Mistifire Posted September 18, 2005 Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 My pet pigeon seems to be acting normal except when she walked to protect her "nest" she was stumbling, I picked her up and her feet are cold and she will not use her toes to grip. I gently pinched her feet and it seems like she cant feel them at all. The vet is not open until monday and i noticed this on friday night, im taking her in first thing monday but wanted to see if anyone has any sudgestions for now. I hand raised her from an egg, she does not have a band on her leg, she couldnt have injured herself that I know of because the cage she was in prevents her from flying while im out of the house. she is an inside bird and is not with any other birds, she layed an egg and has been sitting on it for a few days, I was going to trade it out for a wood one to keep her from laying again but she is not on her nest, she just sits on the floor. she gets calcium and I know she gets enough because her eggs are solid not flimsy. Please help me with my baby :'( She is about a year old now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GREENGRASS Posted September 18, 2005 Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 how are her droppings and is she all puffed up feather wise. has she a mate in with her or where did the egg come from. is she eating and drinking as normal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mistifire Posted September 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 She is not puffed at all, she is very alert and she is acting normal aside from her feet. Her droppings looked fine last night, havent seen any yet today but im at work right now. The egg is infertle and she does not have a mate, she is in her pen alone. Last night she was eatting and drinking fine, thismorning she was laying on the blanket i put on the floor of her pen and when i checked her feet she pecked at me like normal but didnt move them away, I moved her food and water closer to where she is laying to make it easier for her to get to them. The only reason she has the egg and im letting her sit on it is because if i take it she will keep laying more, so i let her keep it until she looses interest. She is not acting eggbound either, she had a little trouble with her first two but she was puffed then and i could tell she didnt feel well, she looks fine and I wouldnt have noticed anything wrong unitll she stumbled over her feet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GREENGRASS Posted September 18, 2005 Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 one of the signs of paratyphoid in pigeons is sore or swollen joints and birds unable to stand up, but they usually have very watery droppings. how far is she into her moult as birds that are nearly through the moult are very prone to paratyphoid. just mention this to your vet as it is very hard to find a vet that knows anything obout pigeons. hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mistifire Posted September 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 I will mention that to the vet thank you! what would cause paratyphoid? She is not around any other birds and she is inside the house. Do you think she will be ok since i have to wait until monday? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GREENGRASS Posted September 18, 2005 Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 paratyphoid is a salmonella based infection all birds carry salmonella in small quantities in their bodies but these can multiply to dangerous levels when the birds are stressed, but espically when they are moulting as this is a very stressful part of the birds life. the fact that she is not in contact with other birds would not matter. check her flights and see if she has any blood flights ie new flights that are blood stained as this is a classic sign of paratyphoid. check her droppings tomorrow and tell the vet if he thinks it might be paratyphoid advise him ask him about FURALTADONE HCL (300mg/kg) this works. add 5gm to 10 litres of water of for one bird add 1/2 gm to 1 ltr. hope this helps you out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 18, 2005 Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 Think you may be on the wrong track. Pigeons lay two eggs, this bird has only laid one. She may have another 'stuck' somewhere in the oviduct, thankfully infertile so therefore not developing inside her. A definite vet job I think. Don't worry, I'm sure you've done the right thing getting the vet involved. You'll soon find out what's amiss and it'll be put right for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mistifire Posted September 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 This is her second egg this lay, I should have said that differently, what I was meaning is that she had one wood egg and a real one, I was exchanging the real one out for a wood one. Every other time she had trouble with her eggs she would get puffy and wobbly and she is not acting like anything is wrong, she just cant walk. I will mention that to the vet also just to be sure, I really apreciate the help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mistifire Posted September 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 I was researching this and I found this site http://www.silvio-co.com/pigeons/Parathyroid.htm Would you give me your opinion on this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadow Posted September 19, 2005 Report Share Posted September 19, 2005 You have nothing to lose I would give it a try, Another thing could be possible that when she is passing the egg she could be trapping a nerve which could give you the symton. You said this had happened before I presume the problem sorted it self out on the previous occasion. While you treat her put her on her own away from any other pigeons so she is not stimulated by them and let her start moulting good luck. fly hard fly fair Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Doostalker Posted September 19, 2005 Report Share Posted September 19, 2005 Mistifire, I don't think this is Paratyphoid. It seems to be either a nerve or muscular problem. There is an ailment in hens called "post egg laying paralysis." Sometimes when laying the sciatic nerve can be pinched between the shell and the inside of the bird's pelvis. The bird will usually recover in a few days.Keep her separate so she doesn't get bullied by other birds, and make a straw bed for her to lie on. Seems that the common causes of this are the hen being overweight (watch the feeding and give her plenty of exercise when she recovers), or she is a hen that lays big eggs, in which case it may occur again. Also if there is a calcium deficiency this may cause it. Hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 19, 2005 Report Share Posted September 19, 2005 I agree with you Doostalker that this problem is related in some way to the bird's egg-laying. Hope you come back to us Mistifire, with what your vet comes up with. Keep the knowledge circulating. Good work on searching the web too. Very interesting atricle you turned up. One word of caution on your Vit D, though. Seems too much would cause opposite problem and create too much calcium in the bloodstream. Merc Veterinary Medical (book?) with A-Z listing, at following: http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/htm/bi/mvm_h.