldn't even think anything was odd about today's behavior.

Yesterday was the worst day ever. I was waiting and waiting and pacing around, and then I went to Wal-Mart to buy her all of these special foods (in case she didn't want to eat) but I just kept thinking, what if she never gets a chance to eat them?

I felt like I was losing a child, and I don't mean to sound insensitive towards anyone who has lost a human child, but there is just something super weird/special about parrot bonds. It was a very bad feeling, unlike anything I have ever felt...My house is filled with her things, so if things had deteriorated like I thought they might, then my entire home would have been a gigantic reminder and the silence was pretty deafening. It's amazing how disturbing a large empty cage can be. I was ready to camp out in the vet's waiting room if I didn't get an update..lol---Considering her improvement today, it is fairly shocking, but her behavior was super scary yesterday morning, so I was thinking the worst.

Normally, I would be so grateful to have a break from her random demands and cleaning sensitivities, but yesterday, the absence of her obnoxiousness was pretty unbearable. When she is her healthy self, I often think, how in the heck am I going to deal with her for the rest of my life?-- but when she was gone, I was thinking, how am I going to deal without her for the rest of my life? Sounds dramatic, but it really was tragic in my mind.

I had to board her once and I cried leaving her (lol)...but at least then she was healthy. Yesterday, I felt like my brain was going to explode when I left her at the vet in a sickly state. Back in the day, when I got her and found out she had a liver issue, that was scary and very upsetting, but we hadn't bonded as much at that point, so while it would have been tragic, it wouldn't have been as unsettling as if I were to lose her now.

It is scary to think that I could lose her over illness/accidents etc, because I think it would be very hard not to become some sort of randomly crying zombie of a person. I don't think that the average person would be able to empathize and I would probably end up looking crazy....birds are special.

SOOOOO GLAD THINGS ARE LOOKING UP!

Thank you all for your concern! Keep your fingers crossed for us lol.
 
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ParrotGenie

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My Cooper had the same issues a few month back, With Noodles likely a infection causing it. It took a couple weeks to clear up as his poop was not normal for a couple of weeks. Yes he didn't like the vet and was upset for a day and lack energy after vet visit. He became his normal self after rest for a couple of days.

Hope she get better soon.
 

CallumConure

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Well wishes to both you and Noodles! I hope everything works out in the end!
 

Ellie777Australia

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Thinking of you still...I reckon most of us parrot/animal owners are just as mushy as you...I cried when our pet chook (hen) passed away a couple of weeks ago...I'm such a sap
 

EllenD

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Good lord, what a bad weekend this has been for our birds...I didn't know that Noodles had a seizure or was sick until now because I have been outside since Friday trying to find Lita, who decided that flying outside in the worst rain-storm in history was a good idea...Try sleeping while you know your bird is up in the tallest tree in the world at night in a rain-storm and there's nothing you can do about it at all...It's a horrible feeling, second only to losing all sight or sound of her after you watch a "murder" of Crows chase her away screaming and crying for you to help her...Yesterday when I finally got a hold of her again I started balling my eyes out and nearly squeezed her to death on the long walk back home, her eyes were popping out of her head...Then when we finally got back home I wanted to kill her...

I know exactly what you're saying...Right now she chewing on my bracelet, my shirt, my pants, my pizza, and screaming at me because I'm ignoring her while I'm typing this, and I want to duct-tape her beak shut...But when I thought she was either dead or gone forever I was a wreck...And looking at her cage sitting outside in the yard nearly killed me yesterday...So I get it...

I hope Noodles is okay...Sounds like a combination of a fungal infection/no beneficial-bacteria upsetting her GI Tract, the stress of taking nasty medication that she hates, etc. Yesterday late-afternoon when I finally got Lita home, and she hadn't eaten anything or had a drink since Friday morning, she drank some orange juice and then of course I had pizza so I gave her a little piece...She then proceeded to eat a HUGE chunk of it that I didn't realize that she ripped-off of my plate, and didn't realize it until she vomited it all up...She threw-up 3 times on my shirt, 3 piles of chewed-up, liquidy cheese pizza...So of course I was like "Now she's sick from those dirty, nasty Crows!" (she got a little puncture-wound at the corner of her eyelid, so I don't know if she actually had contact with those Crows trying to kill her/eat her alive, or if she poked herself with a branch, etc...So i'm thinking a trip to the CAV tomorrow, then she vomited and I'm thinking "Time for the 24/7 Animal Hospital", but today she's totally fine...It was just her exhaustion, totally empty stomach, stress of the whole episode, and too much pizza....

They will be the death of us...I don't care what anyone says, human kids are easier....
 
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noodles123

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Umbrella Cockatoo- 15? years old..I think?
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Ugh...I know!!! I was thinking the same thing when I read your post-- bad week for birds lol.
Noodles continues to act normally today--- poop is still the thing that is concerning so we will do blood work AGAIN...this week (she's going to love that...)
 

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