Urgent Blood loss in parrots

[Sandra Wadhams]

Hi all. Just wondering if someone can tell me how much blood loss is fatal to a blue fronted Amazon???
Mine has cut foot that has been dripping blood and I think he's lost about 1-2 teaspoons so far...

 

[Rolanda]

Have you stopped the bleeding? Please get him to a vet.

 

[Sandra Wadhams]

Yes bleeding stopped but he is looking very sad.. sitting low on perch leaning against seed bowl.. not eating or drinking... I was told to put cornflour on cut which seems to have worked.

 

[macawpower58]

How did the injury happen. I'm wondering if you're seeing shock as well as blood loss.

How bad is the cut? Small or a gaping wound?

Is there a vet you can go to or at least call? An avian vet is what you need.

Please give a little more info so other members can best advise you of emergency steps to take.

 

[Sandra Wadhams]

Cut is only small couple of millimeters I think difficult to say exactly as it's on the under side ..like in a crease of palm ...don't know how it h happened can't see anything in the cage that has caused it.. I think he's suffering from shock too as he isn't hand tame and I had to grab him with a towel to find out where he was bleeding from which must have been frightening to.. no vet close to me that deals with birds. Had to phone 4 surgeries to find out about t h e cornflour/starch thing..

 

[Laurie]

I hope he is okay. I recently read in a book written by a vet that birds can sustain much more blood loss than mammals. Even up to 50% which would obviously be traumatic and way more than your situation.

Here is what the book, The Complete Bird Owners Handbook, by Gary A. Gallerstein DMV, says:

Blood volume and Blood loss: Blood volume is the total amount of blood in the body. I accounts for 6.5 to 10 percent of the total body weight - in other words, 6.5 -10 milliliters for each 100 grams of body weight. A healthy bird can very easily lose 10 percent of its blood volume without any danger. Losses of 20-30 percent are relatively easily tolerated. A strong otherwise healthy bird can even sustain a loss of 50 percent or slightly more and survive.

There is also a chart that says a teaspoon or 90 drops of blood is about a 10% blood lose for a 450 gram Amazon.

Personally, unless you are catching the blood and measuring it. Blood usually looks like a lot more than it actually is.

I hope this helps and I hope your bird recovers quickly.

If the bleeding is stopped you should keep an eye on it to make sure that it does not start again. You also need to keep it clean and watch out for infection over the next few days.

I have had several minor cuts with my birds and not had any infections. If it is one the foot you should make sure that they cage is very, very clean just to help prevent bacteria from entering.

 

[sunnysmom]

Although this is a website about cockatiels, you might find some of the info helpful: Cockatiels and Medical Emergencies, First Aid for Birds, flying accidents, broken wings and beaks, bleeding, broken bones,
fractures, animal bites, frostbite, overheating, shock, what is shock, First Aid for Birds,
how to remove oil from bird feathers, oily feathers, Cockatiel First Aid and First Aid Kits, Cockatiels Emergency Medical Treatments Also, you can try giving your bird some pedialyte to help get some of his energy back up from the blood loss.

 

[iamwhoiam]

My vet recently told me that birds can lose up to 50% of blood volume which surprised me. Kuiper had blood loss last week and also this past Sunday due to blood feathers breaking. His vet gave him an iron injection to boost blood cell production but that's because Kuiper lost a lot of blood for his size.
Recheck the cage carefully to make sure there is nothing that he could have caught his foot on. You want to make sure that there is no redness or swelling because that could be a sign of infection. You may need to apply an antiseptic/antibiotic. I use Vetericyn wound and skin care, the hyrdrogel version. The important thing is that the bleeding is stopped so that's good.
Hope all will be well with your Amazon.

 

[Tiel Feathers]

Hope your Amazon will be okay, please keep us updated!

 

[karen256]

What I've heard is that 10% of a bird's weight is blood, and they can safely have up to 10% of their blood drawn for testing. They can survive greater blood loss, though. So... a 400 gram Amazon could safely lose 4 grams of blood or a little less than a teaspoon. If his foot has not stopped bleeding, then you really need to get him to the vet as soon as possible... even a non avian vet could probably patch up his foot in an emergency. Until then, try to stay calm, it will help him to stay calm and minimize blood loss.. put him in a smaller cage or carrier and cover the sides to help keep him calm. Make sure he has plenty of water, offer some juice or fruit if he likes that also.
If the foot has stopped bleeding, then just keep him calm and check in on him every now and then to be sure it hasn't started bleeding. Keep an eye on his foot. A vet check is still a good idea to be sure it is healing well.