# Is surgery worth the risk?



## Celondim (Aug 16, 2013)

I already made a thread about this but I've been mulling this over for weeks and advice would be great.

My bird has a lump under his wing that could be a feather cyst or something else. If he goes in for surgery, most likely part of his wing will have to be removed. The lump isn't hurting him but it's big, looks terrible and could continue to grow.

I'm scared he'll lose his wing and I'm more scared he'll die going in for a surgery for an issue that, at the moment, doesn't seem to be affecting his quality of life. 

I attached a photo although you can't see all of it since it's under his wing. 

What would you do in this situation?


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

How old is he?


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## Celondim (Aug 16, 2013)

enigma731 said:


> How old is he?


He's somewhere between 11 and 13 I think. I got him in 2005 from my friend but I don't remember exactly how old he was when she gave him to me.


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

If he were my bird, I would get the surgery. Birds do very well with wing amputations or partial amputations. Given his age, he could live another 10-20 years in good health. There would be a risk to the surgery, but it will be lowest now, while the xanthoma is relatively small and he is relatively young.


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## Celondim (Aug 16, 2013)

enigma731 said:


> If he were my bird, I would get the surgery. Birds do very well with wing amputations or partial amputations. Given his age, he could live another 10-20 years in good health. There would be a risk to the surgery, but it will be lowest now, while the xanthoma is relatively small and he is relatively young.


Thanks for the advice. Yeah, I'm still really nervous about it but I don't think it's going to get better and I can't imagine it's good to just leave it. My vet probably thinks I'm nuts because I've gone back and forth on this so much. Heh.


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

You could ask the vet how much experience he has with this type of surgery. That might help put some of your concerns to rest?


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## Brandon2k14 (Nov 26, 2014)

If he were mine I would too get the surgery done and I would definitely make sure the vet is experienced with this type of thing.Goodluck hope he gets better little cutie.


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## Celondim (Aug 16, 2013)

enigma731 said:


> You could ask the vet how much experience he has with this type of surgery. That might help put some of your concerns to rest?


Good point. The guy I want to go with is pretty experienced, I think, and has a colleague who will be there the day of who has some kind of avian vet license. But it's going to cost $600 - 800.

I could get it done for $400 and up from either of two other vets I went to a consultation with, but I feel more confident in the first guy. I don't know if I'm being dumb, though. It's a crazy amount of money but I really want it done right. Ugh.


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

I would pay for the experienced guy, if you're able to afford it.


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## Namyi (Jan 9, 2012)

Celondim said:


> Good point. The guy I want to go with is pretty experienced, I think, and has a colleague who will be there the day of who has some kind of avian vet license. But it's going to cost $600 - 800.
> 
> I could get it done for $400 and up from either of two other vets I went to a consultation with, but I feel more confident in the first guy. I don't know if I'm being dumb, though. It's a crazy amount of money but I really want it done right. Ugh.



I would also suggest getting the more experienced vet if you have the money.
You can't be too careful with your precious cockatiel.
Good luck with making the decision and also the best of luck to your cockatiel <3


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## Vickitiel (Oct 10, 2012)

I would risk it, and go with the more experienced vet, definitely.

Good luck and I hope your cockatiel will be okay. :flowers:


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## SilverSage (Oct 19, 2014)

If it were my bird I would BUT
-only an AVIAN CERTIFIED vet gets to cut my bird, not just a vet who sees birds sometimes.
-research the anesthetic they will use. It is my understanding that not all are created equal. Find out which is safest, and find a clinic that will use it. The anesthetic is the biggest risk. Some birds just don't wake up.
-more expensive is not always better. Go with the vet who is most qualified and willing to use the safest anesthetic for BIRDS not just for dogs and cats.


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## Celondim (Aug 16, 2013)

I thought I'd update this in case anybody else ends up in this situation. After over a month of deliberation, I brought my bird, Chili Pepper, in for surgery this morning. After so much worrying I was feeling pretty good about it. 

Then I got a call while at work that he didn't make it. I had to walk outside and sit down to cry. I just brought his body home a few minutes ago.

Silversage was absolutely right. The surgery lasted only 12 minutes but he just didn't wake up. I don't feel it's my vet's fault. We talked so much about it and I was confident in his abilities and judgement, but I didn't ask specifically about the anesthesia. Even so, I knew it was a risk and I finally decided I just had to go through with it.

Chili was energetic this morning when I took him in. He trusted me and I feel like I let him down. I'm devastated. 

He was sweet but also a real troublemaker. He was noisy and never wanted to let you walk away out of his room. He would fly and try to eat everything from my rabbit's food to leaping into my cereal bowl. I miss him so much already. Here's a pic I took of him running around my guinea pig pen yesterday.


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## bjknight93 (Nov 13, 2011)

I'm very sorry for your loss. You shouldn't blame yourself for his death; he trusted you to do your best at taking care of him..and that's what you did. No need to feel guilty about that. There was no way of knowing what the end result of surgery would be. 

RIP Chili Pepper


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## Vickitiel (Oct 10, 2012)

I'm so sorry for your loss of Chili :frown: I feel devastated for you. Rest in peace dear Chili and I hope you find freedom over the rainbow bridge.


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## JoJo's Mom (Oct 20, 2012)

I am so sorry for your loss. RIP little Chili, fly free. I am sure my JoJo and Sweet Pea will meet him and show him around...


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## tielbob (Mar 25, 2013)

I'm so sorry for your loss of Chili Pepper. As others have said, be mindful of _not_ blaming yourself. You loved him and did the right thing by bringing him in - it was not the kind of problem that he could have lived with (in my opinion too), so having the surgery was a responsible and loving gesture on your part. Similar thing happened to me with my dear Buzz way back in '96, so my heart breaks with yours for your loss. With Buzz everything seemed to go fine and she even woke up and seemed back to normal and we went home, but the next evening she apparently had a heart attack and I lost her anyway after all that. RIP little Chili Pepper.


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## tielbob (Mar 25, 2013)

message posted twice - trying to delete this duplicate


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## vidchick (Jul 1, 2015)

I'm so so sorry you lost Chili Pepper, I only lost my lovely Pip earlier this year and it's still so raw that reading about this made me cry. I wish I could say it gets better with time but it doesn't seem to so far for me. RIP little Chili Pepper and say 'Hello' to Pip!


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## Celondim (Aug 16, 2013)

Thank you all very much for your kind words. It means a lot.


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