Bird heart health question

[AGS]

So I should start this out by saying I have really bad anxiety... My brain usually picks something to worry about when it comes to my bird and is obsessed with it until I can prove nothing’s wrong. I think I’ve thought Widget (a cockatiel, by the way) had kidney/liver disease 5+ times now and he never did. Currently I have anxiety that he has some sort of heart condition.

My question is, could a cockatiel have some sort of heart disease for 2-3+ years with no new symptoms? Widget has had “symptoms” for that amount of time but has never really had any issues besides that. The “symptoms” I mention could totally be made up by my anxiety so there could be no actual symptoms at all.

I always think he’s lethargic/low energy but it’s more like he’s just bored because if I get him something fun to do he wastes no time running to go play. He doesn’t like typical bird toys/enrichment so it’s difficult to make sure he’s not bored. I also sometimes think his toes turn blue but at the time they’re “blue” if I hold him up to the light/at a different angle they don‘t look blue. I have some photos of him on his perch where his toes look solid blue but it’s really just a shadow from being curled around the perch. So you can see my brain likes to make up things sometimes and it’s really hard for me to tell what’s real and what’s paranoia.

By the way, he’s been to the vet many times in that time frame I mentioned. They always listen to his heart/lungs but he has never had x-rays, only bloodwork. I plan on getting him x-rayed next time I bring him in for a check up but currently the vet is only allowing drop-offs due to the coronavirus so I’m trying to avoid taking him in if possible because even with me being there at the visit he is traumatized, so having them take him away from me for 1 hour+ could actually hurt him physically from stress/fear. Especially if he did actually have something wrong with his heart.

 

[Shezbug]

What do you plan on x raying for? Normally when one does an X-ray they’re looking for something in particular.

Could be a good idea to share what your birds diet is- lots of birds develop health issues due to poor or nutritionally unbalanced diet.

 

[Mizzely]

I could be wrong, but I feel like heart and kidney problems show up pretty readily with bloodwork and a physical exam. I don't think I'd want to put my bird under sedation for x-rays without anything else pointing to that as the next step.

 

[AGS]

Shezbug, just based on what I’ve researched x-rays are usually the next step after bloodwork and the physical exam for diagnosing heart problems. He eats pellets, some seeds, and veggies (greens, and just a mix of other veggies). I’m not sure what he ate prior to me adopting him.

Mizzely, kidney problems definitely do. I will definitely discuss with the vet whether they feel it’s necessary or not. But heart problems don’t always show up in a physical exam or with bloodwork. Not every heart condition will affect bloodwork results and just listening to their heart they can miss things because of their fast heartbeat. I’d definitely see what the vet wants to do though because I don’t want to hurt him by trying to help him if there’s nothing actually wrong.

 

[taxidermynerd]

@Hankmacaw is very knowledgeable, maybe she'll have something to chime in.

 

[Hankmacaw]

My Jasper has had severe heart disease for at least 21 years - that's when I got her was 21 years ago. Her symptoms were extreme lethargy, heavy breathing after minimal exercise and not recovering quickly, fast weight gain from fluid retention and sleeping a lot. I didn't know what was wrong, but I knew something was wrong. She had been to vets three or four times and they thought it was an infection until an xray was done.

Xrays can be helpful in diagnoses, but that depends on the type of heart disease and the skill of the person who interprets the xray. The Dr. who looked at her xray was the only animal heart expert in Arizona, at the time.

I have never had an emotional handicap so I can't say how yours works into your anxiety about your bird's symptoms (or lack thereof). I recommend that you watch for the above symptoms and write down every occurrence or non-occurrence and take some time to determine if any of these symptoms are really present. Then make a decision as to whether to take him to the Dr. or not.

 

[enigma731]

I have a tiel who's had an asymptomatic heart murmur for years. So the short answer is yes, it's possible. However, if no symptoms then probably also nothing that needs to be treated.

 

[AGS]

Thank you all for the help. I don’t really notice any of those symptoms. Possibly the sleeping but he also seems to be just bored. I’m ordering a new branch for the wall for him which I had before and was one of the few things that he enjoyed doing so hopefully that gets him moving again. Had to throw the old one away because it was falling apart.

I would say the one symptom that worries me a lot is the blue toes. Sometimes it does seem like just weird lighting but other times I really can’t tell. Do you know if it’s possible that if his toes actually are blue, that it could just be from the cold? It’s just the very tip of his toe, the part that is wider than the rest of the toe. I do notice it more after he’s been sitting on his food bowl or perches which both get pretty cold even if the room temp isn’t that low. I know it can happen in people and birds seem to be more sensitive to that so I don’t know if it could just be the cold.

 

[Goose22]

I have a tiel who's had an asymptomatic heart murmur for years. So the short answer is yes, it's possible. However, if no symptoms then probably also nothing that needs to be treated.

hello, what are the signs and symptoms of a bird that has heart murmur? thank you so much!

 

[Mizzely]

hello, what are the signs and symptoms of a bird that has heart murmur? thank you so much!

This member has not been around since November 2020 and is unlikely to reply, sadly!