Poor Scotty, I think he bungled his beak again

I am feeling bad for Scotty. I think he has knocked off the tip of his beak again, this time cleanly. He won't let me touch it and he won't fish nuts out of his foraging toy, although he will eat them if I hand them to him. I'm pretty sure he did it yesterday when one of the guys working on the house startled him and he tried to fly in his cage...he seems OK, is eating and drinking, but subdued. Don't think this needs a vet visit as there are no loose bits, just seems sore...

I feel like a bad birdie caretaker. Wonder if I should be doing anything differently.

Don't feel bad. It's a hazard of captivity and having a big honking schnoz. I remember my old CAG knocked the tip off her beak a few times. I'd feed soft foods for a few days. I think more so for my mental health than out of her necessity.

I think it is possible he also has a slightly sore wing. He wasn't keen on my handling it, but he eventually let me stretch it out and have a good look. Can't see any obvious damage so I assume it is unlikely it is broken, just perhaps a bit bruised or muscle sore. He seemed discombobulated right when it happened, then fairly normal the rest of the day, but cranky and NQR this morning, which seems consistent with bumps and bruises and mild strains. Should I be more worried than I am?

ScooterNScotty wrote:

Should I be more worried than I am?

Hard to say. When in doubt, take him to the vet.

A quiet area with supplemental heat helps, too. You can put a heat pad under the cage or against the side of the cage closest to a favorite perch. Even if it doesn't make sense that heat would help, it does. To prevent an adult bird from chewing on the heat pad I've put a piece of hard plastic between the cage bars and the heat pad (like the plastic pan off a spare cage). A metal cookie sheet does in a pinch. All attached with bungie cords. Does that make sense? You can try that for a few hours and see if it perks him up.

Yes that makes sense.

My husband says what I'm worrying about most owners wouldn't even notice, but we are keeping an eye on him and if he's not much better tomorrow we'll take him to the vet. He's not completely passive or anything, just subdued relative to normal. Not violently attacking toys. Well, was this morning. I'm about to head home see how he is now.

He seems much better now and is using his wing normally. i may have provoked him into worrying about it by making him show it to me.

That beak tip is definitely sore, but aside from being cautious about it, he is now behaving normally.

Good to hear.

Glad he seems, for the most part, to be okay.

He tried to French kiss me... and he wolf whistled when I came home. Fresh critter, he is.

He's very good at acting pitiful when he's not entirely OK. He goes "Awwwwww...." in a very human-sounding way. No idea if he picked it up, or if it's a natural Cape vocalization. But I don't expect any long term problems assuming the carpet installation, house deep-cleaning and various realtors and clients trooping through don't cause any more incidents.

Oy.

He's not at all good this morning. Very cranky, growling. Going to try to find a vet available today -- a good one.

Let us know what happens.

If you want to drive all the way down here, there are a couple of good avian vets in Oceanside and Encinitas, CA.

I called around EVERYWHERE. I have a walkin triage this afternoon with a recommended but not AAV listed vet in Studio City which is areasonably close. I called as far away as Santa Monica and Santa Clarita. Vet not in today. Vet has left the state. Vet is in but has to go home because of a water leak emergency. Vet has resigned. Vet has no openings. So we'll see how this goes.

He's acting a bit better now, but I am quite stressed and worried. Have to focus on getting house ready to sell.

He's OK.

The vet in Studio City seemed pretty OK and the practice has vets on staff 7 days a week that have at least some avian experience. They were quite pleasant about the non-client walkin. They only charged $150 including the meds to take with me (oral Metacam).

It does appear to be just the beak tip, like last time. They gave him a good going over and nothing else appeared amiss. They tubed in a little food and gave him a shot of Metacam, and that seems to have really taken the edge off. He's now preening which he hasn't done all day.

I'm fried.

Glad all went well. It's hard to watch them in pain.

Sorry you're fried.

I'm not sure whether to send you hugs.... or ketchup. :-(

VickiNumbers wrote:

Sorry you're fried.

I'm not sure whether to send you hugs.... or ketchup. :-(

Ketchup. We looked at about 17 houses today.

Hi, For future reference- Dr. Tamura at Capri Pet Plaza in Tarzana is the avian vet of choice for the Perfect Parrot people. Now that Dr. Worell has retired(she took care of Pinot), she is the best one. She trained for about 4 years with Dr. Worell.

I live in Studio City and I have used them for acute injuries, blood feathers, and that. For anything unusual, or mysterious, I would go with Dr. Tamura.

Hopefully you won't need any more care.

Jody

We're about to move to Acton... there used to be an avian vet in Santa Clarita, but she has left the area. There is a vet in Palmdale who is AAV listed and has a separate exam room for birds. Don't suppose you've ever heard anything about him? Dr. Lynn McEwan.

No, but I will ask Pete and kim, I'm sure they have clients who live up that way.

Jody

What the hell? ^^^

Spam, spam, spam, spam
Spam, spam, spam, spam

Darned 'bots.

Spam deleted. Glad Scotty is doing better. Will he need a nose job?