Inexcusable

[faeryphoebe1]

I'm so sorry, Birdymomma. I've been following your thread anxiously.

This veterinarian is sorely lacking in professionalism and ethics. It sounds like a significant mix up with test results that she refuses to come clean about.

Perhaps another parront out there has a fid with PBFD and they are not even aware of it.

 

[GW.Joe]

Oh, and just incase anyone was wondering, she never called today.

If I were you I would clip the birds nail and get a blood sample out to a few labs, its cheap, fast and you get a good cross reference sending it to two or three different labs

AND start looking for a new vet

Joe

 

[BirdyMomma]

Hi.
I am now of the opinion that she is intentionally messing with us. After she neglected to call us the last time, we wrote her off. After all the callousness, scare tactics and general mishandling of the situation, we felt as if we couldn't believe anything she had to say anyway.
Yesterday morning, my phone rang, and it was her office. It was a vet tech, who called to tell me that the Doctor had spoken to the university, and that she would be calling me later that afternoon.......... SHE NEVER CALLED.

If we hadn't already decided that her opinion is worthless, I would be a nervous wreck right now.
I'm done. I don't even want to hear her name ever again. I'm beyond disgusted.

 

[hacatta]

do you know which university she used?
maybe you can call there and hopefully find someone to talk to.
But she is the worst,my sisters vet will call her every hour until she responds,if they have news.
That is how it should be,and what they get paid for.
I am so sorry you have to go through this,you and wingnut don't deserve this.

 

[Allee]

So much of this sad story is confusing and hard to wrap my mind around. I realize there are bad vets out there, after all, they too are only human. You've said this vet has a stellar reputation, but her inability or unwillingness to answer valid questions makes me wonder. Personally, I would have been seeking a second opinion after the first positive test with so many birds' very lives at stake.

 

[Dinosrawr]

Oh my goodness. I've also been following this, like many, and I can only imagine how frustrated you are. Would a family doctor humorously say to a parent, "oh! Oops, looks like it was a false positive!"

As if. The doctor's abilities would be immediately questioned. Vets are NO different, but for some reason when they make a mistake it's "okay" because it's "just an animal" (I had a lot of people say to me the other day when Avery took off, "it's just a bird, so what?"). Wingnut is your baby and a huge part of your life. This woman, no matter how stellar, should never make light of a death sentence! She should be just as dumbfounded as you just as worried, and just as diligent to ensure that your baby IS healthy, and if there is absolutely anything she could do to make sure he is. Yes, it's difficult to always be compassionate in a career such as veterinary medicine, but that doesn't mean you disregard your patient's emotions when you bring them heart breaking news.

I hope you find a better vet and can have a trustworthy vet and lab give you the information you need. My thoughts have been and continue to be with you and all your fids on this difficult and frustrating journey.

 

[happycat]

A couple of weeks ago we called our vet about Kirby and she said a vet would call me back. The vet never called. He turned out to be okay, but what if he didn't? This isn't Walmart we're calling, these are vets. It could be serious, it could be life or death. They can't afford to be irresponsible.

 

[BirdyMomma]

Yep. It's crazy. I understand that they get busy, and they are often blind sided by emergencies, but they should always call back, and within a reasonable amount of time. A few days ago, I spoke to a woman, who's close friend had used this same vet as we did. She told me that her friend also had a problem with the vet not calling back... That's just bad business, but what's worse, is the torment it puts us through. The waiting, worrying and not knowing.
We will not use her again, and I'm actually sad about it. All we wanted was a good vet, within a reasonable distance, who we could rely on, and feel confident in.... Back to square one

 

[sam4life]

Hi there,
I'm very sorry for what you are going through. I've experienced something similar in the past, but I didn't have other birds to worry about. I'm stressed out just reading about your ordeal.

One thing I've found somewhat helpful is to use e-mail as my primary form of communication with vets. Of course, not all vets are willing to do this and not all conversations are best had via e-mail. However, in general I find it very helpful to have a record of communication that I can refer to later. It also gives me time to slow down, gather my thoughts, and make sure my most important questions or concerns are addressed.

