New Member in Desperate Help

[Casper223]

Regarding the question on the x-ray, the Avian doctor pretty much dismissed the whole report. She took our one copy, but will request another one and will upload that also.

Zapotee, My sincere condolences for your little friend. Sometimes the biggest hearts are from the littlest of creatures. I have to go on and say, there is purer love than that of a pet. They don't ask for much but give it all. Just two weeks ago I lost one of my two best friends, an English bulldog that I rescued right after he lost his baby face. This little guys feet had never even touched grass before I knew him. I took on a lot of work, potty training him at 8 months old, and sequentially training him into a loyal companion after that. He had to touch me every minute of the day, and was like my shadow always. So to say I rescued him, or maybe he rescued me. We were inseparable, and I always, in every single day showed him a better life than he ever had before. He passed due to a heart attack, and that ripped my heart out. He had no problem at all/ever giving me 100% of his heart, and in the end, I couldn't help him, I could only comfort him. He left a Giant hole in my heart. This was about 2 weeks ago. Even though I'm saying this to you now, it hurts just as it did then. I can truly tell you, I know how you feel. But you were there to comfort her through it all, and did your best to fix her back to health. My heart truly goes out to you....These guys never ask for anything and yet give so much!!

 

[Scott]

Oh Lina, my deepest condolences for your loss of Cheese. Words are of insufficient comfort, please know many of us have experienced such sorrow.

The necropsy ought be accomplished by certified avian vet, with tissue samples sent to a lab unless the cause(s) are clear. For now, keep Mac close and remove any suspicious toys with brightly colored paint or missing pieces of metal. It is possible the cause of Cheese's passing was beyond your control.

 

[CallumConure]

I'm so sorry for your loss. It's always incredibly difficult to see the remaining bird of a duo go through grief over their lost partner. I have a budgie currently going through the grief stages as well. For Mac, just keep him close and give him lots of love. When animals lose their bonded partner, they usually go to the human for comfort.

One thing is for sure-- you cared very deeply for Cheese and did everything in your power to help her. I'm sure Cheese knows and appreciates the care you gave her. It's so weird how our little friends often take up the biggest space in our hearts.

 

[Amsterdam]

Hi all,
Cheese is gone. I’m so heartbroken. We noticed a slight improvement yesterday, but it was short lived. When I gave her the medicine, I noticed she was having a lot of difficulty with use of one leg and was not grasping the perches correctly. She was also contorting her body against the cage, trying to place her back firmly against the bars, almost as if you were trying to lay flat against the wall. I am assuming whatever injury or condition she had was painful and the pressure against the wall gave her relief. However, she was still very playful, eating, drinking, playing with toys etc. We called the vet and since she was active, we were told to wait the night. We were supposed to head there today at 9:00 am.

We decided to move them both out of their larger cage, into a smaller one and set everything low and cushioned. However, at around 9:00 pm, I saw her going to the bottom to sleep and Mac went with her to cuddle. At 11:00 pm, I heard Mac flying back to a perch, went to check on her and she was in her last moments. I got her out and cuddled her to sleep. I can’t deal with this pain. I feel I did all of the wrong things. Maybe I should have pushed for another x-ray. Is Mac going to die too? I am so lost.

We are getting her necropsied in hopes of saving Mac.

He is still in sleeping position and does not move. He’s so heartbroken. My poor baby.

I will update on the necropsy results when I get them. This was such a weird onset of symptoms, which I could not find anything about online. I’m learning we, the owner’s, are probably the only hope for these little creatures. The more information we can get to, the better. Maybe my baby’s short life with us, can help a future bird parent save their fluffy’s life.

Any advice regarding safekeeping poor Mackie is appreciated.

i am so sorry for your loss you really did your best and im sorry for you you coudnt save him

 

[Ellie777Australia]

Lina, I join the long line of those sending condolences your way. R.I.P. little Cheese.

 

[Zapotee]

Hi all,

Just coming back with some updates.

I have resigned myself to never knowing what happened to Cheese.

