I've been watching my certified avian vet, Dr. Greg Burkett's video: Avian First Aid, and notice that his advice on handling blood feathers differs from what I hear on our forum frequently. I don't want to start any arguments, but I wanted to at least point out that some avian vets may be changing their protocol for this event. Please note that the information below is just my interpretation of what I heard and read in Dr. Burkett's video. You should see the video yourself and form your own opinions, and seek the advice of your own avian vet for handling this or any other issue with your bird's health.
Dr. Burkett stated in the video that while bleeding in any bird requires immediate attention, he said it is not always a need for panic. He said birds have a remarkable ability for clotting, and can lose more blood than most know, without a problem. He said he doesn't need to, but he could safely take 10 % of a bird's body weight worth of blood for blood tests. He said a bird can give up to 30% of their body weight for a blood donation with no clinical signs.
In his video, he said he hasn't pulled a blood feather in 15-20 years. He said it is extremely painful for the bird, and pulling it can damage or deform the blood follicle. He said most of the time, pullling the feather doesn't actually stop the bleeding,and that the blood vessel under the skin will still be bleeding, which can lead to a hematoma and possible infection. He said the new feather may not grow back at all, or when the new feather starts growing, since it will also be a blood feather, it may break off at the same spot. He said you can end up in a continuous cycle of pulling a feather, another grows and breaks, you pull it, another one grows and breaks, etc. He said he sees this frequently with cockatoos and cockatiels.
In his video, he said if you don't pull the feather, in a few days it will grow past that place and your bird should be fine. He said most broken blood feathers will stop bleeding on their own within 5 minutes if you put your bird in a hospital cage, leave them alone, and monitor them there for a couple of hours. He said to get them into the vet immediately if they seem listless at any point, but if the time in the hospital cage has stopped the bleeding, you can take your bird in at the next available appointment.
If 5 minutes alone in a hospital cage doesn't stop the bleeding, he suggested applying first aid (applying clotting gel, direct pressure for 1-2 minutes, and supportive care {which he describes in his video} in a cage for about an hour) He said this usually stops the bleeding and then you should take your bird to the vet's at the next available opening. If this doesn't stop the bleeding, or if it starts up again within an hour, then he said it's time to get into the vet immediately and "we'll put the clotting gel on for you."
Again, I'm not trying to tell anyone what to do or what not to do, and this is my understanding of what I heard and read in the video, so please always check with your own vet for their advice. It's just that I see people being advised to pull the broken feather so often, and it contradicts what my avian vet is stating as the current protocol, that I wanted to point out the difference so folks could check with their vets, and update their actions regarding broken blood feathers, if necessary.
If you do check with your avian vet, I'd be really interested if you wouldn't mind posting their response for their current broken blood feather practices in this thread. Thanks in advance.
Dr. Burkett stated in the video that while bleeding in any bird requires immediate attention, he said it is not always a need for panic. He said birds have a remarkable ability for clotting, and can lose more blood than most know, without a problem. He said he doesn't need to, but he could safely take 10 % of a bird's body weight worth of blood for blood tests. He said a bird can give up to 30% of their body weight for a blood donation with no clinical signs.
In his video, he said he hasn't pulled a blood feather in 15-20 years. He said it is extremely painful for the bird, and pulling it can damage or deform the blood follicle. He said most of the time, pullling the feather doesn't actually stop the bleeding,and that the blood vessel under the skin will still be bleeding, which can lead to a hematoma and possible infection. He said the new feather may not grow back at all, or when the new feather starts growing, since it will also be a blood feather, it may break off at the same spot. He said you can end up in a continuous cycle of pulling a feather, another grows and breaks, you pull it, another one grows and breaks, etc. He said he sees this frequently with cockatoos and cockatiels.
In his video, he said if you don't pull the feather, in a few days it will grow past that place and your bird should be fine. He said most broken blood feathers will stop bleeding on their own within 5 minutes if you put your bird in a hospital cage, leave them alone, and monitor them there for a couple of hours. He said to get them into the vet immediately if they seem listless at any point, but if the time in the hospital cage has stopped the bleeding, you can take your bird in at the next available appointment.
If 5 minutes alone in a hospital cage doesn't stop the bleeding, he suggested applying first aid (applying clotting gel, direct pressure for 1-2 minutes, and supportive care {which he describes in his video} in a cage for about an hour) He said this usually stops the bleeding and then you should take your bird to the vet's at the next available opening. If this doesn't stop the bleeding, or if it starts up again within an hour, then he said it's time to get into the vet immediately and "we'll put the clotting gel on for you."
Again, I'm not trying to tell anyone what to do or what not to do, and this is my understanding of what I heard and read in the video, so please always check with your own vet for their advice. It's just that I see people being advised to pull the broken feather so often, and it contradicts what my avian vet is stating as the current protocol, that I wanted to point out the difference so folks could check with their vets, and update their actions regarding broken blood feathers, if necessary.
If you do check with your avian vet, I'd be really interested if you wouldn't mind posting their response for their current broken blood feather practices in this thread. Thanks in advance.
