sick diamond dove

[frigolay]

Hello again, everyone!

I am sorry to report that I think I may have a sick diamond dove. She's not really eating or drinking much today, at least not as far as I've seen. She's been kind of "spazzy" in her neck and wings, and she seems very weak and sickly to where she will allow me to hold her, when that's actually a little unusual because she's not as used to me as my other dove, and its been hard to work with her because she's not as trusting and tame as my other dove more or less started out as, and she's just naturally a little more skittish than my other dove. She'll still move around and try to fly away from me when she gets the energy, but for the most part, she's pretty weak. And unless I put her up on one of the perches or in their nest, she just sits at the bottom of the cage, looking all sleepy, spazzy, weak, and pitiful.

I have made an appointment with the vet, but the soonest I could get her in was Wednesday at 9 in the morning. Is there anything I can do to help her feel better and keep her alive until then? Like birdie vitamins or something?

Also, my other diamond dove, who lives in the same cage of course and is also a female, has been kind of bullying and attacking my sick dove. She used to that to her when I had just bought her from the pet store and put her in with the first dove because she wasn't used to sharing her space with another bird and she also just wasn't used to her new cage-mate yet. But she soon grew out of that and became the best of friends with the new and currently sick dove, and I haven't seen her do that again until just now. (Just to clarify and hopefully make things less confusing, my currently sick dove is named Scarlett, and my other dove that I have had for a long time and who has a rather bossy little attitude is named Charlotte). Whether Scarlett is minding her own business on the floor or on a perch or taking a much deserved turn in the nest (Charlotte likes to hog it), Charlotte will push her around and push her off or push her out, even while Scarlett is just trying to rest on the floor. I even think there is a little blood on Scarlett's eye from Charlotte attacking her.

I have now removed Charlotte from the cage and temporarily placed her in one of the finches' spare cages. But do you think Charlotte would have had something to do with Scarlett's illness? Do you think it relates to an obsession over possessing the nest? Should I take out the nest? Or buy another one so that they can each have their own?
Basically what I'm asking here is; What might be causing this kind of behavior in Charlotte, and what do I do to solve the problem and get my doves to live peacefully together again?

Please let me know, and thank you in advance for your time and advice!

[Ginene]

I'm so sorry that you are having problems with your girls. Taking Scarlett out of the cage was a good idea. If she isn't feeling well, she needs to rest and avoid any stress. The experts on the forum (which I am not) recommend providing a heat lamp for a sick/stressed bird. Put it over a perch so she can sit under it, but make sure she has enough space to move away from the heat lamp too. If she is mostly on the cage bottom, make sure she has easy access to seed, water, egg food etc. by putting them on the cage bottom in low dishes. Adding electrolytes to her water is also a good idea. Watch her for any other symptoms that may develop like a wet/soiled vent, odd stool and coughing/breathing issues. As for Charlotte and her bullying, removing Scarlett until she is well is the first step. If you must have a nest in their cage (normally experts do not recommend nests unless you are breeding) maybe add 2 more. This way the 2 girls have 3 nests to choose from. Hopefully, the experts will chime in and give you their amazing , priceless advice!!! They have helped me many times in the past. Good luck and keep us posted...

[frigolay]

Ginene,

Thank you so much for your advice on how to treat my sick bird! I will be on that right away!

As for the nest business, I had a nest in there because I originally thought Scarlett was a boy (she was originally named Homer lol), and I thought they might mate, but then Scarlett laid an egg lol. After that, I kept the nest in there because someone at a pet store told me that it was still good for keeping their stress levels in balance or something like that. But, if it's more of a problem than a remedy, I will take it out for a while and see if that changes anything!

But anyway, thank you so much for the advice and I will keep you posted!

[debbie276]

Is it possible that Scarlett is egg bound?
If so heat and liquid calcium directly to her beak might be a good idea.

[frigolay]

Debbie,

I don't really know. She laid her first egg successfully. And her and Charlotte munch on this little cuttlebone at the bottom of the cage on a daily basis, even for hours at a time. But Scarlett still hasn't laid another egg in a while...

I really don't know that that is the case, but just in case, where could I find liquid calcium?

[Ginene]

I got mine from www.ladygouldianfinch.com, but it will take time to get to you. Do a search on the forum for liquid calcium. I remember there are a few posts about what people use. There may be one for people that you can get at a pharmacy, since you don't have a lot of time to wait. But like I said...I'm no expert.

[Ginene]

Just noticed a post on EGG BINDING in the HEALTH section of the forum. Check it out to compare Scarlett's symptoms to those on the thread. I'm sure it has useful info on treatment too.

[frigolay]

In case of egg binding, I have just given her a lukewarm ten-minute bath, and I bought a powdered version of a cuttlebone, mixed in some water, sucked some of it into a plastic syringe and squirted a little at her beak. She wouldn't really open her mouth, so I just tried to let her drink a little bit at her own will and also did the squirting business!

Should that be enough for now, in case of egg binding?

[frigolay]

I have also placed electrolyte-filled water at the bottom of the cage, and put vitamin drops in their other water bowl. I didn't know if you could mix them together...although I guess it wouldn't matter if she drank from each bowl, but I don't really know what I'm doing and I'm just trying to make sure she's okay.

[Ginene]

I looked thru a few threads on the forum and read a post from Debbie (a definite expert) that said Human Calcium will work in a pinch, but your hen really needs liquid calcium for birds. I lost my cordon bleu hen last week and suspect it may have been from egg binding. I did give her the liquid calcium, but she did not make it . I woke up and found her puffy on the cage bottom one morning, spent all day and nite treating her/giving her fluids thru a dropper every 2 hours, but she passed in the middle of the night...Maybe you can call your vet and see if they can take you for an emergency appointment. Or maybe they have liquid calcium for birds at the office that you can purchase. My vet carries everything...

[frigolay]

Well, I still don't know if egg binding was the problem, but after the bath and after shoving the powdered cuttlebone down her throat, she seems to be looking and acting a lot better. I still don't see any egg though. And she is nibbling at the cuttlebone at the bottom of the cage, and eating the bird food and millet that I always have at the bottom of the cage for them, and I think she might be eating some of the mashed boiled egg that I just put down there (egg shell included). Maybe the smell of the fresh egg is what stimulated her appetite! And she's preening herself again and cooing and everything!

I hope I'm not speaking too soon, but she seems to be doing a lot better now!

Charlotte seems so jealous of all the attention on Scarlett lol! I have her cage next to Scarlett's, and she keeps looking in on Scarlett's cage and growling and cooing, like, "She gets the good stuff? This isn't fair!" Lol!

[Ginene]

Glad to hear it!!! Sounds like progress to me...

[frigolay]

Well, I am happy to report again that Scarlett is doing much better! And I have placed Charlotte back in the cage, and she seems to be acting nicer lol.

Also, I don't know if this would have had anything to do with her strange and somewhat sickly behavior throughout yesterday morning and part of yesterday afternoon, but Scarlett has just now laid her second egg ever (or at least the second egg that she has ever laid while being in my care).

I don't know if that was what caused her problems yesterday, and if it was, then I don't know how she could have started feeling and acting better before just now when she laid the egg...but anyway, that's what's up.

Despite the fact that she is looking and acting a lot better and very much "back to normal", I'm still going to take her to the vet tomorrow just to make sure that everything is really alright.

But thank you all for everything! I'm sure that some, if not all, of the advice that you all gave me played a big part in helping her feel better! And if she could, I'm sure Scarlett would thank you too lol!

Thanks again, everyone!

[Ginene]

Great News!!! Keep us posted...