Zilla's Prognosis Maybe Good/Maybe bad

[Taw5106]

I'm glad to see she is improving. Regarding the iceberg lettuce, I understand that birds get fluids from other sources like the lettuces, fresh fruit and veg. Sounds like it is all good. I'm glad things are looking up and she's making toothpicks, always a great sign, lol. Im looking for more good news, keep it coming!

 

[Kiwibird]

How's Zilla doing today?

 

[Amanda_Bennett]

How's Zilla doing today?

Thank you for asking Kiwibird!

Zilla is being a normal zon today (if zons can be normal) she dove head first into breakfast as usual and ate most of what I gave her, except what she flung at Simon of course! She has so much fun flinging things at him I think it has become a morning ritual (mostly because he jumps like she is throwing acid at him) I have to agree with her, it's super funny!

She ADORED the whole star anise I gave her yesterday! And the whole living room smelt like black licorice for a couple hours after she finished it.

She had a shower this morning (she doesn't really like them but isn't afraid of them) but she feels so much better after one that I get her to take them at least twice a week. She doesn't get very wet, but it's enough. I am keeping the living room warm for her so she doesn't get a chill.

I wish I could use a mister (spray bottle) on her, but she is terrified of them! I found out her previous owners used to spray her when she was being "too" loud, so she associates them with punishment.

We go to the vet in a couple hours and I hope we can have some sort of definitive diagnosis in the next day or two.

She hasn't had any more of the mini seizures since Monday afternoon. I'm taking that as a very good sign that maybe we are wrong about zinc poisoning???

 

[JerseyWendy]

Good luck a the vet, Amanda!

I tell you something, Zilla surely hit the JACKPOT when you brought her home. She could have NEVER asked for a better parront.

If Zilla is afraid of the spray bottle, you may want to try to spray it upwards, so when the water comes down, it falls on her ever so gently, but the nozzle won't be pointed directly at her if you do it that way. Many Amazons like listening to music, too, while getting bathed. Both of mine really get into while we're jamming away.

 

[Amanda_Bennett]

After the game of "You can't catch me, You can't make me" she insisted on playing for 20 minutes, we were almost late for our vet appointment!!!!:11:

She has figured out her cage is as tall as I am and if she runs to the back and hides behind the blocks hanging from the swinging gym I can't reach her! By the time I can go around the back she can be around the front out of reach again. Maybe it's my own fault since I let her stay out after her shower to play and dry off in the warmer air up higher in the room. I won't make that mistake again anytime soon!

The vet found NOTHING wrong! There are a couple tests we won't have the results back for until tomorrow, but so far NOTHING is out of the "normal" range.

Dr. had called the people who had her for the last 6 years and got the information on all 5 vets she has been to in that amount of time. Called those vets and got their records faxed over. Found out she has had 5 different antibiotic injections since April (including the one given to her when I took her in for the respiratory infection) and a total of 8 different oral antibiotics (including the one I had to give her) They admitted to never finishing any of them, just stopped giving them when she was acting better and fighting harder about taking them. And that doesn't even count what she was given before April of this year!!!

Looked over the scans and xrays that were done back in April. Nothing wrong! She wanted her own xrays, found nothing! Took a poo sample, nothing, more blood, so far nothing!

If the test results come back tomorrow with nothing wrong Dr. said we might just have to chock this all up to the stress of being taken out of the home she had been in for 6 years and given to someone she didn't know who only kept her for 8 days then gave her to me, who she also didn't know. I took her the very next day for a well bird check, then to have her wings and nails done. Then she got a respiratory infection and I had to take her in (1 emergency visit and 2 follow up visits)and give her meds before she really got comfortable with me. Then I had her in this last Monday for the diarrhea and not acting like she felt good.

This might all be stress related (I know I'm stressed) But if she has more symptoms Dr. said to bring her back and she would check her out again.

She thinks the fresh cranberries and star anise are a good idea, just don't overdue. She is eating about 70% fresh veggies, fruits & rices now, 20% seeds, 10% pellets. Dr. is fine with that, as long as she is getting a variety and not just the same things everyday. I make sure she gets different things everyday. Some she eats, some she flings, but at least she has fun with her food right?

 

[Taw5106]

Hey no bad news is great news and it sounds like the stinker is feeling better. Frustrating I know but she's got a great parront!!

 

[RavensGryf]

Great news but it's frustrating not finding anything after the symptoms. I'm really hoping it's just her individual reaction to stress, and nothing more!
Fortunately it does sound like you have a very competent avian vet which is great.

 

[Kiwibird]

You know what, at least you KNOW now nothing is "wrong" with Zilla. That's a VERY good thing! Thank goodness she doesn't have heavy metal poisoning, unspeakable infections, organ damage from poor diet or any of the many many things birds her age and history do. Sometimes our feathered friends have a day of runny poops or the weather on the moon makes them act off And I think as you get to know Zilla better, you will know better what is and isn't "normal" for her.

Back when we first got Kiwi, I was a bit jumpy with calling the vet because he did come home with a infection that the vet suspected he had for a long time and was underweight. I noticed the first few weeks after he was given the all clear, he would be active and playing and all of a sudden, he'd be fast asleep None of my parents birds ever did that, so I took him in for the vet to run more tests and honestly thought when all came back fine that Kiwi might have "narcolepsy":52: The vet was almost laughing (not in a rude way or anything) when he explained some birds just act like that and nothing was wrong with him. Now that we've had Kiwi for years, I know that is a totally normal thing for him, among other odd quarks that aren't dire health issues, just him being a weirdo And I think we ALL have occasional freak outs about funny poops:31: It's like the curse of parrot owners and all us nervous poo watchers probably pay the AVs to drive Mercedes lol Just be glad sweet Zilla is healthy, happy and a normal (i.e. weird by nature) feisty zon!

 

[Amanda_Bennett]

Great news but it's frustrating not finding anything after the symptoms. I'm really hoping it's just her individual reaction to stress, and nothing more!
Fortunately it does sound like you have a very competent avian vet which is great.

Super frustrating, not to mention expensive, and stressful for poor Zilla!

Of course as Kiwibird said, this could just all be "normal" for her. Leave it to me to get the abnormal "normal" bird

I'm also making a note to NEVER EVER stress Zilla out if this is how she handles it!