Band infection (pic)

[MissEdie]

I misunderstood what bumble foot was and was trying to help her (my Female Canary, Bows) thru her diet.
I took her in to the Avian Vet here in Toledo,Ohio, Two weeks ago

Dr O. ( Dr. Orosz, Bird and Exotic Pet Wellness Center )
put her on antibiotics and had me put her in a box. No bars or perches to irritate her leg.

She had lost a lot of weight and was dieing despite my efforts.
She also said no canary seed and put her in Lafebers canary pellets and Nutri Berrie pellets.
Told me to also keep giving her the kale I have been feeding her with the eggs.
Her white feathers where gray and I was told she was lacking vitamin A. To add to her diet, orange and red peppers plus carrots for the carotene they have in them.

This week Dr.O added DMSO to rub on her foot. which I Googled and found this.....
Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) (Rimso-50): topical, for edema, pain, swelling; causes vasodilation and histamine release
I read it will help with swelling and pain. People use it to help with arthritis , to help get the blood flowing and pain.
Two days after the visit. I had to go back. It looked like a hair/string was stuck in it. But when they took the hair/ string out, the scab came off and they saw it was worse then they thought.
They had to do surgery and took off her foot, it was mostly dead.
I tried my best and feel soo bad for her now. She is in the box for another week with more antibiotic and DMSO.
But hopefully she is out of pain now.

[Sally]

So sorry you and Bows are going through this. You said it is a band infection, do you mean caused by the band? Or was it a bad infection? People use DMSO on horses with varying lameness problems. Be careful if you are handling the DMSO, it makes for a very bad taste in your mouth. Birds can adjust to the loss of a foot, but you can make life easier for her once she is well by providing a solid platform in the cage where she can sit and not have to balance on one leg. A dense plastic plant can also help, as a place she can sort of lie in and be supported by the foliage.

[Mexicancanary]

What a terrible ordeal to go through. Hopefully she is now on the mend and will adapt easily to one foot. I have a lilac front amazon that was paralyzed in both legs when she was a baby. I did birdie rehab with her every day and she can now use one leg 80% and the other only as a crutch as her toes are still paralyzed. They do adapt and it is remarkable.

Best of luck with her.

[MissEdie]

So sorry you and Bows are going through this. You said it is a band infection, do you mean caused by the band? Or was it a bad infection? People use DMSO on horses with varying lameness problems. Be careful if you are handling the DMSO, it makes for a very bad taste in your mouth. Birds can adjust to the loss of a foot, but you can make life easier for her once she is well by providing a solid platform in the cage where she can sit and not have to balance on one leg. A dense plastic plant can also help, as a place she can sort of lie in and be supported by the foliage.

The Vet said it was cause by the band.
I don 't know how tho, but it is cut off now.
Well with her foot

[lyzzyjayne]

Poor baby girl. I'm so sorry. Bless Her.

[30 Seconds to Bob]

As I mentioned to you in the p.m., I had that happen to me three times with canaries. That is why I hate bands. I do realize, however that they are a somewhat "necessary evil" for large scale breeders. Two times the band had to be cut off (once by me, once by a vet). The third required an amputated foot. My amputee is still doing fine and sings his little heart out every day. I did build him a "resting shelf" where he spends most of his time. Wishing you and your bird the best. Bob

[Diana]

Such a sad story. And now it got me worried. I bought a new male zebra from a pet shop and he has a foot band too. I would like to remove it. Any suggestions on how to do that? I don;t want to hurt his foot and I need to remove it all at once.

[lyzzyjayne]

The safest way is to have the Avain Vet remove it.

[Diana]

lyzzyjayne

Thank you lyzzyjayne.

[Sally]

Such a sad story. And now it got me worried. I bought a new male zebra from a pet shop and he has a foot band too. I would like to remove it. Any suggestions on how to do that? I don;t want to hurt his foot and I need to remove it all at once.

It depends on what kind of band. Split plastic bands can be removed using the banding tool that is supplied when you purchase bands. Closed bands need to be cut off. If you don't have a band cutting tool, then you would want the vet to do it for you. Seeing as it is a Zebra from a pet shop, chances are it is a split plastic band.

Often, problems with bands come because the band is too small or too large for the individual bird. Too small, and the band constricts the leg, cuts into the leg, and causes infections--and often the leg/foot dies in the process. Too large a band, and the bird can get hung up in any number of things in the cage, and injures the leg in attempts to get free.

I really would hate to see people stop banding because of a few problems with it. It is like wicker nests--they can be a hazard, but some of my finches really want a wicker nest and will not use the plastic nest boxes when I provide them. The only way to keep a bird totally safe is to put it in a padded cell--and then it is going to die from stress.

Every bird in my house wears a band of some type. The ones I have bred wear closed metal bands; the ones I have purchased without bands wear a split metal band that I apply; and most of them also wear a split plastic band to denote family bloodlines. I always prefer to purchase a bird wearing a closed metal band. To me, not only does this tell me how old the bird is, but it tells me that this is a breeder with the same goals, to produce domestic birds of proven breeding and age.

[MissEdie]

This is what her (female canary, Bows) foot looks like now. I sent this pic to Dr O. to see if this is normal looking.
It's not red anymore. it matches the rest of her leg, now. She still isn't use to it. She still is holding it up.
But I expected, it will still take her a bit to get use it, too.
I still feel bad for her

[Diana]

Poor little birdie! It looks so sad. I hope she will be fine after this.

[MissEdie]

Got a reply from Dr O. office. They said it is looking good, but would like to see her in person, to make sure it is healing over the bone good.
They said there will be no charge for this

[MissEdie]

Bows is doing great!. She is using her leg more. The vet said the bulb on her foot is a good thing. It was developed (by the body) when the foot was there, to try to protect the rest of the body from infection.It is a good thing to, because it will/does give her cushion and she isn't standing right on the bone.

[debbie276]

Great news!
Wishing you continued success