Beak issue

[taxidermynerd]

Been thinking about you and Chirp. How's Chirp doing now?

He seems to be in good spirits, thank you for asking. He's been taking naps regularly throughout the day (which he never used to do before he got sick). He's been flying lots, playing with toys, yelling angrily (as per usual) and being mad when I try to put his ointment on.

His weight is holding at around 30 grams. He's eating well. The inside of his mouth is bloody again I think, this morning when I was putting on the ointment he grabbed the q-tip in his beak, and when he dropped it there was blood on it. So there's that. We see the vet in 3 days.

Here is my recipe for Chirp's mash. He gets this every day.

Ingredients:
1 tbsp of Zupreem pellets
1 tbsp of water
2-3 drops of flax oil
1 senior nutriberry, crumbled

Steps:
1. Add the water to your bird's food bowl.
2. Add the drops of flax oil. Mix well with the water.
3. Add the crumbled senior nutriberry to the water mixture.
4. Add the 1 tbsp of pellets to the bowl. Mix well.
5. Let sit, until the water is mostly absorbed.
6. Serve!

 

[taxidermynerd]

Chirp says hello, looking like a soft cotton ball.

 

[fashionfobie]

He looks SO soft.

I hope you are feeling a little better Chirp.

 

[Mockinbirdiva]

He's beautiful! I love his coloring.

 

[Rain Bow]

He's very beautious in his little fluffy manner! I'm really glad to hear he's being a little spitfire.

 

[taxidermynerd]

We saw the vet today. They did another beak trim, although they didn't have to take as much off.

We talked, the vet says that his beak looks better on the outside, but on the inside she described it as crumbly. I guess it's oozing blood. She was worried about any kind of fungus or bacteria, so she did an oral smear and a fecal smear. Both came back clean, but I guess she saw what looks like a bacterial infection in the upper beak inside, so she sent us home with a general antibiotic, twice a day orally for 2 weeks.

Also she mentioned the (very small) possibility of PBFD. I guess we will test for that too at some point in the near future. She really doesn't think it is, since he is otherwise pretty healthy and he's not around other birds. But it's better safe than sorry. This is the point where she left the room to go read the results of Chirp's fecal and oral tests, and immediately after she left I started sobbing. I'm sure y'all understand how scary the possibility of PBFD is.

She also said that the split on his beak is pretty much grown out, so I don't need to give that ointment anymore. So now it's the flax oil, the milk thistle, and the antibiotic.

We go back in 2 weeks.

 

[zoo mom]

Sounds like Chirp is improving. I hope he continues to improve.

 

[Sarahmoluccan]

I hope things keep improving in the couple of weeks. Hopefully the inside of Chirp's beak gets better. I wish you all the best. Its so sad how this all started. Infuriating really. I feel for you Bee and your dear Chirp

 

[Rain Bow]

I'm getting caught up on about 30 pgs of alerts. I'm so sorry hon, I know how nervous you must be about the PBFB. When will they be testing & when should you know the results?

 

[taxidermynerd]

Just got the first dose in him. It's only 0.01ml, so it goes by fast. But he was still thoroughly bamboozled, lol. It doesn't smell too bad, hopefully it tastes okay for his sake.

 

[taxidermynerd]

I'm getting caught up on about 30 pgs of alerts. I'm so sorry hon, I know how nervous you must be about the PBFB. When will they be testing & when should you know the results?

I'm not sure. On the price estimate she showed that she'd have to ship it out to have it done. I don't know how that's gonna go, I guess we'll see what she says next visit.

 

[Ripshod]

Now that she has mentioned PBFD you'll have to have the test done, even for your own peace of mind.
I'm just catching up with this thread, lots of 'likes' to dish out, Chirp certainly seems to have been through the wringer.

 

[finchly]

It's good that she's covering every possibility, no matter how insignificant it seems. I know this scares you to death (even mentioning PBFD in front of Chirp~!) but you have a great vet it seems.

I wish I had knowledge but I don't, all I can offer is comfort. You remember when I thought Sprite might have it and I freaked totally out. LOL he didn't have it.

If the medicine seems to taste bad, there are people here who can tell you what to mix it with for a better taste.

 

[taxidermynerd]

Just gave dose 2. He doesn't seem to hate it. He sat on my shoulder for a bit, chewing on my hair.

 

[taxidermynerd]

Got dose 3 in him about an hour ago, I think it smells like bubblegum a bit. Like children's motrin kinda. He's a grumpy butt when it comes to his meds, but he tolerates them.

 

[taxidermynerd]

Gave dose 4. He's very well behaved thus far today!

 

[JoJo&Loki]

Chirp is such a little trooper

I’m glad to hear he’s doing a little better. Sorry about the PBFD scare- hopefully that is not the case, but I know you won’t relax until you know for sure. I agree with @finchly - your vet sounds amazing! Chirp is getting the best care possible and has a wonderful parront to boot. No doubt you are giving him the best possible chance for a good outcome here!

He’s such a beautiful little guy, I’ll keep sending him healing thoughts!!

 

[Nikomania]

I'm glad to hear that Chirp is getting better. Sounds like you have an excellent vet for your baby.
I adore this pic. Such a pretty little one!

 

[Rain Bow]

Gave dose 4. He's very well behaved thus far today!

I like this pic, Mr. Chirp looks chill to me. Relaxed. Buddy hated getting meds but that was back when he was fairly new to stepping up on me & toweling was an act of terror & me arguing irrationally w/ a bird that was enguinlaughs:laughing @ me.

 

[taxidermynerd]

I like this pic, Mr. Chirp looks chill to me. Relaxed. Buddy hated getting meds but that was back when he was fairly new to stepping up on me & toweling was an act of terror & me arguing irrationally w/ a bird that was enguinlaughs:laughing @ me.

I give him his antibiotic every 12 hours, give or take half an hour. So I do it right before he gets up, and right after he goes to bed. I make sure everything is dark, so he will be willing to step onto my finger, and then I can transfer him to a critter carrier and take him to the bathroom. It's not a perfect method, but it allows me to minimize the stress he's experiencing, minimize how much he hates me, and get the meds in him, which is the most important part.

Once he realizes what's going on, he's not happy. You should have heard him at the vet the other day, they took him in back to do the exam and beak trim, then they brought us into the room. I could hear him yelling out in the waiting area. He doesn't like when hands reach into the carrier, and he hates the vet. He's just an angry little man overall. But he deals with it, I think he knows that it's important. But man, he gives some mean looks. If looks could kill!!

Gonna give dose 5 in a hot minute here.