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmy white Posted September 19, 2005 Report Share Posted September 19, 2005 this sounds to me as like doostalker says, post laying paralysis, but would still consult your vet,,,i have seen this many times before [if it is this] and can be put right within a few hours by giving old hands ,,,,elementals Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mistifire Posted September 19, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 19, 2005 i have seen this many times before [if it is this] and can be put right within a few hours by giving old hands ,,,,elementals what is old hands elementals and where can I find it? I called the vet and the Dr that sees Birds was not in and I didnt want to take her in to a vet that doesnt usually see birds, especially not pigeons and have him misdiagnose her, It is just an exotic animal vet, they ususlly see parrots and such. I havent seen this happen to her before but she has had a hard time with eggs but usually she just gets puffy for a day and then she is ok. I gave her a little vitamin D (I think she got some in her mouth anyways) How the heck are you supposed to give a pigeon a tablet? No matter how I tried it I couldnt get her to swallow the geltab of vitamin D so I poked a hole in it and tried to squeeze some in her mouth. This morning she looked like she has a little more use of her legs again. I took a UVB light from my reptile cage and put it on top of her pen before I left to work. If she doesnt seem better when I get home I will try another vet clinic. She is the only Pigeon I have right now, no one will help me build a coop and I cant find one that anyone is selling one near my area. Im starting to wonder if she knows she is a pigeon since the other baby I had died when it was very young. I dont know if I would be able to put her with other birds. I was concerned that I might not know enough to get alot of them at once but it looks like I have a good information source here. Thanks everyone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmy white Posted September 19, 2005 Report Share Posted September 19, 2005 hi mistyfire if you look at internet search, old hand elementals . you will see it there, hope this of some help to you, and wish you well with your pigeon. jimmy white. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 20, 2005 Report Share Posted September 20, 2005 mistifire you were asking 'how to give a pigeon a tablet' you do this by simply opening the mouth and simply force it down the throat. all the best paul carter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mistifire Posted September 20, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 20, 2005 I checked on her and she was walking around again and looking great, giving me the "not again..why do you keep picking me up and poking my feet" look. She isnt puffy and her droppings still look fine, I think it may have been the egg pinching something, is there anything to make laying easier for her? She didnt seem too upset about the whole ordeal but it sure was hard on me Im going to ask the vet about it again to be sure. The whole tablet thing is easier said than done for a newbie... I could get it to the back of her mouth and then she would use her tounge and push it back out. Next time I will get someone to help hold her so I have my hands free. Im tring to get into some vet classes so Im not clueless about what to do in situations like these. Thanks for all the support and sudgestions. You guys are great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mealybar Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 With the tablet; pop it in the back of the birds mouth, and then close and hold the beak closed until the bird swallows the tablet. No chance of him spitting it out then. Does the trick for me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadow Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 To help her in the future keep her food rationed to no more than ! 0z per day if she is keptt in the house as a pet,as she is probably very overweight and switch her food to barley only till she starts to lose weight what do you feed her at the moment and how much and does she ever fly free around the out side of the house good luck. fly hard fly fair Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 You mentioned you'd like a loft, Mistifire. It's a huge leap from keeping a bird inside the house in a cage. Can I suggest an 'in-between' stage? Do you have any other outbuildings in the garden like a shed or a garage? There's maybe scope there. Remember that even 'just a corner' of a garden shed is 1000% better for the bird (and you) than what she has at present. And you don't need to take up lots of space inside the building either. For example you can convert a window opening quite easily into a 'cage' which 'juts' a metre or so inside and outside the building. This would give the bird access to the outside during the day. A 'nest box' built inside and off to one side and out of sight (i.e. 'inside the outside solid wall') serves for food and water, and a safe place for the bird(s) to perch up during the night. And it wouldn't take a lot of wood and netting to do it. The window frame gives you a sloping outside roof right away. You're basically looking at wire netting for 3 outside 'walls', a wooden floor, a few lengths of 2"x2" for studs, plastic netting for the inside 'walls', and wood for a nest box (privacy) And you could tackle this on your own. Just have a walk round the window opening and measure it out. Get these measurements down on a sheet of paper. See what odd bits and pieces of wood you have lying around. If there's a house or building getting renovated nearby and there's a skip there, ask if you can help yourself to anything that will come in useful. Make sketches of the floor and sides, so that you have an idea of how it all fits together. Make the overall sizes of the 'cage' fit the wood and material you have, not the other way around. And have fun doing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mistifire Posted September 21, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 She doesnt seem overweight and she flys around in the house, I have a pet room that has been pigeon proofed and she has free run of the room when im home but busy, and when Im not busy she has roam of the whole basement or wherever I am at the time. She doesnt get alot of food, she has a small dish and she doesnt finish it all but eats most of it. What is the average weight of a female year old pigeon? I was thinking about keeping her inside and getting other pigeons for outside only, I dont have a shed or i would convert it I have been looking for a prebuilt loft or a shed to convert but with no luck, I want to build an aviary type pen outside for my house birds and then I can bring her in at night Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Pigeons weigh between 400 and 600 grams, with the hens nearer the bottom of the scale. Had a latebred hen (5/6 months old) weighed at the vet last year and she was about 430g. So maybe around 450g would be reasonable for your own hen? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmy white Posted September 23, 2005 Report Share Posted September 23, 2005 glad to here your pet pigeon is a lot better and im sure youll have learned quite a bit from all the posts, i would tend to go along with bruno ,in his post above, which is a well put article for a beginner ,, about giving a bird a tablet , if you havent given one before can be quite tricky and might be better with two of you doing this job, but if kept in the right conditions, should very seldom need done, good luck to you and your bird anyway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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