# Broken Toe



## MissCV

Hello All, Im a long time lurker on these great forums. I have a male cockatiel at home who is about 12-13 years old.... He means the world to me!

He had a small sore on the bottom of his foot for around 2 weeks and so yesterday i took him to the vet to get it checked as it was not going away. It didnt seem to cause him any pain and he wasnt bothered by it, but i thought it was better to be safe than sorry. 

BAD NEWS- the sore was actually caused from one of his toes being broken (I have no idea how, maybe a fall??) and his toe was very mis-aligned. The vet decided to try to re-set the bones (as they were not even joining) and in doing so has put a piece of plastic under his foot and bound his toes to it, so its acting a splint for the broken toe. Obviously this stops him from being able to climb properly and he struggles to sit on his perches now. He constantly nibbles at the bandage and i can tell its making him crazy (he is constantly puffy, and lets me pick him up with my hand over his body- which he usually would have tore my fingers off for). The good news is that he is still eating and drinking and otherwise seems ok. 

The vet said to monitor him to make sure he doesnt chew his foot/toes off attempting to remove the bandage, and if he does start to cause harm we will need to put a neck brace on him to stop him from doing so. This worries me as he is just not liking any of this, and should we need to take that next step im worried it might actually kill him from stress/unhappiness.

SO im wondering if anyone else out there has had this issue before and if so what did you do?? I want to do the best for him but at the same time it needs to be balanced so as to not send him crazy for the point of fixing a toe!

Sorry for the long post, im really worried and am hoping someone out there will be able to give me some piece of mind!!

TIA


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## Jess

I've got one with a misaligned toe, it doesn't bother her in any way so I left it alone.


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## MissCV

hi jess, thanks for your reply. 

Was your tiels toe broken or just misaligned??

I would have prefered to leave it be but the vet said that with the broken bones, if we were to leave it, its likely that it will cause problems later like arthritis and swollen joints. Maybe i should try to see another vet for another opinion...

Thanks again for your help.


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## MeanneyFids

arthritis will happen alligned or not. the break whether in any creature--even humans--builds up a thicker wall to heal it. thats going to cause swollen joints and arthritis. i broke the joints in my thumb and middle finger on the same hand--guess what, its stiff and sore often and the joints are swollen often and i lost flexibility. and they were alligned properly. a misallignment or not--there will be future arthritis either in old age or swollen joints on bad weather days and old age. its normal. my cousin broke his arm and had surgery to put plates and pins in it. he still feels it 5 years later when the weathers bad. so its normal, what the vet told you is not 100% true. Jess is right, theres often no harm so long as they can use it properly. if the break wasnt bothering him, im pretty sure he wouldve been ok, but its great you got vet care for him--im not against that lol im just saying, that stiff swollen joints and arthritis are inevitable regarless of allignment  all old creatures, broken bones or not get arthritis. but the stiff joints will happen even with or without the allignment. its not overly painful. some days its painful, others its just an inconvenience lol its been 3-4 years since i broke the thumb and finger. sorry to say, its just part of breaking bones. i hope he heals good. its good to know he has an owner to take good care of him for stuff like that. i hope he gets to feeling better. and hopefully he doesnt rip off the bandages lol


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## MissCV

Hi DallyTsuka... Thanks for your reply. I understand that he will always have problems with that toe now, which is very sad for my little guy.

Its only been 3 days and I dont know if i can handle him having the bandages on. He just isnt himself- he wont whistle, sing or talk. He doesnt want to play and is very clingy. He is sleeping heaps- he would never sleep on my shoulder before but now he is doing it most of the time i have him out. Im really worried for him. He is still eating and drinking though so I guess thats the only positive at the moment. His poo has changed (much larger but no undigested seeds that i can see, slightly different colour), which I am putting down to the antibiotics the vet gave him and the fact that he is eating more due to lack of ability to climb and play in his cage.

I have a check up appt booked for Saturday for him, but Im not sure if I should let him wait that long. What do you guys think?? If he is eating ok, is it safe to wait for Saturday??


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## MeanneyFids

i wasnt putting you down for thinking you didnt know. im just saying, the vet didnt say the full truth there. he prolly doesnt like the bandages and i dont blame him. discuss this with your vet and see what else you can do. if hes eating fine, then id wait. if he stops, go to the vet. 

and yes it is sad i hope he feels better. even if it does bother him, it shouldnt be too bad. its still a fid in pain and thats not good. but im sure hes very strong!


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## MissCV

I really appreciate your responses! Thanks...

