[Kiwi]

I was really busy the past few months and was hoping to come back on here.. I just didn't think it would be like this.

This is something I hoped would never happen. Ever. Kiwi flew up onto my door and when I went to go get her... my brother slammed the door. Really hard on her leg. It was bent at like a 80 degree angle. At least it was only the leg and not both or her life.
I took her to the emergency vet right away since I had the address on my phone, it was a 30 minute drive. They had an avian vet there and she said Kiwi had a compound fracture. Leg broken in two places. She wanted to amputate Kiwi's leg, but I said no. Kiwi was already bleeding on the way there. I'm hoping for it to heal. We get Kiwi back in 5 hours, they're keeping her overnight to continue adjusting the splint.

They had her in an incubator, but they didn't start the pain medication or set it until way later when I'd paid. By that time 2 hours of waiting and the 30 it took to drive there. That horrified me that Kiwi was in pain for that long. I thought at least pain meds... but they did a really good job on her regardless.

Have any of you ever dealt with a broken leg before? Any tips or advice. Anything I can feed her or put on it to help it heal better?

If you could offer up a prayer or hope for Kiwi... she and I would really appreciate it. I'm hoping for her leg to heal, because she loves climbing on things and perching on my computer.

Edit: To anyone looking at these posts for injuries to their bird, it has now been found out to be a badly dislocated leg.
This is worse than a broken leg. ColorGuarder08 has said that a dislocation can be worse that a break because the hollow bones of a bird may not be able to handle to force it takes to pop a joint into place.
It could end up breaking the bone just trying to force it back into the joint. Her vets also said that the swelling and inflammation can cut off blood circulation to the toes and feet if not positioned right. Kiwi's leg was not positioned right.
Some of the same things used to treat broken bones are used in here since it was originally thought to be broken. Note that if your parrot is on the smaller side, they might not be able to pin a leg or do surgery. Kiwi was 80 grams and they said they could not because of the risks. She ended up not needing it.
Please do continue to read Kiwi's story, I hope it helps.

 

[Tequilagirl]

I have nothing of value to say but sending a very big hug to poor Kiwi and hope both of you are feeling better. I'm feeling sick just thinking about it, can't imagine how you must be feeling

 

[Kiwi]

Thank you! Just your thoughts and hugs are very much appreciated by me and Kiwi.

Edit: I'm doing ok now.. just worried about Kiwi. I'm not sleeping at all tonight. Thankfully I get to bring her home again in a few hours, but she has to be confined to a small traveling cage for weeks. I feel horrible about that.

 

[Bmcqueen]

Oh the poor little dear.

 

[blueybluesky]

Sorry I don't have any advice, but will be wishing all the best for little Kiwi. I really hope her leg heals and she can be back to perching on your computer soon.

 

[Vickitiel]

Oh my gosh so sorry to hear this has happened to Kiwi!

Perhaps BirdCrazyJill could give you some advice. Her Chewy broke his leg and it healed fine. I hope she sees this thread, or you could contact her via private message.

In the meantime, sending my best wishes to you and Kiwi.

 

[dianne]

I am so sorry about Kiwi.

 

[Tisena]

Sorry about kiwi! Hope she heals soon!

 

[sunnysmom]

I'm so sorry to hear that. Sending good thoughts and prayers.

 

[Kiwi]

Thank you all for your kind words and advice. Me and Kiwi really appreciate it. I will try and pm BirdCrazyJill, thank you CharVicki.

I just got home with Kiwi. Her leg looks pretty bad. She wouldn't stop chewing on the wrapping so I had to take her out and hold her next to my face to get her to stop. Good thing I wasn't driving. There were so many bumps on that 45 minute ride, I felt so bad for my poor baby. ....

Kiwi chewed the wrapping and splint off when we got home. She pulled out all of the feathers around the wrapping and then it came off. Luckily I had arranged an appointment with an avian surgeon who was making house calls today. She will be here in 24 minutes to re-set the splint. It beats having to drive all the way back on those bumpy roads and aggravate a now unset bone that's sticking through the skin. This is so frustrating, just as she gets better she got worse.

She's just really still in her traveling cage right now. I'm afraid to move anything so no food and water in there atm. It's just covered like they said. ><


Edit: Omg it's pouring outside. Really, why did it have to rain now?

 

[Nimra]

I think I know. There was once a budgie who didn't have legs. He actually did have legs but he lost the use of them. They turned the cage into a bed with blankets and scattered his seeds near him. And I saw a video that a cockatiel broke its leg but he chewed on his leg all the time so the owner made a collar for it. I will try to post the link so you can see the collar. It was not really a collar but it was. Sort of.

 

[Nimra]

http://www.amazon.com/Bird-E-Collar-3-5-4-8-Diam/dp/B005OB6SMY

 

[Nimra]

The collar was like this. Just click on the link. You will see the picture.

 

[BirdCrazyJill]

When Chewy broke her leg we kept her in a hospital cage for about 2 months, which was really a large plastic bin (shown below)



It's going to be really hard for her because she is used to climbing and being in a cage, but it's got to be done. No perches, nothing to climb on. I would also clip her wings because she should not be able to get out. Trust me, it's worth it.

Here is her with her cast on when we picked her up from the vet



Chewy went through several stages of healing. First she would drag her foot behind her and would fall on her face with she tried to step on in. We would do our best to re-position it so that she was standing on it correctly. Then she decided to not use it at all and hopped around on her good leg. After about a month, she did begin to use her bad leg and was able to put some weight on it, but wasn't gripping at all. The vet told us that even if the bone did heal, there could be nerve damage so she may never actually have use of her foot again. Luckily, she does! She was gripping with her foot by about week 5. After a month in the hospital cage, I started letting her out on the floor and to climb on the wooden play stand.



