- Dec 18, 2013
- 22,301
- 4,216
- Parrots
- Maya (Female Solomon Island eclectus parrot), Jolly (Male Solomon Island eclectus parrot), Bixby (Male, red-sided eclectus. RIP), Suzie (Male cockatiel. RIP)
As some of you who are familiar with my history might guess, this thread is not an easy one for me to write. My beloved ekkie, Bixby, died early last year of PDD. Unbeknownst to me, he was born with the terrible disease (which is, for the most part, apparently only transmitted vertically, i.e. parent to child). It compromised his immune system and stunted his development (to the point where the black streaking of his beak, which had almost disappeared, actually grew back and took up nearly a third of his beak by the time he had passed at around 1.5 years old).
Why am I bringing this up now? And what could this possibly have to do with toe-tapping?
A few days ago, I noticed something slightly off with my girl Maya's movements. She was a little more hesitant with stepping up. Not, mind you, with her willingness to comply. It's actually something that someone who wasn't as deeply familiar with her as I am might not even have noticed. It was a fractional hesitation that bespoke some level of discomfort in her legs that she was trying valiantly to hide. And upon closer inspection, I noticed some raw areas on her feet, like they'd been itching and she was being a bit too vigorous with her beak. So I made an appointment with her avian vet.
The next night, she began to toe-tap.
Toe-tapping?!? Seriously?!? I just didn't understand. I don't free feed, but rather give two substantial meals of fresh chop everyday. The significance of this being I know exactly what she eats, every day. Neither of my birds wastes anything (unlike sweet Bixby, who was famous for tossing food EVERYWHERE!), and they finish all of their food. On top of this, I give them both a VERY varied and nutritionally complete diet.
The only other time there had been an episode of toe-tap was one day with Jolly, and I knew right away that it was due to a fruit combination I'd never done before. Raspberries and blueberries can apparently never occupy the same dish with him. But that was an anomaly. What was this?!?
Toe-tapping is almost always diet related, right? Either an excess of something, a deficiency in something else, or an allergy. Right?
Turns out, not always. Which is why I'm posting this thread, as painful as it is to consider.
Yesterday, the vet (a VERY knowledgeable avian vet named Dr. Kenneth Dazen) explained to me that the latest theory regarding toe-tapping is that it can have other possible causes as well. Specifically, it can be neurological in nature. You see, there are several strains of Avian Bornavirus (ABV). Either seven or nine. Only two of which can lead to the dreaded Proventricular Dilation Disease (PDD). PDD, btw, turns out to be something of a misnomer in some cases. PDD refers to a particular manifestation of this disease in which the proventriculus is dilated and food can no longer be digested and assimilated by the bird (as was the case with Bixby). That is when it attacks the autonomic nervous system.
But the disease can also attack the central or peripheral nervous systems as well. Bixby showed signs of all three. But early symptoms of a peripheral nervous system manifestation can include toe-tapping (and, I assume, wing-flipping as well, but I was honestly a bit too stricken by the potential ramifications to ask all the right questions.)
As you might imagine, this scared me half to death. It would kill me to have to watch my sweet Maya go through the hell that poor Bixby endured. The vet assured me, however, that it wasn't necessarily a situation that would go to that extreme. He actually has parrots that he has been treating with similar symptoms for over 20 years, now. Basically, a stressor (such as hormones or sickness) can trigger an ABV flare-up. When this happens, anti-inflammatories are given to bring down any swelling and relieve pain, managing the situation until the parrot gets past that particular episode.
He also surmised that Maya had been abrading her feet because she was feeling a tingling that was getting on her last nerve, hence the rawness. Now, we are still waiting for blood tests and such, so this isn't a definitive diagnosis, but he said that, considering the foods I'd listed, he seriously doubted it was anything even remotely diet-related. But he took blood, fecal smears, and swabs from the crop as well as far deeper into my poor birds than I'd have imagined. I'll hear the results by Wednesday.
He also explained that cases of stubborn toe-tapping, wherein a causative factor just could not be determined, might often be attributed to undiagnosed cases of ABV. And this is why I'm posting this thread, today. I've counseled so many of you on what the possible causes of your ekkie's toe-tapping and wing-flipping might have been, all the time unaware that there was another possible reason out there. For some of these ekkies, the answer might actually have been a need for a dose of anti-inflammatory meds. And it's important this is discovered and addressed early on in the manifestation stages.
Anyhow, for those of you who have trudged through this freakishly long post with me, thank you. And I hope this will be of some help to some who may have been searching for answers.
