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Seriously broken leg

Francesca89

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9/6/17
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i feel absolutely terrible! My blue mutation red rump parrot named April has got a very badly broken leg. She's lives in my mixed aviary and I don't know when it happened. But today when I was cleaning and and feeding I noticed she was standing on 1 leg for ages which then made me panic as I know all birds with hook bills will chew off their feet if they get stuck/trapped. So I got the bird net out and caught her which might I add took quite a while she definitely isn't unhealthy, weak or unable to fly!! Once I had a hold of her I could see some string entangled around her foot and the knee joint is visible. Unfortunately the leg from the knee down to the foot is dead and quite dried/shrivelled which makes me feel even worse!!! I hadn't noticed!! How could I not notice before now!? I'm going to take her to the vets but what would you all advise? Amputation or euthanasia? She's a young bird nearly a year old and appears to still be drinking, feeding and can still perch and fly. I feel terrible so please don't send me loads of abuse and tell me I'm a bad bird owner I feel terrible about it as it is!
 

Hankmacaw

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Definitely amputation. Birds learn to get along fine with one leg. You may have to keep her out of the aviary to heal properly for some time.
 

Francesca89

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She seems to be coping pretty well with 1 leg already. I have an empty viv I could keep her in for rest and warmth but she's probably going to hate being in the house she's not tame at all. I just worry she might not make it through surgery. Do you know if it's quite a successful procedure? Thank you for replying
 

Hankmacaw

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Amputation of a leg or part of one is one of the more straightforward and successful operations. I wish I could remember the little bird's name, there is one member here who has a bird with no legs that gets along just fine.
 

Featheredfuffs

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Oh no I don't think it's you're fault at all! When a bird's injured, they'll try to hide an injury as much as possible, and with a mixed Aviary, it wouldn't be that hard to miss it. I would definetly amputate it, as she's already getting along fine, and also do some snooping to see how she got tangled up in the first place.
 

Milo

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Where the break is will determine what procedure the vet will need to perform. If it's below the femur it should be a pretty straightforward surgery, if it is the femur that's broken (the vet will palpate and probably recommend x-rays which you should absolutely do) that becomes a more complicated procedure. Birds can absolutely get along with one leg, but you have to keep a very close eye on the remaining foot to make sure they don't develop pododermatitis. If you bring her inside from the aviary it's also important that you realistically assess her quality of life, mentally and physically. If she's used to being around a lot of other birds, bringing in a friend for her would also be a good idea, it's going to be an adjustment for both of you. The advantage is that she's young and may be more accepting of the change
 

camelotshadow

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:sadhug2:
 
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