Help Please - Baby Bird's Crop is still Full... (Update + 2 Pics)

[Fur&Feathers]

6 hours later... I've been unable to find anything on google.com. Could someone please tell me what this means and what I need to do??? Thank you. :confused:

[Argranade]

The crop is probably dry inside and the food dried into chunks posibley cloging the crop passage way, I would take your bird to a vet ASAP! because it can die from this if the food does not go threw.

Try adding a bit water into the crop too soften it up!

Join my pigeon site, http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=10

They'll tell you what to do.

[Fur&Feathers]

Thank you, Argranade. She is taking him to an emergency clinic right now. Unfortunately, there are NO avian specialist vets open right now... The vet she's going to right now treat birds in emergency situations, but are not avian specialists. It's certainly better than nothing... I'm not with her or the baby, but she will keep me updated. I hope it's not too late. :(

[Giselle]

:( Sounds like sour crop...
http://www.cockatiels.org/articles/vet/sourcrop.html

http://www.birdsnways.com/wisdom/ww61ev.htm


Now what can you do if you have a chick with sour crop. First and most important you do not want to feed more formula on top of that already sour food. You will want to get some unflavored Pedialyte (electrolyte replacement fluid) and feed small amounts, usually about two to four cc's depending on the age of the chick every two hours for the next twelve. At each feeding you will want to very gently massage the crop, making sure not to push up on the crop. Pushing up could cause the chick to aspirate food. This is a serious problem and can result in aspiration pneumonia or death. Critical to resolving this problem with sour crop is the formula temperature should be at least 105 degrees Fahrenheit.

I wish you luck!

[Fur&Feathers]

Thank you very much Giselle. That's precisely what it is. The vet last night wasn't very knowledgable about birds, he tried to say that at almost 2 months of age, he should be eating his own food and shouldn't be hand fed... and he also thought "hand feeding" meant eating pellets and/or seeds from your hand. . . :eek: Another veterinarian at that location was able to empty 2ccs of the contents in Draven's crop and said he should be ok until morning. So I'm at my mother's place, waiting until 6am, to take him to an excellent avian vet about 30 minutes away.

Edited to ask a question:
We believe the room in which Draven is kept is too cold for him to digest. Would anyone know of a bird-friendly heater? PetsMart doesn't seem to have anything. I've read that space heaters are dangerous. Thank you.

[Vela]

Space heaters aren't dangerous nowdays, and would keep the room he's in much warmer. I have a ceramic tower heater, looks like a regular fan but if ti even gets bumped a little it shuts off and there is no heating element, to start a fire.

http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/602-7694873-8239016?asin=B000GULVPW&AFID=Nextag&LNM=B000GULVPW|DeLonghi_SafeHeat_Ceramic_Tower_Hea ter_with_Remote_Control__Black_TCH6590ER&ref=tgt_adv_XSN10001

I have one like that, and it works great, it's not unsafe at all. I hope the little baby gets better soon, that's scary when they are so tiny!

[Fur&Feathers]

Thanks, Vela. We got a similar space heater for him, it turns off if it's lifted. 8 hours of waiting and $400 later... the Avian specialist thinks he has a digestive problem and is unsure of the severity of it. They found undigested food in his fecal matter. She did a crop swab and everything came back normal. She also found a parasite in his feces. He's on antibiotics and a medication to help crop movement. Draven eats so well and eats every time, but he's "extremely underweight." :( It's not looking too good for Draven right now, but I still have hope. Thanks everyone for your replies and help.

[Husky_mom]

I´ve heard about a vet doing some manual draining of the crop at other site I frequent which focuses only on birds...........you may wanna take a look as some other member could give some more advice

you can go to www.tailfeathersnetwork.com there are some very helpful topics about birdies...........

hope he gets better.........

[Fur&Feathers]

Thanks everyone for the replies. Husky_mom, the first vet that Draven went to attempted to drain his crop, which I read is only supposed to be done as a last resort. Draven went back to the vet last night because his crop isn't emptying as quickly as it should be. He got a shot directly into the crop muscle to help stimulate it. We're just waiting on the blood results to see whether or not he has an irreversible digestive problem. Thanks again, everyone.

[Fur&Feathers]

...it turns out all Draven needed was a little crop support. He didn't need all of those shots or blood taken. The Avian vet who apparently is clueless wanted to hospitalize him. I took Draven to Dante's vet today and he put some elastic bandage around his crop and now it's emptying properly. I guess it was stretched and just needed some support. Poor baby has been through a lot for nothing. :(

[Giselle]

Oh poor thing. I'm glad the cause of all this trouble has been found! One thing about space heaters is that they can cause the air to become really dry. Another option would be a hot water bottle punctured at the top and covered in a glove or similar item to avoid burning the chick's skin. A small towel should suffice, too.

Are you sure that the formula you're feeding is at the exact temperature? If it's too cold, it will cause sour crop so you might want to double check the temperature. And don't rule out the thermometer itself! Sometimes, they can be defective, too. I wish you luck! I was never too comfortable with handfeeding myself :o

[Fur&Feathers]

Thanks, Giselle for the heating tips.

Here are two pictures taken about 30 minutes ago. Draven is doing SO much better. The first day at the vet, he weighed 77 grams with a partially full crop. This morning, he weighed 130 grams with an empty crop! I'm so HAPPY. Thanks everyone for your help!

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r32/Nandaytielsun/Picture047.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r32/Nandaytielsun/Picture048.jpg

You can see his little "crop bra." ;) It's a lifesaver. He's going back to the vet on Monday to get everything checked out.

[Argranade]

Oh my gosh, what a sweet little darling he is! :D

I'm so glad he's alright now, you must show photos as he grows up lol. ;)

[Giselle]

What a cutie!!! I must have missed one of your posts, but is he a Jenday or Sun? Or maybe I'm completely off? :p

[Argranade]

What a cutie!!! I must have missed one of your posts, but is he a Jenday or Sun? Or maybe I'm completely off? :p

He's a Sun conure!

[luckies4me]

Bless his little heart. Poor little guy. Having to go through so much for nothing. Good thing you found a knowledgable vet. I hope the little guy starts feeling better soon. Please keep us updated. He sure is a cutie! :D

[Chilli]

Aww! Draven is the cutest! :D I'm glad to hear that the little guy is getting through this..

[Fur&Feathers]

Yep, Argranade is right, Draven is a Sun Conure. :D Draven went to the vet this morning and the vet removed his crop bra. My mother fed him recently and his crop has been emptying without the extra support!!! :) I'm so happy, I really hope Draven's going to be ok now.