I don't mean to suggest that this would help with the particular issue you are having with your vet; it's just that I've found it more helpful to have direct, e-mail communication with my vets (who all, with one exception have been willing to work with me in this way), rather than have to deal with layers of receptionists and vet techs and colleagues and the relaying of messages that never seem to get through, etc. Anyway, just a thought.

I'm sorry you are going through this; I hope this really is a false positive and all your birds are PBFD free.

 

[goalerjones]

If she is as famous as you say, chances are her staff took care of everything. And staff aren't veterinarians. And as I've seen the turnover rates create confusion and inconsistency behind the scenes. And she isn't going to tell anyone about those staff issues.

 

[BirdyMomma]

I love the thought of using email as a means of organizing thoughts and questions as well as for keeping a record of everything said....for that very reason, I doubt this vet would EVER agree to it. I'm telling you, my last conversation with her made me think that she was being deliberately difficult to communicate with. If there was a transcript of the conversation, and you read it, you would think that she had a learning disability, and at times that she was attempting to deliberately insult me. I also agree that she has her techs and assistants do a lot of tasks that maybe they shouldn't, or should be supervised doing. I should really detail that last conversation, because it was insane, and kind of hard to believe. I just feel like I'm torturing everyone with this saga.

 

[Sheryl]

Hearing about undependable vets has given me an even greater appreciation for ours. He came to the office on Sunday when my little Bergie got sick. He and I texted whenever necessary to exchange information quickly. He saw her every morning that week. He was even on the phone with me right before she left us the following Saturday night. Birdy Momma, is there a university near you with vet dept? You might be able to have tests done there.

 

[Sheryl]

I think being able to talk about it here with those who understand keeps us all from wearing our heart on our sleeve in the areas of our life where it would not be appropriate.

 

[95talongirl]

I thought I remember seeing something about this..... months ago. May have even responded on one of the older threads.

Wingnut tested positive for both PBFD and ABV, right? Then negative on the ABV?

I went through a similar scenario with my vet and ABV. Back in March (some may recall this) I adopted a plucked hawkhead parrot. Took him to the vet for a checkup, since I also own an Amazon parrot. They took one look at him and said he needs to be tested for ABV and that they think he's a PDD bird. THIS SCARED THE HELL OUT OF ME. My heart sank, and all I could think about was Mopar, my other parrot and what I have done. Long story short, he tested positive for ABV. He also detoriated pretty quickly and ended up dying. I owned him for 11 days. So, I had him sent to Texas a&M for a necropsy. This is where it gets interesting. I contacted them about Kimi (the hawkhead) and they said they did not find ABV in his brain. (Where it usually is found) so they did a full on scan of everything. Speaking of which, I need to email him again to see what's come of that. As for the vet, well ever since that one test came back positive, they basically told me the house was a "borna home" and that my other parrot is going to get it and die. This made me want to shoot myself. I mean, the guilt... it's just too much!! Well, when I talked to Dr. Tizard at A&M and explained to him the situation, he seems to believe that Mopar will be fine. Stated that the ABV virus is unstable, and that to this day they still have birds living in the same aviary as AVB+ birds that test negative continuously. (Oh, that's the other thing. They can test positive, and negative for ABV, it depends on when the virus is being shed. Was told that three consecutive tests will deem a bird negative for the virus.) They seem to believe that its transmitted fecal-oral. So in the case of ABV, your other birds to stand a chance of being fine. Needless to day, I quit going to that vet over this situation. Someone mentioned on one of you threads about how your vet has a stellar rep. So did mine, and up until the ABV issue, I never has an issue with them. So it seems unless something serious happens, then it's all puppy dogs and rainbows.

I took Mopar for his annual checkup at a different vet. (Another well known one in chicagoland area). I explained what went one, and THEY even doubt that it was PDD that killed Kimi. Said that he wasn't showing the typical signs other than feather plucking. And also said it was not very professional of them to treat me like that. Seriously, I felt like a leper. After talking about testing Mopar for ABV, she said it's not worth the stress, since everything came back normal for him, and was in no contact with the other bird.