I think ill wait until Saturday, unless he tears off his bandages in the mean time!! haha


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## DinoandSera

Hope your little guy's toe is better very soon


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## Jess

Birds bones are hollow so generally heal alot quicker than ours, I don't know about athritis in birds but I'm guessing things are different with birds due to their light weight bones.
Different vets say/do different things, I saw one a vet TV programme a vet removing a Cockatoos toe because it was pointing forward rather than back. I thought that was a bit drastic to risk an aneasetic and take the toe off, I think sometimes they do these OTT things to make more money out of people. In the next programme he removed a cyst from a budgies wing, took over it and lost the bird under aneasetic. I'm pleased to say the vet in question doesn't do general practice anymore, probably thinks he's a tv star now lol.
See how he goes, I'm a bit worried that is is miserable, is the bandage too tight and causing pain? whatever you do don't go down the route of a neck brace, take the bandage off if needs be. My vet is more of the let it heal naturally, there's always a risk that the bandaging could be too tight and cut off the blood supply causing more damage/loss of foot even.


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## MissCV

Thanks for all of your replies!! You guys on here are just so great and supportive, Im so glad I joined this forum!!

He seems a little better as he has started nipping and going back to his crankier self! haha. He is still quite irritated by the bandages but didnt seem to do any more damage to them yesterday while I was at work, so thats a relief. He has started whistling a little now but only on occasion, not like he used to. 

I think I will def be opposed to the neck brace. It will just be too stressful for him (and me!). Im actually worried about the sore that was on the bottom of his foot (which is what prompted me to go to the vet!) as its not recieving any air while he is bandaged up, the vet gave him antibiotics but i would assume that the sore would still need to be aired to heal properly.... I just dont want to have to take him in any earlier than Saturday though as i think the stress of being there again will just be too much, especially if they re-bandage his foot. And if i call to ask i have a feeling they will say to bring him back in! It cant hurt to just call though and see what they suggest.

Anyway Ill keep you guys updated and again, thanks so much for your time in replying to my thread!


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## srtiels

_* It will just be too stressful for him (and me!). Im actually worried about the sore that was on the bottom of his foot (which is what prompted me to go to the vet!) as its not recieving any air while he is bandaged up, the vet gave him antibiotics but i would assume that the sore would still need to be aired to heal properly....*_
*-----------------------------*

Do you have another vet you can go to? The sore cold also be an ulcer from a Vitamin A defeciency. The term for this is Bumblefoot (can do a Google search) And open freash air would be better for it. Liquid Vitamin E can be applied to the sore to help heal it. And supplements of Beta-Catotene...in capsule form sprinkled on his food a couple times a week.

I would not go the collar route...it is too stressful. or even the foot taped and wrapped. This is fine for a young bird in the nest with a trecent break, but extremely stressful for an older bird. And the toe being bent is not going to cause a problem getting around.

If it was me I would unwrap it. let the sore air out. And examine the sore, and if it looks white and hard under the skin, go to another vet for a secone opinion and treatment. It may be an ulcer, and may need to be either trerated or excised, or it can be the beginings of gout and may need a modification in diet.


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## MissCV

There are no real other Avian vets in the area. There is one about an hour away but its quite a long trip for a already stressed little bird.

Thank you for reply. I just spoke with the vet and they seem to think that the sore under his foot is better for being wrapped up as its restricting the movement and letting the skin heal over. Its actually right under his foot where all of his toes meet, so the vet said that it was constantly being stretched and torn by having his foot loose. Im going to watch him very closely over the next few days and I might take him back earlier than Saturday.

Im going to do some research and will be very prepared for the vets this time around!! 

I appreciate your reply... Ill def look into Bumblefoot on the net!


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## MissCV

Update on the toe problem.... The bandages came off last night to reveal a horrible mess underneith. His toe looks quite horrible now and he is def not liking it, as he is favouring his other foot and keeps nibbling at the red area. I have tried to attach a pic- hopefully it works!

My husband is taking him to the vets for me today (i have to be at work unfortunately) and the appt is in an hour. Can anyone suggest what they would recommend?? Or what I should ask the vet about??

He has been getting weekly antibotics at each visit which was supposed to help heal the bumblefoot but im not so sure its working by the looks of it. Im very worried and just feel horrible for my little guy.


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## Sar

Oh dear, the foot does look sore, poor baby 

I hope you get this sorted soon, it is so horrible when our babies are poorly, especially if we don't have a vet we feel confident with nearby.

Good luck

Sar


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## tielmom

I hope his foot is doing better...his foot does appear to be pretty sore and I am hoping the vet has been able to help him. Keep us updated.


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## Jess

Definately no more bandages, it needs to air to get to it, help it dry out. When you say weekly antibiotics is that in the form of injection?


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## MissCV

hello all.. thanks for your comments. Yes his foot is sore, he really is trying not to use is and i just feel so horrible for him!

The redness has settled a little, from getting some fresh air i guess. And the weekly antibiotics were given to him orally.

