Questions concerning xrays

Owlet

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 27, 2016
Messages
2,778
Reaction score
1,914
Location
Colorado
Parrots
Lincoln (Eclectus), Apollo (Cockatiel), Aster (GCC)
Hey guys I'm just looking for some thoughts and opinions regarding xrays I had done of Lincoln today. Disclaimer though that I AM reaching out to a secondary vet to hopefully get more information. This is just to help me prep for that secondary visit and consider what questions I may want to ask the vet.

Lincoln has been acting a bit off the last weekish. It started after he fell off of his perch. He hasn't really been eating, even things he normally really really likes. I tried a number of things and he's still just not really interested in eating. He has also just been... off. I don't want to say hes lethargic but he just doesn't really want to do much. He will engage with me if I am with him but otherwise he just kind of wants to hang out. Before this happened I had started introducing him to nail files so I can file his beak without having to take him to the vet where he'd have to be sedated and immensely stressed out. Initially he was really excited about it and engaged really well. Now he just... sits there for the most part. He doesn't really care about the almonds anymore and this boy LOVES almonds.

Now with the xrays that were taken they didn't see any obvious breaks, but they noticed two things. One (circled in red), his kidney was rather enlarged and when they palpated in that area it felt really firm. In the xrays (all of them) you can also see a few very bright spots. We aren't sure what those are. The vet said they could be kidney stones or just something in the GI track that was overlaying the kidney. But since we can see it in all xrays I don't really know. The second thing they saw (circled in blue), was his air sacks appeared rather dense and spotty where they should have been mostly black in the xray. Now, my theory about that is that I believe that one of the owners previous to me was a heavy smoker around him as when I received him, the cage he came with was covered in tar.

We also took blood today but it's gonna be a few days before I get the results of those, I will share them when I get them.

The quality of these xrays arent the best since its just a picture of a picture on the computer. If they send me the pictures in the visit notes I will include those.

y3Ag94I.jpeg

zoQ2llv.jpeg
oWf3O32.jpeg
joNhUkO.jpeg
 
The area circled in blue I was told by my avian vet is the lung not one of his air sacks.
What the spots are I don’t know.
I have no help at all for the area in red.

Bingo is having similar eating issues right now but it’s nothing to do with a fall.
 
What are you doing for Bingo's eating issues? The only thing Lincoln is actively eating are these parrot oven bite cookie things that of course aren't sold anymore so I cant get more and im almost out. I tried making bird bread and he wants nothing to do with it. Even plain bread which he usually really likes he doesn't care for. Barely touching fruits either. Not touching his regular veggies or bird street bistro food. He isn't touching the dry mix i have for him either.

Lincoln is NOT a picky bird typically. Especially when it comes to junkier food like bread
 
Hm looking at an xray of a bird that has been labeled online it seems the information is backwards maybe. I don't know. Either way I am still reaching out to a secondary vet.
 
What are you doing for Bingo's eating issues? The only thing Lincoln is actively eating are these parrot oven bite cookie things that of course aren't sold anymore so I cant get more and im almost out. I tried making bird bread and he wants nothing to do with it. Even plain bread which he usually really likes he doesn't care for. Barely touching fruits either. Not touching his regular veggies or bird street bistro food. He isn't touching the dry mix i have for him either.

Lincoln is NOT a picky bird typically. Especially when it comes to junkier food like bread
I’m having good luck with unsweetened apple sauce and I am mixing in a little baby bird formula.

He eats fruit but what he eats one day the next day it’s turned down.
Bananas and grapes sometimes.
Because he’s lost so much weight I am giving him stuff normally reserved as special treats like pasta.

I may try making chop for him.
He use to eat mixed veggies but he stopped some time ago. I think if it’s all mixed up in fine pieces with some kale 🄬 it’s worth a try.
 
It's so hard for any of us to comment on the x-rays because I don't think any of us (? Any radiology techs out there?) are radiology techs even for humans.
I think you need to ask all these same questions of the second vet. The objects that could be kidney stones could also be something indigestible that he ate (birds do swallow sand and grit) but I assume that would get pooped out and wouldn’t show on an xray taken say a week later. But you said that the area where the objects are feels hard when palpated. If he has a kidney problem I would think it would show up in his bloodwork.

The biggest concern it would seem to be that he's not eating. Are you weighing him? You should weigh him every few days in the morning after pooping and before eating. Ask the vet for the normal weight range for his species. Is he pooping normally? Drinking? Is his breathing labored (any distinct tail bobbing)?

I really hope he's okay.
 
I Hope Lincoln gets better soon!
 

Most Reactions

Back
Top Bottom