Gram stain?

[Birds are loud]

Are there any companies that I can use to have a gram stain done via mail? I use avainbiotech for dna, pbfd, Chlamydia, herpes and polyoma testing but when I called I was told they don't offer the equivalent of a gram stain. Anyone know similar companies that offer gram stains via mail? I did LOTS of gram stains in college and if I had the equipment I'd simply do the gram staining myself.

 

[LunaLovebird]

Presumably it's because doing a gram stain on a dry, hard poop isn't exactly manageable, and posting delicate and pre-mounted slides in the mail would almost certainly result in a broken slide, not to mention that it would (I presume) require you do the stain. I'm not sure how long those things hold up.

Best bet is a vet.

 

[Milo]

I'd also just go to a vet to have the gram stain done, much more cost effective and they'd be able to get you meds if needed.

I'm not sure aside from the larger referral labs like Idexx if there are any companies that will do them through the mail, although again I imagine it's much more cost effective to have your vet read them. It's not difficult to send slides through the mail, you'd need some slide cases and a padded envelope.

 

[LunaLovebird]

I'd also just go to a vet to have the gram stain done, much more cost effective and they'd be able to get you meds if needed.

I'm not sure aside from the larger referral labs like Idexx if there are any companies that will do them through the mail, although again I imagine it's much more cost effective to have your vet read them. It's not difficult to send slides through the mail, you'd need some slide cases and a padded envelope.

Good point about the slide cases. Would you need to stain them ahead of time if you did it that way though? I thought you might, but having not done any myself I am not sure.

 

[Milo]

Good point about the slide cases. Would you need to stain them ahead of time if you did it that way though? I thought you might, but having not done any myself I am not sure.

No, as long as the sample is smeared on the slide and dried appropriately it shouldn't matter if they're stained once they get to the lab. Most places want to stain things their own way anyways so it works out

 

[Birds are loud]

Thing is it's for quail not my parrots. I'm keeping them quarantined atm because 1 is showing signs of illness. If the quail are indeed ill they will be kulled not treated and I'll have gram staining done at my vets for my parrots to be absolutely sure nothing spread. Every vet here requires a "wellness" visit prior to testing and to be frank im not bringing poultry to the vet. It's looking like my only options are bring quail to the vet (which im not going to do) or kull the quail as a precaution and test the parrots at the vet. The goal here is to not have to kull the quail if I don't have to. Medications for livestock are widely available over the counter and farm vet (horses/cows) recommends slamming the quail with antibiotics or kulling.

 

[Milo]

If you're concerned you might consider culling one quail and having a necropsy done. If you have a place that will do disease testing as a part of the necropsy that would be the best thing. Honestly what you're concerned about probably isn't going to be obvious on a gram stain. A necropsy with disease testing is what we recommend in herd/flock health situations and gives you the most information for the money spent

"slamming" the quail with antibiotics without knowing what the problem is, frankly, an incredibly irresponsible use of antibiotics and a HUGE part of the reason that there are resistance issues and why many medicines are no longer available over the counter.

 

[Birds are loud]

I found a local poultry vet that accepts swabs without having to bring the bird in for a "wellness" exam. They're going to test for a whole laundry list of things. Hopefully whatever this is isn't transmittable to parrots.