Worried about Thea

[SilleIN]

I haven't been here for a few weeks, but hope to get some help with Thea.

As some knows I received Thea from less than optimal living conditions.

She has been a sweetheart and she has been improving her flight skills. She has however had a problem with her feet from day one. She seemed to be having difficulties in perching on anything larger than her rope.

Yesterday I moved her (and Sofus) to another cage. The cage has a lot of small perches (formerly inhabited by Illigers macaws) so I didn't think to move her rope to the other cage. This morning she was fine, but this evening I found her at the bottom of the cage (the cages are open during the day, so she never left the cage). She is unable to walk on her right leg. She was sitting very still and didn't make a sound.

I have given her some apple and some handrearing formula and she ate both. I will be taking her to the vet in the morning (it's past midnight here). I am worried that there is more wrong with her, than just "bad feet".

I have heard from friends of her former family, that she was very aggressive and they had great problems with her (things I have only learned after I got her). Here she's a complete sweetheart, but I don't really ask anything of her. She really just wants to sit on me all day.

My mind is racing right now. Is there any known parrot/ekkie illness, that would give them bad coordination, poor sight (just a hunch, she seems to not see well) and difficulty in closing/locking her feet?

 

[Kentuckienne]

I don’t know anything about Ekkies but I’m sure one of the exerts will chime in. I hope it’s nothing awful. The main thing I’ve picked up in ekkie health threads is that low calcium is common and has serious side effects.

 

[chris-md]

Wow poor Thea and poor you! I know this has to be so distressing.

I’m thinking of you all. Please keep us updated as you learn more

 

[Scott]

Cannot think of a simple reason for her foot problem. Just read your initial adoption thread for Thea; what a sweetie. You've definitely been chosen. Hopefully this is nothing serious.

 

[SilleIN]

I went to the vet and she has a sprained joint. He thinks she has been climbing in her cage and lost her grip in one foot and sprained the other foot. She is now on "bed rest" and pain relief.

He also thought that a combination of muscle atrofy and poor coordination due to inactivity. He did not think there was any other underlying issue. That has put my mind a bit at ease.

I am however glad I posted this, as her former diet was colourful pelleted diet with quite low levels of calsium. All my birds has sepia shells accessable to them at all times, but she may not know how to use them. I will make sure she either starts gnawing at the shells or I will grind some over her daily food ration. At any rate to up her calsium intake cannot be a bad thing.

I am also thinking I might need to treat her a bit more like the pluckers I get in. They all get a healthy dose of calsium, protein and beta-karotine. As Thea hasn't shown any sign of plucking issues, I didn't think to take out the big "care package".

I really love the responses I get in here. They are always helpful. Thank you for that you guys.

So the plan forward will be as follows: "Bed rest" and pain relief from the vet. Up the calsium and protein levels in her food ( she gets Deli Nature Fruit Pate- which is a soft diet mainly made up of semi-dried fruit and veggies)

Any other advise I should be trying out?

 

[Scott]

Pellets are almost universally considered a poor diet for Eclectus. A combination of high nutrient potency and a longer than typical digestive tract make pellets a sort of vitamin/mineral overdose.

 

[Anansi]

Sorry I'm just seeing this. First I want to belatedly congratulate you on the addition of Thea to your household! She hit the lottery getting you as a parront, and it certainly seems that you've hit the lottery yourself with such a sweet and loving bird.

As for diet, here's a link to the site that I pretty much consider the Ekkie Dietary Bible: http://www.eclectusparrots.net/diets.html

That site is filled to bursting with great info, and I'd suggest reading every sub-section. It's all relevant and will help get you on the right track so far as her diet is concerned.

I'm glad the vet thinks it's "only" a sprain and some muscle atrophy/coordination issues. In your care, I don't doubt she'll recover her full mobility and grip strength.

As for your question about what such symptoms might have indicated (purely academic now, given the vet's diagnosis), there are actually a number of potential culprits. Lack of coordination and weakened grip can be symptoms of neurological issues (the neurological variant of PDD, for instance, is one of several diseases that might have had such effects).
The weakened grip could also have come from kidney inflammation, as the kidneys in birds are located to either side of the sciatic nerves. So when the kidneys get inflamed and swell they begin to constrict those nerves, weakening the nerve signals to the lower extremities and compromising grip strength.

Arthritis could also have explained the weakened grip, as well as severe toe tap.

That's all that springs to mind at the moment. But as I said, a purely academic exercise. The actual diagnosis is a far cheerier one.

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