The vet we seen yesterday (which is the one i have been seeing all along for this issue) believes that the redness/sore is caused from internally due to the broken bone. He thinks there may be a splint of bone causing irritation and that the redness is caused internally. He has given us antibiotics to give him orally twice a day (0.2 Clavulox Drops, morning and night) and said that if that doesnt resolve it, he would suggest either surgery to insert a metal rod into the bone to reconnect it or removal of the end of his toe (where the break is)!!!!

I am really not happy with either of those suggestions, but the state his foot is at now almost doesnt give me many options. I am taking him to another vet for a second opinion.... and im really hoping we can resolve this for my little guy without the need for surgery!

We had our first go at giving him the Clavulox antibiotics this morning and it went ok... but its not a nice feeling knowing that he hates it. I had to hold him and my husband gave him the dose in two small amounts. The first went down ok but by the second half, he was sneezing and trying his hardest to cough it up. I just hope we did it right and didnt cause any problems... I was worried he might choke on it or get it in his nose from sneezing it out??! If anyone has any advice on how to easily administer oral antibiotics, it would be a huge help.

Ill update once we get back from the vet on saturday anyway. And thanks again for your thoughts and kind words for my little guy!


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## Ezzie

If i was in your situation, i would get amputate his toe partially (like the vet suggested) or the whole toe. When you look at how tiny their feet and bones are it would be very hard for a vet to fix something that might not even be 100% ever again.

Personally, putting a bird through a little stress and losing a toe in the process, in which they proberly wouldnt even notice and would recover quickly from, then to go through weeks of rehab and followups etc from surgery would be the better option if i was in your situation.


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## MissCV

If i need to choose between the two options, I think I would do as you suggested Ezzie. Like you said, Im not sure how the surgery would go and whether the outcome would be successful or not, add to that the stress of recovery and a possibility of requiring more surgery if it doesnt work... plus the cost on top of all of that (which Im sure will not be reasonable based on how difficult i imagine the work to be). While the toe removal sounds extreme, Im sure he wouldnt be the first birdie missing a toe and overall he is quite a tough little guy so Im sure he could learn how to live without it. 

But I am really just hoping for an outcome that avoids any kind of surgery. 

Fingers crossed the antibiotics work and that the second vet we are going to see tomorrow has some other suggestions as to how we can make my little guy feel better in the mean time.

Ill keep you all posted. Thanks again for your comments.


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## tielmom

Good luck at the new vet... If I was in your shoes I would do as Ezzie has suggested also. They can walk and hold to a bar with one less toe...hoping for the best...keep us posted.


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## Kaoru

maybe if you give him something he likes to eat after you gave him the medicine? i think he just does not like the taste 
maybe he will be more willing to take the medicine?

our neighbours once found a bird in the garden in winter.
he probably got frozen stuck on something he sat on, and when he got in their garden he was missing 1 toe from one foot and two from the other. he learned how to live with it. and had no problems with climbing!

please keep us informed, good luck at the vet


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## Jess

I think Baytril might have been a better antibiotic to give, that would be 0.1ml once a day or split the dose and do morning and evening, it's very good for wounds.

I would think really carefully before opting for surgery, aneasetic for birds can be dangerous and you could lose him. Ask for Baytril 2.5% oral instead of the one he's on now. Baytril is much easier to give being that it is syrupy and literally a drop.

If that doesn't work then or you could give concurrently with Baytril something called antirobe 25mg. They are capules, you have to break the capsule, seperate it into 6 little piles and give 2 piles a day, 1 morning the other evening mixed with literally a drop of water. Antirobe is very good for bone infection and deep tissue infections. I say you could just try the Baytril first as it's less fiddly and daunting but once you are used to preparing meds it's easy. I put the remainder of the split capsules for use the next day in little plastic containers that the vet gave me.


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## MissCV

Thanks again for all of your comments!! You guys are just so great here!

A quick update, we went to see another vet last weekend. He agreed that the splint should not have been put on if the toe wasnt causing any pain. He gave me some cream to put on twice a day (flamazine cream) and suggested that we dont rush into surgery, to try to give the toe some time to heal itself. He also said that the toe removal is not such a bad option if need be, and that I shouldnt worry so much, that cockatiels can be quite tough little birds. He was just lovely and didnt even charge me for the consult. However he didnt seem to want to hold my bird and instead had me hold him while he inspected the toe, so im not sure how confident he is with birds. So ill be returning to the original vet for further appts. 

My next appt with the original vet is tomorrow morning, to determine whats happening with the antibiotics and see what the vet suggests we do from here. 

I think i would like to wait some more before we decide on whether we need surgery for his toe, assuming its not causing any other health issues. But I have taken some pics this morning and would like your opinions on whether you think there is any improvement from the last pic i put up.

On the upside, my little guy is so much happier. He is just loving life and has actually become a lot more friendlier with other people since all of this. He used to only let me touch him, but now he isnt so fussy and is loving all of the attention. Fingers crossed all goes well tomorrow for him...


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