She tried to get in the big cage but we wouldn't let her



we let her go back to being a regular bird and climbing around in the big cage for about 2 weeks with the cast on and then we ended up taking it off (her vet was an hour away and I had already gone about 4 times, and my fiance is a surgeon so we felt comfortable doing it)

This was her cast and leg when we took it off





Now that she has been fully healed for a few months (this happened in March), you would never know she had an injury! It really is amazing.

This is her last month





I'm sorry the vet took so long to give her pain meds, that's just not right. But I'm glad your bird was treated. In the hospital cage, I got 2 of the weighted reptile dishes for food and water and I put in a stuffed animal for snuggling (she was only 6 months old at the time). I hung two toys from the side of the bin for playing, but nothing that she could climb on. I put newspapers in the bottom and paper towels on top of the newspapers. I would change the paper towels once or twice a day and the newspapers once a week.

She never chewed her cast, thank goodness, but if your bird does then you might want to consider one of those cones or something. I'm not sure what they gave you for medications but mine was on an amoxycillin for 10 days and pain meds for 14 days.

The important thing to remember is that it takes time. Keep her warm, try to keep her quiet. Spend lots of time with her. I would sit next to the bin and put my hand flat in there so she could stand on it. I did not start taking her out to cuddle on my chest for at least 3 weeks. They think they are ready before they are really ready, so just be patient. I hope your bird has a quick recovery! Sorry for the long post lol hope this helps though!

 

[SoCalTiels]

Edit : Jill beat me to it, lol. But her first hand experience is far more valuable to you. My post is a bit redundant but I will say, it was amazing watching Chewy's progress over time. Please keep us updated with how Kiwi is doing.




If Kiwi is already chewing on the splint and having problems with it, I would honestly suggest the collar idea as well. There are ways to make them at home, I would suggest googling it, if the vet doesn't suggest one while resplinting. Kiwi probably won't enjoy it too much but she will be better off in the long run if the splint is able to do its work properly, she's already learned she can destroy the nuisance object.

Do you have an aquarium of any sort, or like a clear storage bin? I would almost recommend creating a comfortable zone in that with blankets/tshirts instead of a wire travel cage. Like the set up of a hospital carrier. And when I was hand feeding Reptar, he had this little teddy bear and I swear he would snuggle up to it every single night. It's a flock comfort thing to have something in there with her, even if you keep her in the travel cage.

I hope all goes well and that Kiwi makes a speedy recovery. They're resilient little birds, and you've done a wonderful job reacting to the situation. Sending well wishes your way and all the good juju possible.

 

[CaliTiels]

Nice to see you again. Unfortunately I was hoping for a nice story about Kiwi, not a horrible one. I hope she recovers soon

 

[Kiwi]

Thank you Nimra, they're going to put a collar on her if she tries to chew this splint off as well.

The avian surgeon just wrapped her leg with a second skin, put a cotton ball between her feet, and vet wrapped it. Then she did a low level laser treatment on Kiwi to help boost cell regeneration healing, immune system, and help stop the pain (gives a natural endorphin rush). Kiwi is resting, eating and drinking (a miracle!!), and she hasn't tried chewing it off. Was so scary because I had to help hold her broken leg so she could set it, but we did it! Kiwi's leg is now set and she's sleeping right now. She feels so much better, visually she looks amazingly calm. I love that avian surgeon right now, Kiwi is feeling awesome! Tuesday Kiwi is getting a metal splint put on. They'll take off the vet wrap, keep the second skin on, then vet wrap it back up. They'll also be able to tell how well it's healing, I hope it's healing well.

BirdCrazyJill I wish they had given pain meds sooner, but I'm glad she's ok. I have her in a plastic travel cage like that. It's now the hospital cage because she kept climbing the bars of the travel cage, even with a broken foot. Thank you so much for showing me the steps of the recovery process. It's helped me with a timeline for where Kiwi will be in the next few months. Kiwi loves face time so that is going to be difficult for her. I'll just have to put my face close to her I think while she's down there. I'll change the towels often. We worked out a way to arrange the food and water with the towels so it's comfy. They are thinking of coning her Tuesday. I don't know how she will eat or drink with the cone though. I'll have to ask. Kiwi got I think baytril and meloxicam. Antibiotic and anti-inflammatory. I have her bird heating pad next to her, but the vet said not to get it too close or it could release fumes from the plastic traveling cage.

SoCalTiels, I have a petco plastic traveling cage, it's great since she can't climb all over. You're right, since she knows she can destroy it, she will try again. Especially since she has pain medication in her right now, it doesn't hurt as much to bite at it. Watching her carefully. I'll see if I can get a little toy for her so she wont feel as lonely when I'm out. :S

CaliTiels, nice to see you too! I was hoping to have nice stories too. She was very healthy up until now so that was a plus! Hopefully I will have a happy story to share as she recovers.

 

[BirdCrazyJill]

That's great to hear she will be ok, I'm glad they have a recovery plan for her. if you have any more questions, or if you ever feel frustrated, feel free to message me!

 

[dianne]

I'm so glad you were able to get the leg reset. How wonderful that a vet made a house call! I am sending warm wishes to you and Kiwi.

 

[TamaMoo]

Hugs, prayers and scritches being sent from Joey and me.