I got this super-cool slate for Lancers at PetSlates.com You can see a larger view by clicking on it, or here. My Miracle Bird, Lancelot My baby cockatoo, Lancelot, is a very lucky bird. Lucky, because even though the odds of her living were not good, she is still here. She hatched on May 28, 1996 at 3:45 PM, in the back room of Newhall Pet Center, in Valencia. She was a very strong little baby. That same day I got two baby senegal parrots who were only a day old. I had made an arrangement with another breeder to feed these birds until they were two weeks old. I placed them in Lance's brooder. They were kept in separate containers, but shared the same humid air supply. The two baby Senegal parrots came from someone who I assumed was reputable. Well, unfortunately, my good faith in her almost cost my eleanora cockatoo her life (however I do take responsibility for my bad judgment in placing her birds with mine). The first scare happened that night, around nine or ten PM. I could not believe what was a strong vigorous baby senegal parrot just hours ago now lay still. Not only was I upset about the fact I that I could have been responsible for the killing the baby, I was also worried that I wasn't. Either way, I knew there would be something bad coming. I called the breeder and asked her to take back the other baby. I was getting directions to her place when her husband broke in and said they would meet me somewhere (looking back, that should have been my first clue to what the outcome would be). We met halfway between their place and mine, and I gave her both babies. She said she was going to have the baby necropsied the next day, and that she would get back to me as soon as she knew the reason the baby died. It seemed tome the couple was making it quite clear that I would hear from them, and not to bother them by calling to find out the results. Two days later I was really starting to worry. My little Lancelot was not gaining any weight. I took her to Capri Plaza Pet Clinic and had her checked out by Dr. Weiss. After examining her, he put her on Baytril and Nystatin (and I still had no word from the other breeder). Five days later, now the seventh day of Lancelot's life, I noticed something seriously wrong. That night, her left eye was practically bulging out of its tiny little socket. She had gained some weight, but not as much as she should have. I took her in to Capri Pet Clinic the next morning. This time Lancelot saw Dr. Rupiper (he is my regular vet there and I trust him). He was obviously not happy with what he saw. Lance had still not gained much weight. Her huge eye was now closer to normal size, but it had a small off-white splotch under the still-closed lid that was clearly not supposed to be there. The splotch was an abscess, and he could not remove it. I told him about the senegals, and asked if he had seen them. Well, he had; both babies had died from Pseudomonas Bacteria (and still no word from the breeder). Obviously Lancelot had it too. Dr. Rupiper discussed the options with me, and being a person who likes to see animals live, we went ahead with trying to cure the problem. He gave me Ticarcillin, which I had to inject into her tiny little body every eight hours for ten days. Well, I took the duties of Lancelot's medications quite seriously. Exactly every eight hours I gave her a shot, which meant I was waking up in the middle of the night not only to feed her, but to medicate her as well. I was also doing other things for Lancelot. I wanted to be sure I was doing everything I could to save my baby. I was giving her Super Blue-Green Algae (not spirulina), Acidophillus, Bifidus, and Enzymes (all by Cell Tech). The algae is very high in all the necessary vitamins, minerals, and amino acids (it also has more beta-carotene than spirulina). I gave her the Acidophillus, Bifidus, and enzymes to take some work off her digestive system, since the medications would be killing off the beneficial bacteria also. After each shot I would also put my little "pincushion" under a ceramic (infrared) heating element (Pearlco, by Ram Network) for twenty to thirty minutes. I did this because I was once told that it helps heal bruises. Let me tell you, her little legs could only take so many pokes before they started bruising (she didn't have much to inject into on her frail little chest). The Pearlco worked wonders. I would alternate legs, and by the time the one leg was being injected again, the bruise was already gone! And of course, I prayed for a miracle. Even though I was religious with Lance's medications, by the eighth day I knew it was not over yet. She had grown quite a bit, but she still just was not all there. She still had the abscess on her left eye, but at least it was not getting worse. Dr. Rupiper took Lancelot in the back again and checked out her eye. He told me that it looked like the abscess was attached to the cornea, and that he couldn't take it out. She still might loose the eye, she still might get another abscess, and blind babies don't wean. It was looking pretty bad. He switched my little cockatoo over to Pipercillin for ten days, still every eight hours. My poor little pincushion! Lance did fairly well over the next few weeks. Her left eye had some difficulty opening, so I would put a small amount of Terramycin on it to help "keep it lubed." It seemed to help. I took her in to see Dr. Rupiper quite a few times because I was always so worried. On one of the visits, I told him the abscess had moved. He took Lancelot into the back, and when he brought her back, there was no more abscess! Lance is blind on the left side and has a small, sunken-in looking eye, but it doesn't seem to bother her. She never has seen out of that eye, so I suspect she doesn't know she should. She had several toe constricture surgeries (she had two affected toes). We managed to save one, but even after the most valiant efforts, one ended up being removed. Because she was so sick, my cockatoo is also smaller than what is normal for her species. Lance has been vaccinated for pacheco's and polyoma virus. She has had more tests, medications, and problems than I can remember. She has passed undigested food ever since she started eating on her own (Pseudomonas affects the digestive system). I put her on Lafeber's pellets and lots of fresh foods. Dr. Rupiper had me put Lance on a high carbohydrate diet because some tests indicated she has a bad pancreas. She has also had X-rays, which indicated she might have something wrong with her liver too. We still don't know exactly what is wrong with Lancelot. The only thing left to do is biopsies of her organs (except her pancreas because its too risky). When the time comes I will have the biopsies done, but I don't feel the risk justifies it yet. For now I'm going to enjoy Lance for what she is. I love my little cockatoo... even though she is small and missing a few parts. Lance is the miracle bird. She is very special, not only because she lived when life was against her, but because she is so different from my other birds. She even lays down on my chest with her legs stretched back and head down while we watch TV. I never thought something like this could happen to me. Unfortunately, I learned this lesson the hard way. Almost two weeks before Lancelot's first birthday I accidentally ran into the senegal breeder. She told me that the problem came from her incubator. She blames the incubator (which was brand new). Since Pseudomonas lives in water, my guess would be that the problem was the water she added to the incubator for humidity, not the incubator itself. All the birds she hatched with it died. I briefly told her what happened to Lancelot, and either she was not listening, or she just blew it off. Either way, I just wish she would accept some responsibility and apologize. Q: What is white, has a banana on its head, seven toes and walks to the right? A: Lancelot! Written May 19, 1997 Thank you Dr. Rupiper, for saving my Little Lady Lancelot's life... you are the best! I'm sure many of you know how hard it can be to find a good vet that you can trust with your bird (and your wallet...). Well, it was a very sad day for me when I found out mine was relocating... 7 hours away from where I am now. Fortunately, the other vets at the clinic he was at are great, so I'm not panicked about finding a new vet or anything, but well, I thought I'd put in my 2 cents for my good friend Dr. Rupiper. He is without a doubt the most kind & considerate (and ethical) vet I've ever met, and is absolutely excellent with birds. Those of you who live anywhere near Petaluma, CA might want to check out his place... its at East Petaluma Animal Hospital, 1420-B South McDowell Blvd., Petaluma, CA 94954 and the number there is 707-765-9098. Be sure to tell him Jill & Lancelot said hi (pout!!) Thanks Gene! Visit Avian Companions Please also visit Lancers at Feathered Fun