bluehen,
What do you mean by not digesting its food?
Passing the food whole?
Not eating?
Vomiting the food back up?
Or do you feel the crop is distended and the food is not moving into the rest of the digestive system?
Can you be more specific about where the swelling is. Is it on the wing or where the wing attaches to the body? Is the swelling warm to the touch?
Is it painful to the bird when you touch the swelling?
Does the swelling feel firm or fluid filled?
Dr. M
Dear Dr margo- corn fed to my bird on 21.1.09 was still in its crop today . before this date I noticed a slight loss of weight so I gave it a worming tablet- .this morning 24.1.09 it had a swelling on the wing from the body to the first joint .It feels warm to the touch . It lifts its wing up but only for a few seconds . it wont attempt to fly and just sits looking sorry for itself . My son said it vomited its corn back this afternoon...Hope this helps ..thank you .Jim robinson
Could your bird have injured itself? A fracture or puncture that could have led to an infection?
Is it still drinking water?
It seems to be drinking ok and there is no sign of any injury. Its feathers are still intact..
It may be some sort of infection in the area that is making the bird sick enough that he does not want to eat.
Do you have any antibiotics?
What do you think he weighs?
Sorry I called her a he :)
I would really recommend getting her started on some antibiotics.
Do your animal feed stores carry antibiotics packaged for poultry or calves?
A sulfa antibiotic would probably be the best way to proceed.
If you could not get an antibiotic on your own then you many need to seek out a veterinarian that works on birds to get a proper antibiotic.
If you can tell me what antibiotic you may be able to get I could give you a dosage.
If you can get the terramycin the dose would be 50-200mg/kg once a day for 3 to 5 days. Now this is the dose for the injectable form.
Some forms can be added to the drinking water. For that I would follow the dosing instructions on the label. You can get 10g packets of the terramycin powder. If you need to mix up a large amount, store it in the refrigerator to protect it from the light and replace it everyday in the birds waterer.
Avian Veterinarian
12yr practicing veterinarian