Title: | Captive Breeding for Conservation--and FUN! |
Notice: | INTROS 6.X / FOR SALE 13.X / Buying a Bird 900.* |
Moderator: | VIDEO::PULSIFER |
Created: | Mon Oct 10 1988 |
Last Modified: | Tue Jun 03 1997 |
Last Successful Update: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
Number of topics: | 942 |
Total number of notes: | 6016 |
I lost one of my zebra finches several weeks ago to a yeast infection. We had been through this before,but this time, when I realized little Zeke was ill I tried for 3 days to isolate him, but was unable to. It was as though the rest of the flock was protecting him. They stayed in a circle around him night and day and when I would go into the cage to try to get him, they all seemed to run "interference." This had never happened before when I'd needed to isolate him. By the time I was able to catch him, it was nearly too late. Additional mistakes (I was very stressed, sleeping only 3 hours/night) such as not getting good enough dropping samples to run a gram stain wasted another precious day and he was gone the next morning. The hen that stayed with him in his nest those last days also tested positive for yeast, plus other's were exhibiting symptoms, so I treated the entire flock. The problem now is that everybody is under the weather. They're getting benebac daily to try and get their digestive systems back in order. I had pulled everybody into 3 separate cages (2 birds each) because I'd had to isolate the hen and another cock who had a swollen toe. Separated, they were all looking good, so yesterday I put them back in together. This morning, although they greeted me loudly, within half an hour they all were taking turns resting with their feathers too puffed out. Any suggestions for helping to get my flock back to mental and physical health? thanks, Mary
T.R | Title | User | Personal Name | Date | Lines |
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885.1 | some improvements... | MSGAXP::MISTOVICH | Wed Nov 16 1994 14:43 | 8 | |
Well, eveybody looks real good now, except for the little hen who stayed by Zeke's side. I have a heat lamp aimed at one end of the cage to keep her a little warmer -- she moved closer to it this morning, so I guess she appreciates it. The vet had recommended just treating her with benebac because there was so little yeast in the most recent gram stain, but she's not eating much, so I'm going to try administering some in the paste tonight, along with a drop of Nystatin to see if that will help her. | |||||
885.2 | all doing well but one | MSGAXP::MISTOVICH | Fri Dec 02 1994 15:27 | 25 | |
Now everybody is doing real well except one little cock who the lonely hen had just taken up with. I thought Zeke had died, but when this guy started beeping I realized *he* was Zeke (beeps a minor third higher than everybody else!) and his 2-day old brother had died. There are no signs of an active infection other than low energy, sleeping puffed up all the time and not beeping again. His breathing and droppings are normal, weight is good, breathing is clear and normal, and his abdomen is normal (not swollen). His initial bloodwork has shown suppressed immune system, with mostly one type of white cell. He goes up and down day by day-- last night he seemed on the road to being himself,then this morning, after a good nights rest (we all turned in extra early) he was 2-steps backwards. We're doing intensive vitamins for the next 2 weeks, heat lamp to keep him warm, and he and his new mate are separated for extra quiet and rest (she is doing fine, at least). I think it may be genetic -- I got the parents from a pet store, so they could easily be brother & sister. If he doesn't improve dramatically, we'll probably repeat the blood test in 2 weeks. I suspect I'll be saying goodbye to Zeke fairly soon. I miss his funny little voice.... Mary |