# severe leg problem!



## babakbina (Aug 9, 2012)

Hi. punky, my 2 year old female cockatiel is feeling very bad lately on her left leg. her leg has bent inward in a way that when she sits on 
a flat surface the left foot crosses over the right foot. she had a bad landing about 6 months ago and her leg was hurt.
that is the only occasion I remember that might have caused this kind of deformation later on. after she landed badly, you could
tell that she was trying not to use that leg as much as the other one. I waited to see what will happen in the next days and
after a couple of days there were no symptoms and I assumed that she had just hurt her leg and it took her a couple of days to 
recover and get back to normal. but after 4-5 months she started showing symptoms again. she was favoring one foot, and I noticed
that she was not walking as much and when walking one foot was a little bent inwards. so, I took her to a vet and she examined her 
thoroughly and said there probably isn't any fracture or bone damage since she did not react at all to the vet examining that particular
leg. she also checked her tonge, beak and wings and said nothing is abnormal and this could have a cause that only xray and blood test
results will show. I took her to another vet to get a second opinion and she said we should do the xray but this second vet was harsher
in her examination and after we took punky home we could tell that her leg was soar and in pain. so we did the xray the day after, you can
see the xray results:











after the xray her leg has gotten worse, the vet said that the deformation we see in the bone is either from a kind of infection
or something more aggressive like cancer. so she gave her anti-inflamatory and antibiotics. we gave her the medications on time.
but nothing noticeable was happening, after the second vet visit her leg has gotten worse than before the visit and it has stayed the
same even after the course of prescriptions. my guess is that this is a physical damage rather than a systemic one. and the way 
she was examined the second time strained her leg so much that it has gotten worse. she vet said that after a month or so we would 
repeat the xrays to see if the leg shows any improvements as a result of medications or not. I am feeling really bad whenever I see
her walk around. she mostly avoids walking and feels more comfortable on perch. she is not active at all. she was an active and happy
cockatiel before all this. please tell me what you think about her condition and what I should do with it. 

Thank you


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

how is the calcium in her diet? does she get full spectrum lighting or natural sunlight (NOT through a window) for vitamin D?


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

I'm afraid I don't have any advice to give. Hopefully others do - but I just wanted to say that I'm sorry your little bird isn't feeling well and hope something can be done to help. Do you have some platform perches and rope perches? That might make her more comfortable.


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## Megad00dle (May 10, 2012)

Your poor birdy. Were they avian vets that you saw? If not, maybe you could show the xrays to an avian vet and get a second opinion on what could be going on. Also, maybe you could request some pain meds for her too if she seems to be in pain?

I would try to make her cage as comfortable as possible, maybe put some platforms in there so it's easier for her to get around. 

Depending on how serious the leg issue (worst case scenario), amputation might be an option if they can't figure out what's wrong and she continues to be in pain. I think I've heard of one legged tiels who do fairly well with one leg. I am not an expert by any means though- just giving my 2 cents.

I'll be thinking of your tiel. Hope she feels better soon.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

It would be good to talk to whichever one of the vets you trust the most and tell them that she has gotten worse since the xray, possibly as a result of the way she was handled then. And see what the vet has to say about it.


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