# Oral Medication Nightmare, Opinions?



## PC9850 (Feb 22, 2012)

Petey has been prescribed two oral antibiotics for his bacterial infection. Being that this is the first time he's been sick in his 12-13 year life and he's never had to do this before, he is incredibly stubborn about accepting the fluid from the syringe. Restraining him with the standard small washcloth method is a nasty procedure due to his violent thrashing, and getting him to swallow is even worse. Half the time he apparently just inhales it which is followed by an ugly 20-30 minute fit of sneezing and gurgling. It's not that I'm squirting it in his throat, I am simply dribbling it over his tongue as the doctor suggested. It's as if he doesn't know how to swallow it, or refuses it so violently that he accidentally breathes it in and blows it all out of his nose. Tonight was the worst yet and I am afraid at this point there are going to be serious health issues if this continues. Does anyone know of a better way to do this? And no he will not accept it off treats.


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

You need to restrain him better. I know it sounds mean, but it really does help. (Trust me, I have a squirmy bird too.) You really want more of a dish towel than a wash cloth, so that you can wrap him up in it tightly enough that he can't get his wings free or squirm too much. You also need to be able to control his head. That is the most important part, since it will allow you to get the meds where they need to be, instead of up his nose (which it sounds like is what's happening right now). He won't like it, but you need to be calm and assertive, and just insist that he gets restrained properly. He'll actually be less likely to injure himself if you do this correctly than if he's thrashing around everywhere. 

This album has good photos/descriptions of how to properly towel a bird: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...79100944.66077.122397991154241&type=3&theater
And more here: http://thetrueparrot.homestead.com/howtotowel.html

As far as giving the meds themselves, I have the best luck with holding the bird on his side and dripping the meds in the side of the beak (your right, the bird's left). The bird should reflexively open his beak and ingest the med that way, rather than you having to fight to get him to open his mouth for the syringe. Take a look at this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EBUWWqqEyE&feature=related There's a great demonstration of how to give oral meds starting at 1:45.

Most importantly, try to relax. If you're anxious, it will make Petey more anxious. I know medicating a bird is an unpleasant task, but just try to be calm and go slowly. Give him a treat after so he'll form somewhat of a positive association with getting it done. 

ETA: Also, it is okay if he gets it in his nose. It's not great, but it's not cause for panic, either. One of my stubborn birds does this from time to time no matter how well I restrain him/try to get him to swallow. They just really do not like it, but my vets assure me that that's fairly typical when medicating birds orally. It's a bigger problem if they get it in the lungs, but that's unlikely and doesn't sound like what's happening with Petey.


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## PC9850 (Feb 22, 2012)

Thank you for those reference materials. I think the biggest thing I need is a second set of hands. I'll have my dad help me out tomorrow, and try the side beak strategy. It's also good to know that the nasal issue isn't that bad of an occurrence. That's the one that was really worrying me


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

Having a second person definitely can really help. And yeah, it's preferable for them not to get it in their sinuses, but it's not an emergency unless it actually ends up in the lungs -- and according to my vet, you'd know if that happened because the bird would be extremely distressed and having actual trouble breathing, not just sniffling noises. Plus, these are antibiotics that you're giving, right? So even if he did aspirate some, the risk of infection is somewhat diminished by the meds themselves in his system.


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## Ginger101 (Jun 11, 2012)

yea Popeye has to have drops for when his eye gets yucky and he thrashes around alot so i get mum to do it.


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## PC9850 (Feb 22, 2012)

Well, the second pair of hands was of no use as my dad kept on letting him go as soon as he squirmed. Kind've defeats the purpose but I can't blame him, he's never handled a bird before. I followed the exact procedure of administering the fluid from the side then tilting up. It was a perfect execution IMHO, but he still recoils in such horror when it goes in his mouth that he _still_ managed to get some in his nose. I guess that's just how it's gonna have to be


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

Sometimes when meds taste especially bad to them, that's just the way they react. It's not your fault -- You can't force them to swallow, and if they sling the meds around and get them up their nose, there's nothing you can do about that, either. Just keep trying to do it the best you can.

You can also try holding him a little longer after you give the meds to try and stimulate him to swallow, but if that's going to be horribly stressful for him, then you'll have to weigh whether it's doing more harm than good.


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

Would he eat the medicine if it was on food? My vet gave me an info sheet that suggested putting medicine on pound cake. I'm not sure if that is for any medicine or not. And of course, if it tastes bad the tiel probably won't eat it- but I just thought I'd mention it.


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## MissCV (Sep 18, 2010)

My only suggestion is to have something to distract him with straight away once you have medicated him. My tiel loves going into my pantry and chewing on the corners of the cardboard boxes, so once i medicate him i put him straight in there and he usually gets excited about destroying stuff and forgets about the medicine...

Good luck!


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