Skittles goes *you know where* tomorrow!

[Skittys_Daddy]

Skittles goes to the vet tomorrow afternoon. I confirmed with my ride last night and I confirmed with the vet today. I'm excited to get it over with, lol. Despite the care I try so hard to give him throughout the year, with the way birds love to mask illness, you never know for sure til you have an exam.


I'm also going to ask the vet about the place over in Auburn (next town over). They would be a LOT closer and see birds. They do wellness exams as well as trims. BUT, I don't know (but don't think) they are a C.A.V. like the one I currently see. Certainly not as experienced either, but I'd still like to check into it in the event of an emergency etc. I still plan on sticking with the current vet.

 

[Scott]

You've done all of the preparation, should be an uneventful trip and hopefully great visit. Having a nearby "emergency" vet is helpful, hopefully never needed.

 

[saxguy64]

Where in Auburn? It would be great to have someone local in a pinch. Feel free to PM me if you don't want to post names on here. Either way, please let me know who it is. I wasn't aware of anyone near us.

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[AmyMyBlueFront]

Happy to hear your ride is keeping her promise!


Jim

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

Where in Auburn? It would be great to have someone local in a pinch. Feel free to PM me if you don't want to post names on here. Either way, please let me know who it is. I wasn't aware of anyone near us.

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Its the "Auburn Animal Center" on Center St. in Auburn. I don't know who the doctor is because I've never been there. The lady that replied to my email told me they do 'wellness exam's for $52 and they do wing/beak/nail trims for $50-$60 depending on the size of the bird.

The nearest "certified avian vet" to where I am is the Animal Hospital of South Gorham (which is where I take Skittles). They are extremely knowledgeable there and even do surgeries on avians. I don't know if the one in Auburn has a CAV or just a vet with 'some knowledge' of avians. But for those who only have the Auburn option, its better than nothing. Here is a link to the AAV website, just click on the "Find a vet" button on the right and enter your zip code and mile search. https://www.aav.org/

 

[saxguy64]

Thanks Skitty's Dad, I might check to see what their level of experience is for back up purposes. I'm pretty sure where you go in Gorham is the only CAVs we have in Maine. Though not a CAV to my knowledge, I do like Dr Munroe at Forrest Ave Vet in Portland.

BTW I live just outside of Lewiston, hence the curiosity over an avian vet of any kind close by. Emergencies happen.

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[Skittys_Daddy]

I'm gonna ask my vet today what they know about the place in Auburn. But I think you're right that the Gorham vets are the only ones in Maine. If there are any others, they'd be in the Bangor area. I did a search and the Gorham ones are the only ones I could find within a 100 mile range. There is another one in Portsmouth, NH but thats quite a ways away.

I had to take Peaches to the ER vet (different from the Auburn one) a long while back (before I got Skittles) because she had a night fright (tiels are known for those) and punctured her wing. They cleaned and bandaged her up and gave me some medicine for her but luckily I waited til I could contact Peaches reg. vet to make sure the dosage was right. It wasn't, but they fixed it.


That's really cool that you live in the surrounding area. I thought I was the only one from Maine here on the forums. lol.

 

[saxguy64]

I feel like I've seen another Mainer on here but they were way North or South of us, can't remember exactly.

Good luck with Skittles' appointment today, I'm sure he'll be just fine.

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[Allee]

I hope Skitty aces his exam today! Please let us know how it goes, Jonathan.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

Hey,

Just got back from the vet. He aced his exam. They love how calm he is when being examined. His heart rate was 220 (they allow up to 400 when stressed). The vet spread his wing out and he didn't resist and she said 'hes such a good bird'. I told her he has me do that all the time. Pull his wing out and scratch where the feather shaft attaches to the wing.

So everything was totally normal, including the gram stain. The ONLY issue is his weight. While he is rather big for a sunnie, his weight has always been around 120 and the normal range for sunnies is 100-120. She wants me to convert his diet from High Potency to Adult Lifetime because its less calories. She says he's a little 'pudgie'. He's 121grams and he was 119grams last year. I told her it was likely the juice, which is 100%. She told me to dilute it by the thirds (1/3 juice, 2/3 water) and cut the amount he gets in half. I hate doing that though, I like him having treats every now and then and he likes his morning juice. I'll do the diluting, but I don't want to cut back right off.

She said I am doing such a great job with him and that was great to hear. Its very validating. I asked about blood work and she said she didn't see any need for it at the moment. They usually do routine blood-work in geriatric birds or when there's an issue or suspected issue. So I held off on the bloodwork since I needed to get him some new food. I'm still gonna use what I have, just going to gradually transition. Or I may just mix the two and do that for a year and then next year see how hes doing.