Sorry for the long-winded response... but just know you are not alone. I feel all of your emotions...... as I went through every one of them. I cried for days on end... I was furious. I was scared out of my mind. I wanted to strangle someone, then strangle myself for exposing Mopar. Heck, I ended up getting pretty sick a week after the ordeal, and I can only attribute that to the 11 days of hell.

I am pulling for you. Hope your babies will be ok. Trust me, you are not alone in this, and don't feel bad for venting on here. It helps. I wholeheartedly agree you need to find a new vet. It pisses me off to no end that they do that.

 

[Sheryl]

Wow - that is such encouraging information.

 

[95talongirl]

I wish I could tell you the amount of time I spent reading about ABV and the PDD link; it's insane. and all it did was confuse me more. The problem is, its so new, (discovered in 2008) that they don't know that much about it... still. I learned that there are about 6 or 7 different strains. Seems genotype 2 and 4 cause disease. In a recent study done on local waterfowl in Michigan, it was found that 30-50% of the birds were infected with it. However, only a few were actually sick. The same can be said with parrots. They have found quite a few carry the virus, but it never develops into anything. So while its scary as all hell, it's not necessarily a death sentence. In fact, since the test for that is available to the public doesn't differentiate between the strains of ABV, SOME vets.. notice *some* don't place much value on testing for it unless the bird is showing clinical signs. then there's some vets that use it at a catch all to diagnose a bird, whether its the actual problem or not.

Am I still nervous? you bet. I watch every move Mopar makes. It sucks, but when I find myself worrying to much, I try to go over the facts again....

I don't have any personal input on the PBFD, but I don't think Wingnut has that due to how virulent that disease is, and he seems ok, as well as the rest of your flock. I'd think someone would be showing symptoms by now. I also know that virus is what the call an non-envelope type, and is very hard to kill. the fact they played it off like it wasn't serious is bizarre. (ABV is an enveloped virus, and thus easy to kill)

I don't wish this on anyone.

For a visual, I attached a photo of my late hawkhead, Kimi.

 

[RavensGryf]

I see you're very informed! I've also read the same, except I know it was discovered before 2008, since I had a parrot die of PDD in 2006. I was aware of it before then.

 

[95talongirl]

I see you're very informed! I've also read the same, except I know it was discovered before 2008, since I had a parrot die of PDD in 2006. I was aware of it before then.

I am very sorry you also had to live through that, as well. Thanks for the correction on the year.

I swear, other than the death of, say, a parent... I cannot think of anything worse than being told "your bird has ABV, so prepare for the worse". It's gut-wrenching and heart breaking.

I try to stay positive about it, and trust that the latest research into it is sound, so we don't have to constantly worry and just wait for PDD to rear its ugly head.

On a side note, was your bird an only bird at the time, or did you have others? If so, how are they doing?

 

[RavensGryf]

I swear, other than the death of, say, a parent... I cannot think of anything worse than being told "your bird has ABV, so prepare for the worse". It's gut-wrenching and heart breaking.

I try to stay positive about it, and trust that the latest research into it is sound, so we don't have to constantly worry and just wait for PDD to rear its ugly head.

On a side note, was your bird an only bird at the time, or did you have others? If so, how are they doing?

I figure that at least it's known that the Bornavirus that causes PDD is a fragile one and doesn't live long in the environment outside the body, so I'm thinking that probably even lessens the chance of transmission. That's why it was horrible for your vet to make it sound like it was a hardy virus in your home and prepare for the worst! Maybe your vet was confused? Even if it was really that bad, who says the words "prepare for the worst" that's awful.

One of the birds I had at the time (and the only one I have now who was exposed) is my Red Bellied parrot Robin. Thankfully, (even before I suspected anything wrong with the one who died) I have always practiced hand washing between each and every cage I clean. Also, Robin hates other birds so he was never physically close with her. He has had 2 tests (from a lab that my vet says is the most accurate with this test), and x-ray, and he says Robin doesn't have it. This is an avian specialist who is well known across the country. Thanks for asking

 

[palmetto941]

While I look at a professional's reputation, I use personal recommendations (people I know personally) as more of a basis to using their services. I found that reputations seem to be more of a popularity contest or they have a lot of friends and family weighing in. If someone I know and trust makes the recommendation, I'm in....