Internal bleeding

[BirdyBee]

I came home today to see that Sunny has blood in her feces, which is probably internal bleeding(I don't have a good picture but I know for a fact it is blood because I've seen what stained feces look like and hers has literal blood)
I know that this is a very serious issue, but the thing is, I can't take her to a vet today because they're all closed, and i can't do it tomorrow either because I have school and I'm moving to my new house tomorrow, so my parents can't help either, and I'll most likely not find a clinic open with an avian vet until monday, which concerns

I'm really hoping she doesn't die or get worse. I'm stressing really hard right now

I've got one pic of the blood. It's definitely not from an injury, I checked

Also sunny is sitting at the bottom of her cage :/ she is in really bad condition, I've been trying to get her to a vet for the past month but my parents keep on saying they'll do it and then just forget.

Any help would be appreciated

 

[pebbles1553]

Sometimes charcoal helps, maybe look up how to use it on birds. I hope she gets better!

 

[BirdyBee]

Sometimes charcoal helps, maybe look up how to use it on birds. I hope she gets better!

Unfortunately I don't have charcoal but thanks for the tip

 

[pebbles1553]

Unfortunately I don't have charcoal but thanks for the tip

hmmm.... ok do u know if she ate something toxic or something?

 

[BirdyBee]

hmmm.... ok do u know if she ate something toxic or something?

She doesn't have anything toxic in her cage. Unless she chewed on the cage bars I'm not sure. I've managed to get her to a vet tomorrow but I'll have to get a family member to take her

 

[pebbles1553]

if she ate something toxic, and ik it might be a risk to take because of the pests outside, but in the wild, parrots eat dirt when they feel like they have eaten something toxic. Maybe if you gave her some fine dirt, it worked when Pebbles ate something toxic, i was so worried, and i gave some dirt to her, and her feces where normal again, they were BLACK, and then turned natural.

 

[BirdyBee]

if she ate something toxic, and ik it might be a risk to take because of the pests outside, but in the wild, parrots eat dirt when they feel like they have eaten something toxic. Maybe if you gave her some fine dirt, it worked when Pebbles ate something toxic, i was so worried, and i gave some dirt to her, and her feces where normal again, they were BLACK, and then turned natural.

I'll still take her to a vet just to be safe, I'd rather not take risks. Im not sure how clean our dirt is though because our dogs do their business outside so I think most of the dirt is contaminated 😅 we also don't have a lot of houseplants soo yeah

 

[hiriki]

This is so scary!! Have you checked her vent? The pic that you posted doesn't even seem to be mixed with bird poop, so I'm wondering if she has an abrasion or sore on or around her cloaca.

When I think internal bleeding blood in poop, I think bird poop that still mostly looks like bird poop but it's tar black (either the whole poop or a part of it). That said I've never had a bird experience internal bleeding so I could be wrong. Either way, if you have a specific vet that you go to and have a relationship with, maybe call them and ask if one of their doctors can look at this photo and tell you what they think?? I do that often with my vet (soon they're going to block my email address probably, haha).

 

[pebbles1553]

I'll still take her to a vet just to be safe, I'd rather not take risks. Im not sure how clean our dirt is though because our dogs do their business outside so I think most of the dirt is contaminated 😅 we also don't have a lot of houseplants soo yeah

oh ok then yeah, dont lol

 

[BirdyBee]

This is so scary!! Have you checked her vent? The pic that you posted doesn't even seem to be mixed with bird poop, so I'm wondering if she has an abrasion or sore on or around her cloaca.

When I think internal bleeding blood in poop, I think bird poop that still mostly looks like bird poop but it's tar black (either the whole poop or a part of it). That said I've never had a bird experience internal bleeding so I could be wrong. Either way, if you have a specific vet that you go to and have a relationship with, maybe call them and ask if one of their doctors can look at this photo and tell you what they think?? I do that often with my vet (soon they're going to block my email address probably, haha).

Hi, here's a pic of it

It's dried up now but there was blood in it

 

[BirdyBee]

This is so scary!! Have you checked her vent? The pic that you posted doesn't even seem to be mixed with bird poop, so I'm wondering if she has an abrasion or sore on or around her cloaca.

Yeah, sorry, the pic wasn't great. There was feces with blood in it but I changed the newspapers before I took a pic so that was all I had. I checked her vent and there was no blood around it which is odd.. but there is blood in her poop

When I think internal bleeding blood in poop, I think bird poop that still mostly looks like bird poop but it's tar black (either the whole poop or a part of it). That said I've never had a bird experience internal bleeding so I could be wrong. Either way, if you have a specific vet that you go to and have a relationship with, maybe call them and ask if one of their doctors can look at this photo and tell you what they think?? I do that often with my vet (soon they're going to block my email address probably, haha).

A family member is taking her to a vet(been to her multiple times, she's great) along with my other bird because he's also struggling with an unrelated health issue

 

[hiriki]

Ahhh yea ok that looks much more mixed with poop. It's still redder than I would think for internal bleeding, like maybe she has a cut/abrasion just inside of her cloaca? But if that was the case I'd expect some blood on the feathers around her vent...

But again I have no direct experience with internal bleeding and when I reread your post I realized she's also on the floor of the cage, internal bleeding or not that's definitely concerning!! I'm really glad they're going to the vet, from this update it sounds like they're going today?

 

[BirdyBee]

Ahhh yea ok that looks much more mixed with poop. It's still redder than I would think for internal bleeding, like maybe she has a cut/abrasion just inside of her cloaca? But if that was the case I'd expect some blood on the feathers around her vent...

