Borna diagnosis - looking for support

[Margaret J]

My bird Newton has been diagnosed with Borna at the beginning of December. Meds are not working. She has the neurological type. My vet has explained what’s known about it. I guess I’m looking for what other people’s experiences have been. I’m heartbroken about it. I love her so much.

 

[PetiteParrotLover]

I am so very terribly sorry . May I ask how old Newton is? Was she showing signs of the illness, and if so, for how long? Unfortunately, more and more cases are coming to light, mainly because they are making great strides in learning about the virus, and in fact, just in these past few years, created a blood test to screen for it.

Before getting our Marigold (she came from out of state) I was sent lab results from the breeder that showed she was negative for PDD, but something in me knew she was ill - my husband is a Veterinarian, so the universe tends to send us special animals whom need more help than others, which we thank goodness, can provide… However, we usually know prior to adopting them, but at this point, I kinda expect there to be a health issue even if none were originally indicated.

A few days after getting our sweet Cape Parrot, her pre-booked appointment with the avian veterinarian finally arrived, and I went in feeling good (my husband sees mainly dogs and cats, so he wanted us to use a specialist) about hearing that all was well. However, I already became perturbed when they took her in the back to examine her and draw bloods… Later, they back to have me sign off of sedating her as they were having trouble placing the needle, which I shakily signed, and over an hour later, they said she was still coming out of it, but she’d be ready soon. I sat in the waiting room for another thirty minutes, when they finally emerged with her - in passing, they mentioned it would have been sooner had she not almost bleed out, so they needed time to apply pressure! I went completely numb, fumbled to pay and we ran out of there.

Fast forward about a long week of waiting for the results, later, and I got the call… Everything was great, BUT they casually she was positive for the virus. My world went dark. I did massive amounts of research, and went into a depression because I was already so in love and attached to Marigold… She was only four months at the time.

Thankfully, I’ve made lots of “bird” friends online and in forums, whom have totally supported me, and helped me to see that enjoying each day that she’s here with us is all that I can control. We greet every morning together singing, and end each day that way, too.

Marigold has not had any symptoms thus far, and her new avian veterinarian (who does everything in the exam room with the parent present as that’s how he correctly prefers it) said she’s so health that had I not given him her records, he would have said she’s perfect. Because little is known about this virus, it’s hard to say how much time we’ll have with her - there’s not enough information, especially on juveniles whom test positive early in life, so she could either be with us another year (she just turned one this month) or many more. He advised to keep doing whatever I’m doing and continue to treat her like a normal bird, although I do omit any stress for her as it’s believed to “wake” the currently dormant virus, and is the most heavily sited study that I can find.

I am totally here for you and Newton, and hope to read your story, too, if you’d like to share it. This diagnosis can feel very isolating, so I want you to know you are not alone and reaching out to others who are going through, or had gone through this, is essential for your heart and mental health.

 

[Margaret J]

Thank you for your reply.
I’ve had Newton for 12 years, ever since she was 6 months old. We were bonded immediately. She’ll be 13 in April, altho I will have to put her down before then more than likely.

She started off having balancing issues and she regurgitated once. It took a few weeks for the test to come back positive for Borna. In the meantime, the vet started her on an Insinior (sp) injection. However, the best she got was 5 or so steps before falling over.

I tried giving her Celebrex orally but she has been fighting me on it and was getting a little worse. We tried the injection again for a month and this week started the celebrex again - on a piece of ritz cracker. I’m going to try again orally today as she isn’t getting the full dose with the cracker.

My vet explained that if she doesn’t respond to the medicine, that she will just get worse till I have to make the decision to euthanize her. My vet said she can’t predict how long I have with her as she has seen it all - it just not predictable. She said it is a 100% fatal. The meds will only buy me time, but that mostly works with the gastrointestinal presenting cases. Newton has the neurological type, which rarely goes into remission.

She spends a lot of time on the side of the cage for balance. I put in a soft bumper thingy (the thing you put around a newborn so they don’t roll away). Sometimes she stands against that. She leans forward most of the time so when I have her out, we cuddle a lot. She takes maybe 1 or so steps before falling over if I put her on the ground so she has definitely gotten worse since December.

I’ve been so incredibly sad because I love her so much and I’m not ready to lose her. We were supposed to grow old together. Her personality is pretty intact, she steps up when I ask her to come out, she makes her cute little sounds to talk to me. My vet doesn’t have a lot of hope that the celebrex will work but said I could try it again. She mentioned quality of life to me this week in our conversation. I’m so very, very sad.

 

[witchbaby]

I'm so sorry you're going through this. Two of my birds have been diagnosed with it, although there's a possibility that they've all been infected at this point. The vet told me to focus on good nutrition and to limit stress. He also recommended feeding her red palm oil daily. He said some birds show symptoms while others never do and they live a long, healthy life. So it's not set in stone. Mine haven't shown any symptoms yet.

 

[PetiteParrotLover]

Thank you for your reply.
I’ve had Newton for 12 years, ever since she was 6 months old. We were bonded immediately. She’ll be 13 in April, altho I will have to put her down before then more than likely.

She started off having balancing issues and she regurgitated once. It took a few weeks for the test to come back positive for Borna. In the meantime, the vet started her on an Insinior (sp) injection. However, the best she got was 5 or so steps before falling over.

I tried giving her Celebrex orally but she has been fighting me on it and was getting a little worse. We tried the injection again for a month and this week started the celebrex again - on a piece of ritz cracker. I’m going to try again orally today as she isn’t getting the full dose with the cracker.

My vet explained that if she doesn’t respond to the medicine, that she will just get worse till I have to make the decision to euthanize her. My vet said she can’t predict how long I have with her as she has seen it all - it just not predictable. She said it is a 100% fatal. The meds will only buy me time, but that mostly works with the gastrointestinal presenting cases. Newton has the neurological type, which rarely goes into remission.

She spends a lot of time on the side of the cage for balance. I put in a soft bumper thingy (the thing you put around a newborn so they don’t roll away). Sometimes she stands against that. She leans forward most of the time so when I have her out, we cuddle a lot. She takes maybe 1 or so steps before falling over if I put her on the ground so she has definitely gotten worse since December.

I’ve been so incredibly sad because I love her so much and I’m not ready to lose her. We were supposed to grow old together. Her personality is pretty intact, she steps up when I ask her to come out, she makes her cute little sounds to talk to me. My vet doesn’t have a lot of hope that the celebrex will work but said I could try it again. She mentioned quality of life to me this week in our conversation. I’m so very, very sad.

I’m so deeply sorry for you both. This is the worst illness - I was absolutely stunned when Marigold’s test came back positive. One thing my husband and I promised each other was that if she became symptomatic, we would not let her suffer when her quality of life diminished. As much as we love her, we’d have to give her freedom from her pain. This disease is SO unfair and especially frustrating since one never knows if and when it will come out of being dormant within their system… Part of me wishes I never got her tested for it because there’s nothing that we can do to totally prevent it from rearing its ugly head, but in all honesty, even if we did not, chances of many birds having it are now around one in every three birds, anyway.

My thoughts and heart are with you during such a sad and difficult time, and i’m here for you.