# injured wing possibly??



## brooklyn12

I took my tiel of her cage this morning and she did her usual routine. Except when she tried to fly to the kitchen sink I saw that only one wing flapped and the other half way and she landed. I noticed her right wing was drooping and after asking my parents this morning if they had seen her get scared (she's had a few night frights no injuries) before they went to work and they said no. She was flying yesterday even at night time before I put her back inside so could she have gotten this injury during a night fright anyway? It did thunderstorm last night.

She has not tried to fly once, she has traveled only to my shoulder and thats because I put her there. She's let me pet her and give her kisses. I do not see any blood feathers sticking out and she doesn't seem in pain. She has stretched her injured wing a few times today with no screeching or a noise of discomfort . One thing i have noticed is she has been sleeping for most of the day which could be (i hope) the result of not sleeping at all last night because of the fright. She still stands straight up and has eaten her usual foods no problem.

I have an appointment on friday but could this be a sprain or a broken wing or something more?


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## Lunawolfsong

Can you touch the wing? If you can't touch it without her screaming at you then there's definetly something wrong. If you can grab it and pull it out without injuring her further, then gently feel around the wing and compare it to the other wing. Can you feel any broken bones? Does it feel swollen in comparison with the other wing? If not, it's most likely not a sprain or a break (though I can't be sure). 

Also, if you're concerned she hurt herself, then do the tail test. The tail test is, from what I've learned from working at Fallen Feathers, the most important test. Hold your bird out on your finger so that they are facing away from you and look at their tail. How is she holding it? If she's pointing it up, down, sideways, or seems unable to hold it steady than she might be suffering from brain/spinal damage as well. If it's centered, then she should be fine in that area. 

It's a good thing you're taking her to see the vet; you can never be too careful. From what you've described, it sounds to me like she just bumped it. You know when you hit your arm on something and it hurts for either a few minutes or a few hours or sometimes even a day or two? It might just be something like that; that's happened to Kirby before. If that's the case it'll most likely be all better by the time you get to the vet. 

Keep us updated


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## enigma731

If it's dropping, it may be dislocated. Keep a close eye on her between now and your vet visit.


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## Lunawolfsong

You can also use a heat lamp or a heating pad to help quell any pain (even if she doesn't seem to be in pain she could be hiding it) or discomfort. Just be careful to put it on a low heat and if you use a heating pad place it over the cage with a towel or something between the cage and the pad.


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## brooklyn12

Lunawolfsong said:


> It's a good thing you're taking her to see the vet; you can never be too careful. From what you've described, it sounds to me like she just bumped it. You know when you hit your arm on something and it hurts for either a few minutes or a few hours or sometimes even a day or two? It might just be something like that; that's happened to Kirby before. If that's the case it'll most likely be all better by the time you get to the vet.
> 
> Keep us updated


Thank you for your info. She doesn't say much when I touch her wing, I am afraid to spread it simply because I don't want to her hurt more but after looking at the rest of what you put I think it may be something else. When she was on her perch she had her tail facing down. She seems to be able to hold it steady but she just looks very uncomfortable. I do not want to believe its a spinal/brain injury but as of 2:00pm yesterday (wednesday) she hasn't eaten. Ive given her her favorite foods, she doesn't eat her seeds, she honestly just looks out of it. She is out right now (10:00am) and I ate my breakfast which she usually like to come bother and take but she didn't even budge. 

I'm no animal expert but anytime an animal doesn't wanna eat its a red flag for sure. Her appointment is tomorrow so hopefully they can tell me something. I will continue to update her but for now imma just comfort her. I do not know the seriousness of how bad this can get but I'm mentally prepared for whatever happens.


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## brooklyn12

enigma731 said:


> If it's dropping, it may be dislocated. Keep a close eye on her between now and your vet visit.


I shall its not looking very good but thank you for the response. 
I know this is a out of the blue statement but how much is too much. What I mean by that is lets say she continues to not eat or shows no interest and continues to be out of it for the next like 3-4 days. I do not want my baby to suffer/starve and I've heard the stories of putting birds to sleep not a fan. Ive had 3 birds who have passed away naturally but have any of you guys/girls put your bird to sleep?


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## roxy culver

> I know this is a out of the blue statement but how much is too much. What I mean by that is lets say she continues to not eat or shows no interest and continues to be out of it for the next like 3-4 days. I do not want my baby to suffer/starve and I've heard the stories of putting birds to sleep not a fan. Ive had 3 birds who have passed away naturally but have any of you guys/girls put your bird to sleep?


I work at a vet clinic and so I see this and do it regularly. It's a pretty simple and painless procedure. But I'll be honest, I don't think your bird is anywhere near needing that. First off, if she's in pain, she's not going to feel comfortable enough to eat. You can try offering her millet to tempt her. Second, you have a vet visit tomorrow. The vet will be able to tell you more and I bet he won't even suggest euthanasia because that's not something they regularly do. Especially not for a dislocated shoulder that can be relocated. They'll most likely give her pain meds too, which will help with the pain. I think your baby will be just fine.


