JustAnswer > Bird
Ask A Question|Register|Login|Help
JustAnswer

Bird

Ask a Bird Question, Get an Answer ASAP!

Have your own Bird question?

4 Vets and Bird Experts are Online Now
characters left:
Not a Bird Question?
Bookmark and Share

Question

I have 2 parakeets and one attacked the other. "Lilly" ae we call her is now bleeding. Iam not sure from where but I am very worried. I have tried looking for the injury, as she i not afraid of me, and it seems to be somewhere on her wing. The bleeding seems to have stopped but I am not sure if I should take her to the vet or not.

Submitted: 392 days and 17 hours ago.
Category: Bird
Value: $15
Status: AWAITING CUSTOMER ACTION
+
Read More

Optional Information

Age: <1; Female; Breed: Parakeet

Already Tried:
I have cleaned her off with warm water and wrapped her in a towel to keep her warm. I am just not 100% sure wher the injury is.

Answer


You're doing the right thing in keeping her warm and hopefully preventing shock.


You need to keep them separated of course (I prefer separate cages just near each other rather than sharing a cage, exactly for reasons like you're dealing with now).


If there’s bleeding, stop it - once you find it - with a cold compress and gentle pressure as you lightly, but securely hold the bird calmly in a soft towel. Once the bleeding lets up, apply a coating of regular corn starch (plain flour will do if you don’t have corn starch) and I strongly suggest getting to a vet.


This could be a fracture or break that makes the bird prone to infection which can happen pretty quickly. Also, blood loss and shock may prove life threatening. Being safe rather than sorry is important for our feathered companions.


If you decide to keep her home and watch her, you'll have to monitor her all night. Bleeding may re-start and need to be dealed with.


For a makeshift incubator (for smaller or younger birds), use a small box lined with soft clothes like tee shirts.


Use a thick, clean sock and fill it ¾ with plain, raw white rice. Knot the end and microwave it for about 1 ½ minutes. Shake it afterwards to distribute the heat and be sure it's not too hot. Tuck this in just under the cloths.


A heating pad under the box is also helpful, set on low. This is one of the few times I’d ever use both heat sources if necessary to maintain incubation temp (90-105 degrees).


If ever using an electric source for heating anything in anyway, please be vigilant and constantly double checking carefully.


Gently drape a light cover over this box to further help hold heat in and keep light low.

 


If your bird will drink and eat on their own, excellent. If not, have an eyedropper ready to administer a few drops of plain water, or better yet, children’s Pedialyte every 20-30 minutes. Put the dropper gently inside the beak and let the drops fall into the bottom beak under the tongue rather than trying to get into the back of the throat. We don’t want to chance the bird inhaling the fluid and developing pneumonia.

Another feeding option is to offer ½ spoon of all natural, organic baby food (squash, yams, sweet potatoes, mixed vegetables) which many birds take readily; also try some pabulum or baby rice cereal and a few licks of natural (no artificial anything) yogurt.

You have very good instincts - keep trusting them!


Picture
Expert: S. August Abbott, CAS
Pos. Feedback: 99.6 %
Accepts: 
Answered: 10/26/2008

Certified Avian Specialist

Cert. Avian Specialist; Int. Assoc.Animal Behavior Consult; Pet Ind. Joint Advisory Council; author

+
Read More

Related Bird Questions

  • i nhave woodpeckers pecking holles in my cedar house and ...
  • I have a cockatiel and he has been eating constantly.
  • Can you get any diseases from birds?
  • is it true that budgies are scared of the color red? I want ...
  • my umbrella cockatoo has become afraid of my boyfriend ...
  • i have a cockatiel that i hand raised for 5 years the past ....
  • we have 2 parakeets, both male, we think. they are about .....
  • I have just got three chickens, two of them have not laid .....



Disclaimer: Information in questions, answers, and other posts on this site ("Posts") comes from individual users, not JustAnswer; JustAnswer is not responsible for Posts. Posts are for general information, are not intended to substitute for informed professional advice (medical, legal, veterinary, financial, etc.), or to establish a professional-client relationship. The site and services are provided "as is" with no warranty or representations by JustAnswer regarding the qualifications of Experts. To see what credentials have been verified by a third-party service, please click on the "Verified" symbol in some Experts' profiles. JustAnswer is not intended or designed for EMERGENCY questions which should be directed immediately by telephone or in-person to qualified professionals.
Question List | Become an Expert | Terms of Service | Security & Privacy | About Us
© 2003-2009 JustAnswer Corp.