We adopted an amazon!

[ravvlet]

YAY YAY YAY! The vet called! While she does have signs of liver disease (at 140+ g overweight I felt it was a given) the vet is confident that our diet changes will solve it, and she doesn’t have any bacterial infections or anything else.

We are going in for her X-ray Saturday and I plan on asking what she thinks is the best thing to do for her fatty mass (pic included at the end of this post) & to schedule another CBC in 3 months to check on her liver again.

I’m trying to not get excited until we see her heart but I’m feeling really good about her prognosis so far. We hope she’ll be with us for many years to come!

At what point should we start exercising her? She still only steps up willingly sometimes and I’m not sure if I should be more confident/assertive and “force” her - the vet did this and she behaved really well for her (when I say force I mean she said the command and then pressed into her chest to encourage a step up, not like, grabbing her or anything). I think maybe I’m being too polite (I just present my hand at the right height and ask and wait to see if she lifts a leg).

The lipoma, sorry it’s a little gross:

 

[SailBoat]

Much to do prior to building muscle mass required for flight.
Building comfort and trust regarding moving about on your hand as you introduce your home to your Amazon. Remember that flight requires a knowledge of where it is safe to fly to and from, plus the safe pathways.
Note: The Segment in the 'I Love Amazons - ... Thread that speaks to reflighting an Amazon (or any Parrot for that matter) covers the process involved.
It is very important to remember that this is a process and each step is the foundation for the next step. Remember that in addition to the Wing muscles, you will be developing the heart and air sack (lung) muscles. It all takes time.

 

[ravvlet]

Thank you! I’ll keep moving slowly with her then. I just didn’t want to be neglectful with exercise because I know it’s very important. I have definitely been reading and re reading the sections on sedentary ‘zons and refeathering and re flighting.

 

[ravvlet]

X-ray day was today! And the result was... a lot of maybes!

She MIGHT have scarring in her air sacs, as well as an air sac line. Her heart is a little valentine shaped which is not ideal and MIGHT be enlarged. Her arterial walls appear to have thickened a little.

Which means that we are having a consult done by a radiologist and will be hearing more concrete results Monday! We were also sent home with a cardiac supplement to give her by mouth for 60 days, so I’m sure she’s going to reeeeally love me for the next two months (not!).

She is cleared for exercise however!

For those keeping score at home, the estimate for x rays was $160, but because we have to call in a radiologist and also got the meds it was a cool $310.

 

[Squeekmouse]

She's so pretty!! She's truly blessed to have such a nice home and wonderful Parronts.

 

[Laurasea]

She is gorgeous!!!!
It took my rescue Quaker a year to be able to fly, so be patient

 

[ravvlet]

She is gorgeous!!!!
It took my rescue Quaker a year to be able to fly, so be patient

Being patient is so hard! I mean, even if her wings weren’t clipped so short that I didn’t notice it immediately she is so overweight she can’t generate lift. She did get some nice cardio today between flapping and being chased around the kitchen as I very quickly had to relearn proper toweling to give her her new meds...

 

[Inger]

Ok this is a beautiful story, I’m so happy she found you, and she’s so cute I want to eat her up.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ravvlet]

Tonight the toddler insisted on singing her “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” before going to bed, and our efforts were rewarded by beak grinding.

She’s doing well with toweling for meds and will step up onto a dowel but won’t step up on my hand yet without posturing for a bite. Her feet are very dry and scaly also so per our vets recommendation we have begun putting a little moisturizer on in the morning (vet said to do Eucerin but I wasn’t sure which formula so I’ve been using coconut oil).

Just waiting to see what the radiologist thinks now.