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## brooklyn12

roxy culver said:


> I work at a vet clinic and so I see this and do it regularly. It's a pretty simple and painless procedure. But I'll be honest, I don't think your bird is anywhere near needing that. First off, if she's in pain, she's not going to feel comfortable enough to eat. You can try offering her millet to tempt her. Second, you have a vet visit tomorrow. The vet will be able to tell you more and I bet he won't even suggest euthanasia because that's not something they regularly do. Especially not for a dislocated shoulder that can be relocated. They'll most likely give her pain meds too, which will help with the pain. I think your baby will be just fine.


I read the stories online, people tend to exaggerate but I appreciate you letting me know its not bad. Seeing her the way she is just has me worried, she seems very lethargic most of the time. Hopefully she attempts to eat and yes my vet is a very good man hopefully he can tell me some good news.


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## enigma731

Last year, one of my birds caught the tip of her wing in the cage bars during a night fright and got pretty badly cut/bruised. She acted lethargic and refused to eat for a week, at which point I actually ended up tube feeding her so that she didn't lose too much weight. But the injury itself was not severe or life-threatening, it just made her feel sufficiently uncomfortable to not want to eat or do anything until it healed. My point is, I would be very careful about concluding that your bird has a fatal condition before seeing the vet. Most likely she's just in pain. A dislocated or even just badly sore wing will throw off her posture like you're describing. Pain will cause lethargy. She probably needs meds and time to heal.


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## brooklyn12

enigma731 said:


> Last year, one of my birds caught the tip of her wing in the cage bars during a night fright and got pretty badly cut/bruised. She acted lethargic and refused to eat for a week, at which point I actually ended up tube feeding her so that she didn't lose too much weight. But the injury itself was not severe or life-threatening, it just made her feel sufficiently uncomfortable to not want to eat or do anything until it healed. My point is, I would be very careful about concluding that your bird has a fatal condition before seeing the vet. Most likely she's just in pain. A dislocated or even just badly sore wing will throw off her posture like you're describing. Pain will cause lethargy. She probably needs meds and time to heal.


I saw the doctor today, ended up being able to change her appointment. He didn't feel anything broken, her wings were good, her back, her spine. He told me the wing I believe she injured she was resisting when he was spreading it so she def. could have hurt it like we figured as much. He prescribed METACAM which I've given her before and we still have. So were gonna give her the medicine today and tomorrow. The concern he has is that she will continue to lose weight if she doesn't eat so he's hoping she decides to eat soon after we give her the medicine today. 
I plan on going back saturday and imma mention the feeding through a tube since your situation sounds similar to mine. Hopefully by then she improves.


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## Lunawolfsong

brooklyn12 said:


> I saw the doctor today, ended up being able to change her appointment. He didn't feel anything broken, her wings were good, her back, her spine. He told me the wing I believe she injured she was resisting when he was spreading it so she def. could have hurt it like we figured as much. He prescribed METACAM which I've given her before and we still have. So were gonna give her the medicine today and tomorrow. The concern he has is that she will continue to lose weight if she doesn't eat so he's hoping she decides to eat soon after we give her the medicine today.
> I plan on going back saturday and imma mention the feeding through a tube since your situation sounds similar to mine. Hopefully by then she improves.


All great news!! I'm so glad to her she's alright  Also, you don't need vet approval to tube feed; it's fairly simple. Just be careful to make sure that the tube goes all the way down her throat, because the bird's airhole is right on their tongues, so if you push the food just into their mouths than they can asphyxiate. Also be sure to feel the bird's crop to make sure that they're you don't overfeed them, because if you overfeed them then they can asphyxiate from that as well. Also, make sure that their crop is completely empty before feeding them again. Jody explains it to me as "If you eat cereal in the morning, then leave the bowl with the milk in it, would you use that bowl again with the milk in it a couple hours later?" You want to make sure their crop is completely empty before feeding them again. 

Then again, all of the tube feeding stuff that I know is from feeding baby birds, so it might be incorrect for me to say that. If you decide to tube, I would look it up properly, watch some YouTube videos of it, and ask for help from more experienced members on here than me


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## roxy culver

> All great news!! I'm so glad to her she's alright Also, you don't need vet approval to tube feed; it's fairly simple. Just be careful to make sure that the tube goes all the way down her throat, because the bird's airhole is right on their tongues, so if you push the food just into their mouths than they can asphyxiate. Also be sure to feel the bird's crop to make sure that they're you don't overfeed them, because if you overfeed them then they can asphyxiate from that as well. Also, make sure that their crop is completely empty before feeding them again. Jody explains it to me as "If you eat cereal in the morning, then leave the bowl with the milk in it, would you use that bowl again with the milk in it a couple hours later?" You want to make sure their crop is completely empty before feeding them again.
> 
> Then again, all of the tube feeding stuff that I know is from feeding baby birds, so it might be incorrect for me to say that. If you decide to tube, I would look it up properly, watch some YouTube videos of it, and ask for help from more experienced members on here than me


If you have never done it before I would not recommend it, especially without a doctor showing you how. With an older bird, they can be very resistant and you could end up aspirating her if you don't know what you're doing. I would say see how the medication works and offer her the foods you know she can't resist.


