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Urgent Cockatiel cataract?

Bird Mumma

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Hi everyone,

I’m new here. Found your wonderful site when researching my Oscie’s eye issue.

My rescue cockatiel came to me with special needs three years ago. He/she (will find out in a few days!) was said to have had a stroke, thereby losing the right eye. So his/her left eye is even more important and the vision in this eye has only ever been partial/light/shade/movement.

Oscie manages just fine and I make sure to talk a great deal, make everything routine and keep the cage arrangement the same etc.

Just over a week ago, my cockatiel’s behaviour changed. The good eye was lidded much more, so seemed sleepy to me. The good eye seemed to have a cloudy appearance. Not much interest in food and fairly frequent yawning action. Straight to the avian vet.

Oscie was diagnosed with a bacterial infection in the crop. No other infection so started a course of antibiotics. Bloods were fairly unexciting, except for a liver value which was elevated (6 instead of a range of 0-2). Is now on 0.01ml of St Marys’s Thistle twice a day; bloods to be repeated at the three week mark. The good eye was said to have a cataract. I contacted an ophthalmologist who advised that they do not operate on cockatiels due to the anaesthetic required and the size of the bird.

Oscie is much more him/herself now BUT strangely the good eye is looking different to what I would expect. The cloudy white seems to look angular rather than round like you would expect with a cataract. I know I shouldn’t doubt the vet (esp given the amount of money I’ve paid!!) BUT I’m just not sure. I’ve attached a few photos which I think are pretty clear. Would love some advice/input, please.

Many thanks!! BE7FA133-9749-4288-B740-918B69C983AA.jpeg 15C9F051-E673-40F8-881C-24F62B095EA9.jpeg 7583EFDB-114D-45ED-85EF-AF49F7E5C4FB.jpeg
 

Birdbabe

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That's a cataract, my Kiwi is blind from them in both eyes, but, he still can see " shadows "..hes a floor bird because he has no tail, half of one wing and crippled up feet. He gets along just fine as long as I dont move anything, not even an inch. He knows the house,,knows where the food and water is, and sleeps on a wide flat perch. I have to bring him out and put him back in the cage. Hes 15 years old, it'll take some adjusting, but, your baby will adapt and be ok. Just remember to announce yourself before touching or picking him up so he dosent get scared. Alot of us have special birds, others should be on soon with advice.
 

iamwhoiam

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Oscie is beautiful. If you are not sure about the vet's diagnosis you could always go to another vet and get a second opinion.
Does sound like a cataract, though. Keep placement of items in the cage consistent.
 

Tiel Feathers

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He’s a cute!:heart: I’m sorry he’s having these issues, and I hope the infection clears up quickly. You sound like a very good parront to Oscie, so I’m sure that with your help he will adapt okay if he can’t see well anymore.
:hug8:
 

Hankmacaw

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Welcome to AA Bird Mamma. Cataracts are not always perfectly round, in fact, they can be almost any random shape. I agree that your baby has a cataract and you will need to prepare him and yourself for the future. He will adjust much more quickly than you ever expected.

My Hank, the bird in my avatar, had one eye blinded by a cataract and a small one in his other eye. He got in just as much trouble as before his cataracts.
 

Bird Mumma

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Thank you so much everyone. I appreciate it most sincerely. Yes, he/she is a darling bird. Thank you for the compliments, I’ll be sure to pass them on. Oscar is eating well again and has returned to his/her standard weight. Even back to eating spinach as of today! Sadly the previous owner only fed seeds and try as I might, pellets have not been accepted. Spinach was the breakthrough about six months ago.

I announce myself even louder now and he/she seems content. Still seems sleepy BUT that’s from him/her keeping the cataract eye lidded more. I guess if the vision is further diminished or not there at all, he/she may become unaware if it is open/closed?

I’ll take Oscar to the other avian vet for the blood test.
 

Rain Bow

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Just a little comment. My Buddy has issues w/ one of his eyes. It actually hurts him. I noticed that when he's calm & just chillin, he will close his lid. The other eye will be open. To me in the beginning, I thought it was a sleepy thing too. I learned if the head/beak isn't in the buried back position (we call it super sleeping) it's probably a relaxing but fully ear alert aware position. Maybe start working on teaching different sound/words mean different things, like use a bell by the door as their door bell you ring gently & explain before sticking your hands into the cage. An alert for them. I did that when I first got Buddy so he knew I was gonna put my hands in the cage. Sounds dumb but it worked. He stopped trying to eat me when my hand was into the door space.

Just a thought/set of thoughts! Lol!

:welave:

:gbh: Rain
 

Bird Mumma

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Thank you for all your beautiful messages of support! I didn’t receive any notifications so have only just seen them.

Oscie continues to do well, with regular blood tests. His liver scores are almost normal now.

We did end up seeing the ophthalmologist, who confirmed they could not operate as cockatiel’s eyes are just too small.

We think his ‘good’ eye was lidded more (and remains closed moreso than in the past), simply because he has only a little light/dark perception left in the brightest sunlight. So we spend plenty of time together in the warm afternoon sun.:hug8:

He’s just a darling and the avian vet is astounded on how grounded he is and how well he is doing. Routine really is the key for our blind bird, so please be encouraged if you have a special needs bird. They always repay your love many times over!
 
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iamwhoiam

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It's great that he is doing well. Birds can adapt to changes in circumstances and sounds like that is what Oscie has done!
 

Shezbug

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It is so good to hear Oscie is doing well :) He really is adorable :heart:
 

Bird Mumma

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View attachment 310192 I do have some news that still makes me cry. Oscar‘s cage buddy, Hugo, sadly passed away very unexpectedly on 20 March. RIP lil‘ buddy.

We were spending so much time monitoring Oscar, but we did not notice any issues at all with Hugo. He was always the life of the party, SO LOUD when he heard us coming home and opening the door; affectionately known as “the guard dog”.

Hugo sang the best (& full) rendition of Pop goes the Weasel that I’ve ever heard any bird sing. He was such a treasure and my little champ. I miss him so dearly.

Good boy Hugo - we all miss you everyday. :heart2::heart::sad10:
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expressmailtome

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I am sorry for your loss.
 
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