I had an extensive call with the Avian vet, who performed her necropsy. To backtrack, Cheese always tried to play with the plastic Id tag she had on her leg and upon review, there was a bruise right underneath the tag and on her tight. The vet removed her tag. As I mentioned, I noticed that the night she passed, she was having issues with grasping with that leg. It was found, post-mortem that the tibio tarsal bone was broken. However, the Vet explained that this type of injury is generally not fatal and the bird will show lack of movement, will stop eating etc. The leg, in her opinion, is not what killed her. It also does not explain the hunchback posture she presented initially. She is still of the opinion she suffered some trauma. It is hard to know when this happened and we only had her for seven days. She was very active until the very end, never stopped eating or showed any lethargy. We noticed the leg issue at 4:00 pm, she did not fall, tripped, nothing at all. The theory is that she had a hairline fracture that just gave in.

We discussed sending the full body for pathology, but she discouraged me from doing so, because she does not expect that it would yield any conclusions.

We are only sending liver samples to check for Chlamydia.

Radiology report in pictures. Avian vet disagrees with pneumonia. Air sacs looked clear and she never showed signs of respiratory distress. Note that “unable to fly” is incorrect in Radiology report.

Mac is sad, but ate a little this morning and calls for me to not leave him alone. Breaks my heart.

Any speculation is welcome. Please chime in with any theories.

It is definitely not environmental. Mac is sad but healthy (knock on wood).

 

[Scott]

I would give greater credence to the avian vet who performed autopsy rather than radiology report. This does seem a mystery with one caveat: Some species are subject to less than optimal reproductive practices, ie inbreeding to achieve "desirable" characteristics. Not certain this is the case with parakeets in general and Cheese in particular. Perhaps some sort of congenital problem rather than environmental or diet related?

Regardless of cause, I am so sorry Cheese has passed. Please allow the grief process to unfold. We are here for you, Lina, and I know you will be supportive of Mac.

 

[texsize]

I would give greater credence to the avian vet who performed autopsy rather than radiology report. This does seem a mystery with one caveat: Some species are subject to less than optimal reproductive practices, ie inbreeding to achieve "desirable" characteristics. Not certain this is the case with parakeets in general and Cheese in particular. Perhaps some sort of congenital problem rather than environmental or diet related?

Regardless of cause, I am so sorry Cheese has passed. Please allow the grief process to unfold. We are here for you, Lina, and I know you will be supportive of Mac.

Agree with Scott. breeding practices where "those" stores get their birds from is not the best and congenital defects are not visible most of the time.

I had to put to sleep a lovely Cockatiel because of a problem due to inbreeding.
Not 100% sure and never will be but her sister who is still with me has visible defects with feathers and feet.
Poor Lady developed neurological problems. The head tilt was just one. She was walking in circles and had trouble eating and perching.
lady last photo by wes mcfaden, on Flickr

 

[gracebowen]

My condolences on your loss.

 

[Zapotee]

I would give greater credence to the avian vet who performed autopsy rather than radiology report. This does seem a mystery with one caveat: Some species are subject to less than optimal reproductive practices, ie inbreeding to achieve "desirable" characteristics. Not certain this is the case with parakeets in general and Cheese in particular. Perhaps some sort of congenital problem rather than environmental or diet related?

Regardless of cause, I am so sorry Cheese has passed. Please allow the grief process to unfold. We are here for you, Lina, and I know you will be supportive of Mac.

Agree with Scott. breeding practices where "those" stores get their birds from is not the best and congenital defects are not visible most of the time.

I had to put to sleep a lovely Cockatiel because of a problem due to inbreeding.
Not 100% sure and never will be but her sister who is still with me has visible defects with feathers and feet.
Poor Lady developed neurological problems. The head tilt was just one. She was walking in circles and had trouble eating and perching.
lady last photo by wes mcfaden, on Flickr

Poor little Lady. What a sad decision to have to make. Rest easy, little one.
I

 

[bug_n_flock]

Oh gosh. I'm so sorry for your loss of little Cheese.