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## Lunawolfsong

roxy culver said:


> If you have never done it before I would not recommend it, especially without a doctor showing you how. With an older bird, they can be very resistant and you could end up aspirating her if you don't know what you're doing.


Okay, that's why I figured my advice on it wouldn't be the best. I usually tube feed baby pigeons, doves, and hummingbirds at the rescue, and figured that would be different than adult cockatiels. Thanks for the information, Roxy!


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## enigma731

It's very possible to learn how to tube feed at home, but it should definitely be demonstrated by a vet first. I don't think it's likely to be needed in this case, though.


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## roxy culver

> It's very possible to learn how to tube feed at home, but it should definitely be demonstrated by a vet first. I don't think it's likely to be needed in this case, though.


I agree which is why I recommended against it. The vet didn't seem to feel it was necessary. My worry is that something bad might happen and I don't want us to be held liable for giving that kind of advice. 

How is your baby doing today? Is the medication helping?


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## brooklyn12

roxy culver said:


> I agree which is why I recommended against it. The vet didn't seem to feel it was necessary. My worry is that something bad might happen and I don't want us to be held liable for giving that kind of advice.
> 
> How is your baby doing today? Is the medication helping?


Thank you all for the info. Well the metacam seems to have relieved some strain on her wing. She's flown just twice and on her second attempts after flying the first time she doesn't make it very far. So she's still not 100% but she stands on her perch without any pain and seems more active which is ok but still sleeps a little bit throughout the day.

The big problem is that she is just not eating. She went around 1 and 1/2 days without eating (food hadn't been touch no signs of anything eaten) or drinking water (that i know of) until we offered her water from a cup she drinks from when we have dinner and she drank like 4 times so i can tell she was probably dehydrated. As far as what she ate, she ate Doritos...yes the chips. Although we were happy she finally ate something the fact is she doesn't really enjoy Doritos and she ate them was startling. We've offered her brown rice which is her favorite, corn, which she loves, spaghetti etc. and she's payed no mind to it. 
Today she wanted no food again until we opened the Doritos bag and she ate some chips and drank a little water and proceeded to climb back into her cage and rest. 

I saw the doctor 8:00 am this morning and she's lost weight about 13 (ounces? not sure the correct term) plus her poop is coming out very wet and its not maintaining its form at all. He's very worried simply because since cockatiel metabolism is so fast no food at all is only hurting her hence the weight loss. Also I mentioned the tube and he said the problem with the tube is that she is an older bird. When they are babies and they are fed that way they view it has something positive. An older bird may not understand that and from grabbing my bird to see if she may possibly be accepting of it I saw first hand she wanted nothing to do it with and moved too much for him to even get it in her mouth. 

He's told me to try and really see if she eats other foods because he's is worrying for her quality of life and I understand of course she cannot live off of a little bit of Doritos she needs to eat real food. I just want whats best for her. Seeing her this way is very tough and the last thing I want for her is to suffer in anyway shape or form.


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## enigma731

Crop feeding an older bird does involve restraining and forcing them, just like giving meds does. It's a form of supportive care to help a sick/injured bird recover. While they may not be thrilled with it, it is not any less humane than administering meds or trimming nails. It's something we do to help them. The fact that your vet is not even considering the possibility concerns me. The fact that he was unable to properly restrain her to get it in her mouth is even more concerning. That's a basic skill! There is no reason to euthanize a bird due to not eating in the short-term. If she continues to lose weight, please try to find a vet who will either show you how to tube feed or do it in the clinic. It's possible that she might have a condition that she won't recover from, but right now it's most likely that she just needs more time and support.


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## brooklyn12

enigma731 said:


> Crop feeding an older bird does involve restraining and forcing them, just like giving meds does. It's a form of supportive care to help a sick/injured bird recover. While they may not be thrilled with it, it is not any less humane than administering meds or trimming nails. It's something we do to help them. The fact that your vet is not even considering the possibility concerns me. The fact that he was unable to properly restrain her to get it in her mouth is even more concerning. That's a basic skill! There is no reason to euthanize a bird due to not eating in the short-term. If she continues to lose weight, please try to find a vet who will either show you how to tube feed or do it in the clinic. It's possible that she might have a condition that she won't recover from, but right now it's most likely that she just needs more time and support.


I got in contact with a friend from college who's father is a vet. Told him my situation and he's gonna see if he can see me today. You're right she may have something she cannot recover from but she's not on deaths door either. Hopefully this can help me and for sure give me a second opinion on what I could do.


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