Pictures My lovebird's tip of her toe are swollen.

[tmkindo]

Hi.
My 10-year-old lovebird, Sunny, has arthritis on one leg and lives on the other foot most of the time. Since last month I noticed her healthy leg is slowly getting bigger. Due to her arthritis, I thought her leg was getting muscular because she has to support her whole body with one foot. But then as time goes by... she's having hard time on climbing even low platforms. Her toes look like attachments. (Swollen, redness) She was a normal senior lovie (except for arthritis) until last week but she's now much less active and sleeps a lot. But the positive thing is she hasn't lost her appetite yet. I live in a tiny town like a peanut. It's almost impossible to see an avian vet here, so I have to wait until next week, and I'm afraid if a bad thing happens to her. The best thing is that there's no problem, but if there's a problem, what can be done at home until I see a vet?

 

[sunnysmom]

@Birdbabe ? @Hankmacaw ? @Zara ?

 

[Hankmacaw]

She needs medication and pain killers. I don't know if in Pakistan you can get them without a prescription. If you can get the meds you need Metacam (Meloxicam) and dandelion extract.
You can get some DMSO to put on his feet and legs to reduce the swelling.

The Problem with the Metacam is the dosage for your bird. You will need to know the weight of your bird, the amount of mg/ml in the medication and the number of mg appropriate for your bird. It is dangerous to overdose with Metacam.

 

[Zara]

Welcome to the Avenue Charlie

Sorry to hear your birds foot is swollen, I don´t have anything to add I´m afraid.
I wish you both all the best.

 

[Birdbabe]

@mythic55 ? I think she used turmeric or sour cherry for her baby..for inflammation!?

 

[tmkindo]

@Birdbabe @Hankmacaw @Zara
Thank you all, you guys!

So the swelling on her foot is caused by arthritis as well? She used to be on an NSAID for a month. I didn't see dramatic improvement, and was worried about liver & kindney failure. That's why I decided to stop doing it, which was wrong and my fault. Since then I started giving her liquid herbal supplements from MorningbirdProducts (To be specific, Pain Relief and Milk Thistle Dandelion).

I was planning to treat her with holistic approach, found some threads on AA

@Birdbabe ? @Hankmacaw ? @Zara ?

@Birdbabe @Hankmacaw @Zara
Thank you all, you guys!

So the swelling on her foot is caused by arthritis as well? She used to be on an NSAID for a month. I didn't see dramatic improvement and was worried about liver & kindney failure. I decided to stop doing it, which was my fault. I shouldn't have discontinued NSAIDs. Since then I started giving her liquid herbal supplements from MorningbirdProduct (To be specific, Pain Relief and Milk Thistle-Dandelion). But you know, as long as it's not medicine. These were unable to keep up with the pace of aging of her joints.

And then, I have been searching for a holistic approach. I found some threads on AA. I prepared a recipe of golden paste so I bought turmeric, black pepper and coconut oil online. But the problem is that she is in the process of molting. She's been plucking feathers around her neck and back since January because of this arthritis I was told it was not a good idea to give 'turmeric' at this time. (I hope I know the right information. ) Plus, I am still looking for the dosage of turmeric yet.

p.s I attached an X-ray i've got from the last visit to my vet. The vet said her liver was large as well. I am trying to convert my lovie to pellets.

 

[sunnysmom]

I think I would look into the pain med suggested by Hankmacaw. Also, if you're looking for something holistic to add, I give my senior tiel Senior Nutriberries- it has things aimed at senior birds- like glucosamine. I also use a product called "Healthy Bird Anti-Inflammatory" but it does have turmeric in it (and also Ceylon cinnamon, ginger, etc.) I get it at christineschopshop.com.

 

[tmkindo]

I think I would look into the pain med suggested by Hankmacaw. Also, if you're looking for something holistic to add, I give my senior tiel Senior Nutriberries- it has things aimed at senior birds- like glucosamine. I also use a product called "Healthy Bird Anti-Inflammatory" but it does have turmeric in it (and also Ceylon cinnamon, ginger, etc.) I get it at christineschopshop.com.

Thank you very much Michelle That spices is what I really wanted but I am not sure it can be cleared customs since I don't live in NA. ;_; I'll have to ask them. And yeah! Luckily today I took my lovie to the vet and continued to put her on metacam. But the bad thing is she also has gout on the other foot. Oddly enough, the vet didn't prescribe me a gout med. It's because when I talked on the phone, I told him that I couldn't afford the med bills anymore? This is my guess tho. But then again as long as metacam is an inflammatory drug, I believe it will also work for gout.

 

[sunnysmom]

Thank you very much Michelle That spices is what I really wanted but I am not sure it can be cleared customs since I don't live in NA. ;_; I'll have to ask them. And yeah! Luckily today I took my lovie to the vet and continued to put her on metacam. But the bad thing is she also has gout on the other foot. Oddly enough, the vet didn't prescribe me a gout med. It's because when I talked on the phone, I told him that I couldn't afford the med bills anymore? This is my guess tho. But then again as long as metacam is an inflammatory drug, I believe it will also work for gout.

I am glad you got the medicine. It should help. As for gout, not sure about what medicine would be helpful but I have read that a low protein diet should be given to help with gout and also making sure the bird gets lots of water/fluids. Also fresh vegetables. I have also read that cherry juice can be helpful but you have to watch to make sure it doesn't have lots of sugar, etc added to it. And you might want to try some flat perches if she's having trouble perching. I hope she feels better soon.

 

[Hankmacaw]

Allopurinal is the go to medication for gout. It works very well. MyJasper was on Metacam for 12-15 years and her kidneys have never been affected. She is now on Celebrex for a NSAID and Gabapentin as a neural pain killer.

Holistic (natural ) medications may or may not have any beneficial properties - there is very little research (true scientific research) done on any except Milk Thistle. If her liver is enlarged she should go onto milk thistle immediately. Milk Thistle is quite benign and is almost impossible to overdose with. I would ask the vet what the cost of allopurinol is.

In this day and age with the excellent medications we have, there is no reason for your baby to live in constant pain.