Urgent Sudden blisterning

[lokis333]

Hi all,

My baby vasa parrot has suddenly developed a sore (blister looking) patch on his foot. Lately he has been cleaning his feet with his beak and tongue more often. Not sure if this has had anything to do with it? He is fully weight bearing on both feet and is up to his normal acrobatics/climbing around his cage. He is also not voicing any discomfort on handling and is eating fine.
Our initial feeling was to book a check-up at the vets, and we will be monitoring for anything, but thought we'd throw it to the forum in case anyone has had a similar problem before. Any advice would be much appreciated

 

[rocky'smom]

Please see a avian vet asap

 

[hrafn]

Looks to possibly be the beginnings of bumblefoot. You caught it early, so it should be an easy fix.

Bumblefoot is often caused by improper perches; what sort do you have in Saul's cage? Are there a lot of dowel and cement perches? Natural branches that vary in diameter allow the feet to stretch and exercise, which helps prevent the onset of bumblefoot. Padding the perches with something soft like vet wrap is also helpful.

Another factor is nutrient deficiency. What sort of food does Saul eat?

 

[lokis333]

Thanks for the replies! We are booking for a vet to see him- he has a variety of branches in his cage- he has 2 mineral perches to help wear his nails/beak, one natural java wooden one which has 3/4 various branches of shapes/sizes, and one dowel which he tends not to use much.

Diet wise he has Beaphar Xtravital, along with a daily fresh chop - typical example is- a mixture of usually peppers, quinoa, Brussel sprouts, rosemary, green beans, sugar snaps, bean sprouts and sweetcorn- also a little chopped apple or strawberries. He has some clay blocks, mealworms and egg supplement. He loves exploring his food at the moment.

Will keep you updated! Thanks again

 

[Kodigirl210]

The mineral and any abrasive perches are a strict no-go with my vet. They cause more issues than they provide benefits and can cause lesions on the feet. You may want to look into getting different perches and using mineral blocks/cuttlebone for the beak.

 

[Teckechick]

It's good that you can get him to a vet for that foot. I'll tag @Brittany0208 too her Vasa Java has foot issues also and she may have some tips on things that may help until you get into the vet. You could look for any of her posts too for possible help.

 

[Brittany0208]

It could very well be early stages of bumblefoot but I have limited experience with it. Your bird's right toe also looks like it has something green on the nail. What kind of perches do you have for him and how often do you trim his nails?

 

[Kodigirl210]

Other than the recommendations above, you could provide platforms to give your bird’s feet the ability to relax and not have to grip anything. I use pre-wrap covered by vet wrap as well as carving up dowels to give them contours. Rope perches work well as long as the fid isn’t into tearing them apart. Sif recently had lesions on her feet & was prescribed silvedane at which time I was reminded not to use anything that is abrasive at all.