Booger's struggle to survive..

[GaleriaGila]

YAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY, Booger!

 

[Notdumasilook]

Booger continues to improve but its gonna take a while to get the weight back on him. Dr recommended glucosamine to help with the wing healing. She also said for me to supplement vitamin C, omega 3 and 6 to help his immune system. Being down to feather and bone his lil system needs all the help it can get to avoid secondary infection/s, fungi, etc. Also more than doubled the dose on the Celebrex to keep the GI inflammation in check. He had a big weekend, wifey didn't want to put him down.. hah... she so taken with this feathered youngin. She wouldn't even put him is his cage to eat. She fed him by hand healthy treats and kept his lil cup of ginger ale beside her for when he got thirsty... and everytime Booger had to poop he let her know so she could set him briefly on top his cage... sheesh what a special bird.

 

[Notdumasilook]

Well things seem to be going backwards a bit. I have taken a good bit of time off of work trying to help Booger gain weight. I had hoped that changing dose on the meds would help Booger eat more. He just does not spend much time eating at all. It seems I have to personally hand him foods to encourage him to eat. He never "tanks up" like he should before bedtime, nor does he seem to be hungry mornings. Im experimenting with different stuff to see what he will eat best. Also, mixing various things in almond butter (he likes that) to get some extra nutrition in him.. like baby bird formula, vitamin C, and calcium. When feeding him I keep a cup of gingerale handy for him to wash his foods down with. I customized his med syringe so I can take his meds in him easier (get more in him than on him). He's a great lil patient... no complaints at all bout takin his meds now, but as I might I cant get lil Booger over 90 grams... so he is still scrawny as hell. On the plus side he is perky and playful still, but his wing injury does not seem to be getting better. With him so scrawny Im skeered I will injure him further if I try to exercise his wings. Ah well folks.. just keep fingers crossed for my lil Booger... and any ideas on how to trigger his appetite would be appreciated.

 

[plumsmum2005]

Sorry to hear Booger has not gained weight as you had hoped. I am sure you know that he needs nutrition to help get better, it is the same with us. If you do not think he is taking in enough perhaps have a talk to your AV regarding him being fed for a few days. Folks on here have and do it but in the UK it is done by vet nurses. It wouldn't be a first choice but if it is obvious he isnt eating enough it is worth thinking about IMO. All good wishes to you, your family and little Booger.

 

[GaleriaGila]

What Mum said.

Good luck.

 

[Notdumasilook]

Thanks... Ill ask my vet about force feeding. I have attempted hand feeding with a syringe some hi calorie baby(bird) formula.. but not the "tube feeding" straight to the crop. Didn't have much luck doing that. What foods he gets come primarily from wifey or myself, him taking it from our hands instead of his food bowl. Darn near feel guilty if I have to leave the house for an extended time cuz I know he isn't eating when no one is there. Wife said the other day if "love" would keep him alive he would live 100 years... hah... and shes right about that.

 

[Scott]

I'm so glad you have taken a deep interest in Booger's well being! You may have to get extraordinarily creative with food to find items he really enjoys. Not a fan of force-feeding unless his weight becomes critical, though that is a choice between you and the vet.

A caution - and forgive me if you have been trained - but tube feeding to the crop is fraught with danger unless done properly. As far as the use of laser is concerned, make sure the vet is highly skilled. Long story short, a previous vet performed some surgery on my male Ekkie and burned sufficient crop tissue he never recovered. He was self-admittedly relatively new to laser at that time.

 

[Notdumasilook]

Thanks Scott... And no I have not been trained in tube feeding a bird and after thinking about it, not sure its ethical to "force" a bird to live. As much as Booger is loved and would be missed, one wonders what quality of life it gives them with a chronic condition.
As for any laser therapy...I know one vet that offers it... but my new avian specialist lady...(an AWESOME vet).. said the jury is still out on whether its that useful. What I want to do to "help' with his wing injury is more just give him brief flapping workouts... but he does not have the muscle mass yet to do that.
Really sorry to hear about your Ekkie... that's horrid!. We rely on "professionals" to help our critters not hurt em... Note I have an injured baby due to a careless vet assistant myself ..and to top it off they shirked their responsibility for hurting him. (he aint my vet no mo )

 

[Notdumasilook]

Things appear to be looking up!. Booger was having a difficult time getting the meds down.. especially since the dose was doubled. The syringes were part of the problem, but so was the flavoring in the meds apparently. What dose I would get in Boogers mouth he would refuse to swallow much.. and when I would turn him loose he would sling as much out of his beak as possible. Then id help him wash that nasty stuff down with some gingerale. First thing .. I called the pharmacy and had them mix me a fresh batch with NO flavoring. Second.. I "engineered" a syringe that has a tiny plastic point.. one that does not require me to open his mouth much. THEN.. got me some Karo syrup. Now when I give the meds a pull a dab of syrup up first then top it off with the meds. Now when I give it to Booger he no longer slings it.. he gets the proper dose of meds. A week of doing this there has been an appetite increase... he now "tanks up" morning and evening as a lil birdie should!. This morning after Booger and Cookie tanked up and Cookie did his "feed da baby' routine we shared some apple pie for breakfast.. Indeed things are improving. Gonna wait another week then check his weight. My bet is it will come up quick now. yay!