Prayers for Gina-Bird

[CarolinaWren]

hey everyone ... sorry that i haven't been around ... been reading the boards but not posting ... i've been SOOOO busy with all these creatures that i haven't even had time to do much emailing ... i have about 300 or so in my inbox right now

my Gina fell off of her perch on friday, 2 weeks ago, but i wuz sitting right here watching her play & goof around ... well, apparently, she just knocked herself silly cuz she came around in a few minutes after some cuddling. yesterday, she wuz late with her "good-morning yacking" & i came in to check on her around 10am ... she wuz sitting on the floor of the cage & couldn't get up ... i picked her up (figuring she wuz just goofing around & fell again) & snuggled her ... she never got "right" ... took her to the avian vet in Savannah, GA (closest to me & a VERY good reputation) ... he said she has some "crystals" in her gram stain, indicating a serious liver "issue" ... he wanted to do blood work, but said that the stress would probably "do her in" ... sent us home with some dropper meds & said to give her all the seed she can eat right now, along with meats, eggs, cereal, wheat crackers, pasta, rice ... ANYTHING that might put some weight on her.

for those who don't remember (and i don't expect you to) she wuz found in the wild & brought to my local vet, who called me to rescue her ... her keel bone wuz jutting out & she wuz very thin then ... well, she seemed to be getting "chunkier" for awhile, then just stopped about a week ago, i guess ... yesterday, she weighed 96g & her keel bone wuz protruding worse than when i got her (november) ... he said that everything i've been doing is good & that she surely had this "issue" when i got her ... i have her in a separate cage/room from Willie-Bird in a small carrier where she can't really move around alot or get stressed out ... i've been snuggling her as much as possible, too, as she LOVES more than anything to be close to me.

if y'all have ANY ideas on different diet ideas, PLEEEEEEZE let me know ... she made it thru the night, but the next few days are crucial ... i hafta phone the vet back today if need be, but DEFINITELY on monday ... depending upon how she is then, he wants to see her in 10 days.

i'd appreciate ANY and ALL input that you more experienced IRN "mommies/daddies" have for me. i woke up at 3:30am scared to death to check on her, but finally gave in at 5:30am ... she looked up & cooed at me & seemed to have eaten (or played with) some food in the night.

thanks so much,

Wren

[Dani03]

Oh hun I am so sorry! Know that you are loved and we worry! You will be in my prayers...

Dani

[AmandaB]

I'm so sorry, ya'll will be in my prayers. (((hugs)))

[CarolinaWren]

thank y'all both ... well, we made it thru today! i got Gina up around 8am & cuddled her in a blanket on my chest most of the morning ... she ate some scrambled eggs, jasmine rice, brown rice, honey-nut rice/corn chex, peanut butter sugar wafers, toasted pecans & some chicken (cannibal ) ... she still isn't strong enuff to hold her food, so i just broke it into small pieces & held the dishes for her while she ate ... when she got tired of cuddling, she wanted to go to her "nest" (which is her daily a.m. routine), once a beautiful antique oak dresser ... i took my clothes out of there a while ago when she started her "carpentry" & i left behind some old bar towels & aprons from my job ... next to my lap or my chest, that's her favourite place on earth! i didn't hear any "carpentry" going on all day, which is unusual, but i checked on her about every hour & she wuz happy to see me ... she wuz just snuggled in her aprons/towels ... she tried to get on her little playset once, but stumbled trying to climb the little ladder, then when she did get up it, she stumbled again, so i put her back in her safe haven ... i put her back in her carrier around 5p.m. with some fresh seed food & water ... placed a heating pad underneath it with 3 layers of towels ... i've been checking on her about every half-hour & she's eating again! i actually saw some sunflower seed shells in there! yesterday, she couldn't open them! i s'pose something's going right, huh?

will keep y'all posted as to her progress & thanx again!

huggles,

Wren

[AmandaB]

That's good news, I hope she continues to get better. I'm still praying for her.

[Dani03]

That is so good! I am so happy...keep the good news coming!

Dani

[Mazziemom]

If she's having liver issues she should be on milk thistle. You can buy it in liquid form at some health food stores, or look for an alternative dr's office (ours sells it).

Milk thistle is very very good for liver problems.

And, if she's having problems with her liver she should NOT be eating fatty stuff, as it can bind up the liver and make them much worse.

If she's having crystals I would guess its more of a kidney problem though. She needs extensive testing right away because there are medications that can turn kidneys around. She could be facing gout at this point, which is extremely painful for the bird and can be deadly.

Athena

[Jade]

Is she drinking? Try giving her some juices like cranberry juice. I know that Chooky loves warm porridge so maybe a bit of that too? By the way, you can buy pre-husked sunflower seeds. My shop sells them with the other seeds and nuts in the cooking aisle. Good luck with everything. My love is with you.

[jen5239]

I'm so sorry to read all of this. Can't imagine the pain you must be going thru. I will keep you both in my prayers. Best of luck.

Hugs,
Jen

[CarolinaWren]

hey again & thanx everyone!

Miss Gina's feeling better every day, thank goodness ... she spent yesterday in her "nest" again & ATE like a little porker!! she's still sleeping in our room in her carrier & she woke us up squawking this a.m. (she's barely been able to coo since thursday night) ... i took her out & she snuggled for only a few minutes, then wuz ready to go back into her nest ... that is her EVERY-morning ritual, then she comes out to play ... i thought i'd NEVER welcome that IRN screaming of hers, but i'm happy to say that SHE'S BAAAAAAAAACK!! she's much stronger today & finally vocal again ... i have some milk thistle "gelcap" things ... how much should i give her?? also, YES, she's drinking & i have some cranberry juice so i'll try that, too. i have to phone the veterinarian this a.m. for a progress report, so i'll keep y'all informed. thanx for the info, love & support. we must be doing something right cuz she sure is perky this morning!

luv,

Wren

PS ~ here are some pix, if anyone would like to see ... Gina's the silly green one & Willie's blue.

http://spotted.blufftontoday.com/pages/gallery.php?gallery=127335

[Ed Loschi]

Best of Luck.