 

[AmyMyBlueFront]

WTG Skittles!

 

[wrench13]

Good for you both - a clean bill of health lets you both sleep better at night. 1 CAV for all of Maine? LOL whag do you expect with a state that has like 65 people living in it! ( Sorry, could't resist).

 

[saxguy64]

Good for you both - a clean bill of health lets you both sleep better at night. 1 CAV for all of Maine? LOL whag do you expect with a state that has like 65 people living in it! ( Sorry, could't resist).

Awwwww come on now Al... We must have at least 75 lol! And anyone feel free to correct me, I think there's two CAVs, but both at the same practice.

Yay for the clean bill of health. Go Skittles! (And dad of course)

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[Scott]

Fantastic update, Skittles is so well adjusted! Hope the ride went off without a hitch. Now you can take a deep breath, job well done!!

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

Its actually the upper half of Maine (north of Augusta) that has 65 people. South of Augusta has 75. lol.

You are correct saxguy, the two CAVs in Maine are in the same practice. There used to be one in Yarmouth, but they aren't listed anymore.

I know that taking Skittles to the vet is always stressful for me because you truly never know til you get that 'all clear' given birds predisposition to mask illness. I do tend to be a bit OCD about him though and analyze and even over-analyze his daily behaviors but in all fairness, I've gotten much more reasonable about all of it.

I didn't realize how much I was stressing about this year until after I got home from the vet. It was like a huge weight was lifted off me.

I'm also relieved because I think the ride that took me this year will be willing to do it next year too (if they are able to healthwise).

Anyways, thank you all for the kind words and the congrats. Skittles was pretty tired when we got home. He was hungry most of all when we got back and pigged out (I put food in his travel cage but I think he was too pre-occupied with the surroundings).

While he let me pet him and give him scritches he wouldn't let me hold him and he wouldn't cuddle but after being wrapped and examined and the like I can't really blame him. At least he doesn't hold a grudge. lol.

 

[Allee]

Excellent update! Good job, Skittles! Happy to hear Skitty wasn’t hiding any secrets.

 

[dhraiden]

Good job Skittle and goodjob papa-skittles haha.

LOL what do you expect with a state that has like 65 people living in it!

Wrench, we've got the opposite problem down here, lol..wouldn't mind a good CAV turning up in the heart of Queens tho'. Let us know how Skittles likes the dietary change.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

Skittles was back to his old self today. He kept flying over to me to snuggle. He was a total snuggle-monster today. It was almost overkill. lol. I didn't get nothing done. lol. But I feel better with him back to being all affectionate. I figured he was put-off yesterday because of being examined and I'm glad that was it.

I think he's happier now too since he had a beak polish and trim.

I started the diluting the juice by halfs and he still likes it (I'm supposed to go down to 1/3 juice and 2/3 water but I tried that and he didn't like it. So I'll do 1/2 now and maybe more later). I'm gonna monitor his weight with the juice reduction and see how much of an effect that has.

Given that he's free flighted and gets PLENTY of exercise, I don't want his weight to become an issue. I don't want to "love him into an early grave", but at the same time I don't want him to be totally without 'treats' either. But if I'm being totally honest, I've been a little bit naughty with him when it comes to that, so I need to tighten the reigns a bit. I just need to do it in small stages for both of our benefits.

I'm gonna try the diet change first along with the 1/2s of the juice and then go from there. I bought the new food in both sizes (fine & coarse) since he likes to eat the Fine in his cage and the Coarse when he's out and usually thats what I give him. This way, I'll know if he likes it or doesn't.

 

[saxguy64]

Hey just a thought on weight. If Skitty is flighted and in good shape, muscle mass is heavier than fat, so a strong muscular bird will be a little heavier than a comparable sized perch potato. Very happy he's back to being himself!

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[Skittys_Daddy]

Thats a good point. I just don't think he's overweight to be honest. I mean, if i could not feel his breastbone, that'd be one thing but it puzzles me because if anything I think he's underweight cause it doesn't feel like there's much there. I mean he's not malnourished or anything, he just doesn't have a 'pudgy' that I can see.

I may weigh him using my own scale and see what the results are. I wasn't in the room when they weighed him (and they normally do it when I'm in the room and they do the exam) but this year they did it when they did the trims.
That being said, his vet knows he's free flighted and out of the cage all the time and I think thats more where her concern comes from. The more weight they have to carry when they fly, the more of a toll it takes on their body. But she said his heart rate was perfect and his lungs were crystal clear. (They better be, I have an air purifier right next to his day cage) lol