For now, Maya is on a full month regimen of antibiotics (to ensure the raw areas don't get infected), as well as two week courses each of anti-inflammatories and nerve pain relief meds. And the vet also prescribed a topical cream to soothe her raw patches. Please keep Maya in your prayers. As unlikely as it seems, I'm still hoping this might be a food allergy of sorts.
Why am I bringing this up now? And what could this possibly have to do with toe-tapping?
A few days ago, I noticed something slightly off with my girl Maya's movements. She was a little more hesitant with stepping up. Not, mind you, with her willingness to comply. It's actually something that someone who wasn't as deeply familiar with her as I am might not even have noticed. It was a fractional hesitation that bespoke some level of discomfort in her legs that she was trying valiantly to hide. And upon closer inspection, I noticed some raw areas on her feet, like they'd been itching and she was being a bit too vigorous with her beak. So I made an appointment with her avian vet.
The next night, she began to toe-tap.
Toe-tapping?!? Seriously?!? I just didn't understand. I don't free feed, but rather give two substantial meals of fresh chop everyday. The significance of this being I know exactly what she eats, every day. Neither of my birds wastes anything (unlike sweet Bixby, who was famous for tossing food EVERYWHERE!), and they finish all of their food. On top of this, I give them both a VERY varied and nutritionally complete diet.
The only other time there had been an episode of toe-tap was one day with Jolly, and I knew right away that it was due to a fruit combination I'd never done before. Raspberries and blueberries can apparently never occupy the same dish with him. But that was an anomaly. What was this?!?
Toe-tapping is almost always diet related, right? Either an excess of something, a deficiency in something else, or an allergy. Right?
Turns out, not always. Which is why I'm posting this thread, as painful as it is to consider.
Yesterday, the vet (a VERY knowledgeable avian vet named Dr. Kenneth Dazen) explained to me that the latest theory regarding toe-tapping is that it can have other possible causes as well. Specifically, it can be neurological in nature. You see, there are several strains of Avian Bornavirus (ABV). Either seven or nine. Only two of which can lead to the dreaded Proventricular Dilation Disease (PDD). PDD, btw, turns out to be something of a misnomer in some cases. PDD refers to a particular manifestation of this disease in which the proventriculus is dilated and food can no longer be digested and assimilated by the bird (as was the case with Bixby). That is when it attacks the autonomic nervous system.
But the disease can also attack the central or peripheral nervous systems as well. Bixby showed signs of all three. But early symptoms of a peripheral nervous system manifestation can include toe-tapping (and, I assume, wing-flipping as well, but I was honestly a bit too stricken by the potential ramifications to ask all the right questions.)
As you might imagine, this scared me half to death. It would kill me to have to watch my sweet Maya go through the hell that poor Bixby endured. The vet assured me, however, that it wasn't necessarily a situation that would go to that extreme. He actually has parrots that he has been treating with similar symptoms for over 20 years, now. Basically, a stressor (such as hormones or sickness) can trigger an ABV flare-up. When this happens, anti-inflammatories are given to bring down any swelling and relieve pain, managing the situation until the parrot gets past that particular episode.
He also surmised that Maya had been abrading her feet because she was feeling a tingling that was getting on her last nerve, hence the rawness. Now, we are still waiting for blood tests and such, so this isn't a definitive diagnosis, but he said that, considering the foods I'd listed, he seriously doubted it was anything even remotely diet-related. But he took blood, fecal smears, and swabs from the crop as well as far deeper into my poor birds than I'd have imagined. I'll hear the results by Wednesday.
He also explained that cases of stubborn toe-tapping, wherein a causative factor just could not be determined, might often be attributed to undiagnosed cases of ABV. And this is why I'm posting this thread, today. I've counseled so many of you on what the possible causes of your ekkie's toe-tapping and wing-flipping might have been, all the time unaware that there was another possible reason out there. For some of these ekkies, the answer might actually have been a need for a dose of anti-inflammatory meds. And it's important this is discovered and addressed early on in the manifestation stages.
Anyhow, for those of you who have trudged through this freakishly long post with me, thank you. And I hope this will be of some help to some who may have been searching for answers.
For now, Maya is on a full month regimen of antibiotics (to ensure the raw areas don't get infected), as well as two week courses each of anti-inflammatories and nerve pain relief meds. And the vet also prescribed a topical cream to soothe her raw patches. Please keep Maya in your prayers. As unlikely as it seems, I'm still hoping this might be a food allergy of sorts.