You got good advice about your fid.
When you mentioned that the vet said "crystals" I immediately thought kidney probs too; slightly acidic foods and fluids (LOTS of fluids: drop of apple cider vinegar water, cranberry juice--get some whole cranberries also, citric juices) help alleviate kidney probs. And low fat diet if liver probs. Maybe put up a heat lamp in the 'clinic'.

Sounds like things are going well. Keep up the good nursing!

[CarolinaWren]

well, i phoned the vet & he said "great, we'll see you in 10 days then, unless things awry before then" ... he wants to do blood testing, etc., then ... i guess a complete workup ... i've given her some cranberry juice & she had a sip or 2 ... mostly, she's just EATING like crazy & drinking plenty of water!! i feel SOOOO much more relieved ... i wuz REALLY afraid that we'd lose her on friday ... she's just a different bird now ... i mean back to her usual jovial self, although i think she's just a LITTLE more spoilt from all of the cuddling!! i don't worry about her being chilly when she's in her "nest" (the dresser), which is where she's spending most of her day ... she is, however, able to climb out & get to her food, which is WAAAYY better than 3 days ago! also, as i said, i have a heating pad underneath her cage with layers of towels between the 2 ... it's nice & toasty in there!

thanx again for all of your assistance!!

Wren

PS ~ i have a bag of cranberries in my freezer & will go pull 'em out for her now! they only sell them around here during the holidays, so i usually stock up for the year!!

[Dani03]

Your Gina is gorgeous! And Willie is so handsome!

Dani

[jen5239]

Wren,
I am sooooooooooo happy to read that Ms. Gina is doing so much better. I only hope u continue to post such good news. She's darling and Willie is mighty handsome! Thanks for sharing the photos! Keep us posted please or we'll worry!

Hugs,
Jen

[CarolinaWren]

well, Miss Gina had a great day ... she started her usual squawking/talking/screaming around 4pm, which is usually the time that i put them in the cage for the evening ... i put her in her carrier (which is sanitized EVERY day) around 4:30pm after i'd gotten her food & drink placed in there ... btw, i found some mixed grains in the cupboard (white rice, brown rice, wheat berries, barley, etc., so i cooked some up & used some cranberry juice in the cooking liquid, and added some pear preserves that i canned last year ... she has to be coaxed into eating some things ) ... anyway, i put her in her little carrier & (1) she FOUGHT me when i tried to give her meds, but i got 'em in there (a sign of "back to normal"); (2) she started eating immediately (i swear she's part swine!); (3) she squawked a couple of times, then settled down ... everything's looking like she's "coming around" ... i wuz so happy that i teared up ... i've been soooooooo worried!! also, i went to bed around 8pm ... just completely emotionally exhausted ... and i could hear her eating her seed food (she's still in our bedroom) ... wut a difference a few days makes, huh? i woke up around 2:30am & decided to make the best of my "me time" ... i have the coffee brewing while i'm sipping a Coke ... real healthy ... right now, i don't care ... almost ALL of my time since friday has been devoted to getting Gina better & apparently, it's working.

thanx again for your concern & your help.

luv,

Wren

[jen5239]

Wren,
That's fantastic! I'm so happy to read that! Woohoo go Gina! Get better baby! Hang in there and keep pluggin' away at making your baby better. She's lucky to have such a loving mom!

Hugs,
Jen

[Dani03]

Anytime you need us we're here, no doubt bout that Wren. I am so glad to hear that she is doing better...hopefully she makes a full recovery.

We'll keep you in our thoughts and prayers

Hugs

Dani and Prinny

[CarolinaWren]

well, we've made it thru another 24 hours & it seems that Miss Gina's getting stronger by the day! she ate really well yesterday & she talked & played ... i hafta do my 'puting in the wee hours cuz my 'puter is in the birds' room ... Gina's back to climbing all over me when i sit here! she did go "boom-boom" again yesterday, as she thinks that she's stronger than she actually is ... she wuz climbing on my keyboard while i wuz typing & decided that she wanted to climb up onto the cage ... when the door's open, it's right beside me ... well, i let her climb up to the top, then she went inside & started monkey-ing around & fell again ... scared me to death, but she wuz fine ... she's just not quite strong enuff yet ... so i put her back in her "nest" & that's where she stayed 'til around 4:30pm, when she started her evening squawk ... time to go beddie-bye ... i put her back in her carrier & covered her up & not a peep ... i checked on her several times before i went sleepies around 9pm & she wuz eating & looking up at me as if to say "how long do i have to stay in here?" i just feel that she's not strong enuff to be in the big cage yet & i feel safer for her to be in the limited space of the carrier right now ... we don't need anymore falls!

btw, i noticed yesterday that her poo has white in it again ... she had been having clear stuff in it before ... hindsight certainly is 20/20 ... it never dawned on me that it might not be "right" ... well, it certainly has changed & i reckon that's because she's healing. i hope that hasn't grossed anyone out, but i felt that i needed to add that ... that's only one significant change since last week, but i feel like it's an important one.

hope y'all have a TIGGER-ific day & i'll keep ya posted! thanx again for your prayers & help during this trying time. now, if i could just get caught up on my sleep, even i might feel better!

luv,

Wren