I think internal bleeding isn't always black from what I heard

But again I have no direct experience with internal bleeding and when I reread your post I realized she's also on the floor of the cage, internal bleeding or not that's definitely concerning!! I'm really glad they're going to the vet, from this update it sounds like they're going today?

Sadly not.. no clinics are open since it's 7pm. But tomorrow morning they'll see a vet.
I moved her to a smaller cage and she's eating a bit, which is a good sign I think

 

[hiriki]

OK so I just did a bit of reading and I think I understand better now. Red blood in stool indicates blood that is not digested, which means the bird is either bleeding around the rectum or in the gastrointestinal tract. Blood from internal organs or the upper gastrointestinal tract would be digested by the time it is pooped out, which is why it appears black, not red.

In other words since your bird is popping red this is likely not the kind of internal bleeding that would cause sudden organ failure. Your birds liver/kidney/intestines are probably not bleeding, it's probably the skin around the rectum or just inside it. If the vent is clean then your bird is probably not actively losing a ton of blood, although your bird is probably in pain which would explain sitting on the floor.

I'm not a vet and if you're able to email this pic to the vet who will be seeing your bird tomorrow I'm sure they can give you some recommendations of what to do, but if she's eating/drinking I think she will be OK until she's seen tomorrow. Maybe also plug in a little space heater for her to keep her warm?

 

[hiriki]

BTW I read a couple of articles but almost all of them referred to melena (black blood in stool) and only this one seemed to reference red blood in stool so this is where I got my info from: https://flockcompanion.com/parrot-poop-chart/#red

 

[BirdyBee]

OK so I just did a bit of reading and I think I understand better now. Red blood in stool indicates blood that is not digested, which means the bird is either bleeding around the rectum or in the gastrointestinal tract. Blood from internal organs or the upper gastrointestinal tract would be digested by the time it is pooped out, which is why it appears black, not red.

In other words since your bird is popping red this is likely not the kind of internal bleeding that would cause sudden organ failure. Your birds liver/kidney/intestines are probably not bleeding, it's probably the skin around the rectum or just inside it. If the vent is clean then your bird is probably not actively losing a ton of blood, although your bird is probably in pain which would explain sitting on the floor.

I'm not a vet and if you're able to email this pic to the vet who will be seeing your bird tomorrow I'm sure they can give you some recommendations of what to do, but if she's eating/drinking I think she will be OK until she's seen tomorrow. Maybe also plug in a little space heater for her to keep her warm?

Okay, thank you so much

 

[Terry57]

How is Sunny doing now? I'm so glad that you were able to find someone to help you get her to the vet and I pray for good news for both of your babies.
Good luck with the move, too!

 

[BirdyBee]

Hey everyone! Sorry for the late response. Had a rough and busy day yesterday and didn't feel well.

Anyway, update on the birdies
The vet couldn't find any blood and since the family member didn't have a picture of the feces, she contacted my mother who didnt either. I was at school so I couldn't help

Sunny's blood sugar is VERY high, and vet suspects that she has an infection

Griffen has a fungal infection and is severely underweight(his keelbone is sharp to the touch)

I got meds to treat them (milk thistle liquid mixture and some antibiotics for both of them)

Should I treat the rest of my flock just in case? They look very healthy at the moment, but as always, I'd rather be safe than sorry
Also, would it be reccomend to feed Griffen some fatty foods to gain weight? Or should I take the feeds advice and keep him on pellets during the treatment?

 

[Terry57]

Hey everyone! Sorry for the late response. Had a rough and busy day yesterday and didn't feel well.

I'm so sorry, I hope you are feeling better today

Anyway, update on the birdies
The vet couldn't find any blood and since the family member didn't have a picture of the feces, she contacted my mother who didnt either. I was at school so I couldn't help

Sunny's blood sugar is VERY high, and vet suspects that she has an infection

Griffen has a fungal infection and is severely underweight(his keelbone is sharp to the touch)

I got meds to treat them (milk thistle liquid mixture and some antibiotics for both of them)

Hopefully they both start feeling better quickly now that the vet diagnosed meds for them!

Should I treat the rest of my flock just in case? They look very healthy at the moment, but as always, I'd rather be safe than sorry

I've never done that so really can't advise about treating everyone. Does Sunny also have a fungal infection? My understanding is that fungal infections aren't contagious, but I could definitely be wrong about that.

Also, would it be reccomend to feed Griffen some fatty foods to gain weight? Or should I take the feeds advice and keep him on pellets during the treatment?

When my Phoe was so sick and had lost weight, my vet said to give him whatever he would eat during the treatment to help him build himself back up. But - he also had almost stopped eating, is Griffen still eating his pellets?

 

[BirdyBee]

I'm so sorry, I hope you are feeling better today

Somewhat.

Hopefully they both start feeling better quickly now that the vet diagnosed meds for them!

I hope so too

I've never done that so really can't advise about treating everyone. Does Sunny also have a fungal infection? My understanding is that fungal infections aren't contagious, but I could definitely be wrong about that.

I'm not sure, I think so. She had one 2022 november but the vet said it's "not contagious or dangerous for now".. I guess something just triggered it, maybe stress? She was caught by my dog a few months ago but had no physical injuries. Maybe that could be a factor.

When my Phoe was so sick and had lost weight, my vet said to give him whatever he would eat during the treatment to help him build himself back up. But - he also had almost stopped eating, is Griffen still eating his pellets?

Yes, he is still eating it. I think he lost weight not because of starvation, but because his body was unable to gain weight from his infection, since he still has an appetite