Dizzy Zebra Finch

[ac12]

Thanks Lindsay
She had crushed egg shells. But I guess so much of that was going to the chicks and not that much left over for her.

I put some Liquid Calcium in her drinking water, lets see if that helps her.

[annague]

Seems like that liquid calcium really helps prevent some health issues!

[Frankenfinch]

Im glad you got it figured out Thats always a relief! I need to get some liquid calcium myself. I always worry about my hens when they start laying. I hope your girl is feeling better real soon

....and Ac12, I hope the best for you and your girl too!

[6finchfriends]

So glad to hear you got it figured out and it's something you can treat!

[LindsayG]

So, here is an update.

My hen, Lucy, seemed to be doing better this weekend. I was giving her the crushed up Pet Tabs on the seed, I fed her egg bread, crushed egg shells, and I put extra calcium (Pet Tabs) in the water. Two of her babies left the nest on Saturday and the third one left the nest on Sunday. She was seeming to be better, with a little periodic dizziness. All five birds were eating the egg bread and loving it. Then yesterday I came home from work and she was back to the peak of her symptoms. I noticed some rubbing of her head on the perch, scratching her ear. Her left ear looked like it could be red. I tried to catch her to look at the ear closer, and that wore her out. When I put her back, she got on the perch and closed her eyes. Her head is tilting to the left and she looks slightly hunch-backed. Today I saw her turning in circles on the bottom of the cage, both to the right and to the left. I came home at lunch and she was actually doing circles on the perch. Oddly enough, she had more balance with the circles on the perch than I've seen her have since her symptoms began again last Thursday. She still chirps, eats, and feeds her babies, but from what I've read on the forum that doesn't mean much. The vet's office told me today that she is just severely calcium deficient, even with these symptoms, and that I need to force feed her Pet Tabs in water through a syringe every couple hours. I think with the ear rubbing that she is also having some ear problems, possibly infection. I asked about this, and they said they will not give her antibiotics unless I bring her in, even though I told them that I think the trip to the office (about 30-45 minutes one way) could kill her. I feel like Lucy is on borrowed time right now, and I don't have a choice but to take her because I think she needs the medicine. I can't wait any longer to see if the calcium will help. I did feed her the calcium through the syringe twice tonight, and it really took a toll on her. The second time I went to get her, she tried to get away from me and rolled over on her back. I don't know what to do, except follow what the vet tells me. I'm not going to force her anymore tonight or tomorrow morning, though. I'm not sure she can take it.

I've been up late at night a lot lately, searching the forum and the internet for answers. Nothing really fits exactly, and what I have found hasn't always had a conclusion (what was in fact wrong, how it was fixed or if it was). Maybe I'm just not searching for the right things. If I end up with an answer, I'm going to update this post so maybe it can help someone else. I literally feel sick worrying about her and wondering if she will make it through the night. I can't concentrate on much of anything. I know that a lot of people would think I am silly for being this upset about such a little bird (one of my bosses asked why I didn't just let her die, that that is what you do with small birds), but I've become quite attached to her and her mate. I am heartbroken to see my little girl like this.

[lovemyfinch]

Just want to wish you the best for you and your little one
Rest assured, you are not being silly. These little birdies are so easy to become attached to, and with all the time we spend watching them and learning their little quirks it is only natural.

[LindsayG]

Just want to wish you the best for you and your little one
Rest assured, you are not being silly. These little birdies are so easy to become attached to, and with all the time we spend watching them and learning their little quirks it is only natural.

How true. I've only had her since September, but she has my heart. She really has a definite personality. This morning she was rolling over on the bottom of the cage, and I thought for sure she was going to die. We took her to the vet anyway, and right away she put her in an incubator and gave her injections of antibiotics and calcium. She will be getting more antibiotics through vapor in the incubator today. I think this is quite a good vet to do all this. I know Lucy definitely isn't out of the woods yet, but the vet seems fairly optimistic. Crossing my fingers...

[lovemyfinch]

Saying prayers right along with you for Lucie

[kenny]

hi
i found this for you on the internet,it may throw some light on your birds illness

Twirling or Star Gazing
..most common in gouldians but can effect any species
by Myra

No one really seems to know what causes Twirling/Star Gazing. It may be a virus, bacteria, yeast infection, or some other chemical/physical imbalance in the finch's body. It appears to strike at random and without warning or past history of problems. Someday, if all of the answers are found I will most certainly inform you all about it.

We do know that Twirling is most common in Gouldian Finches but it has been seen in a few other species as well.

The signs of twirling are pretty simple to spot. The finch will appear dizzy and will roll its head from side to side, even upside down. You will notice a gradual and steady loss in balance. The read rolling will worsen and the finch will find it difficult to move about the cage. Eventually being unable to fly or perch. The end result is death.

It is best to move the twirling bird to a hospital cage as soon as you can. The twirling will only get worse over time and eventually the finch will not be able to perch. In time the finch also be unable to find the food and water dishes even if you place them on the floor of the cage. This is when the finch usually dies, as a result of starvation. However they can also die from attempting to fly and smacking into something hard enough to cause injury.

From this point out, breeders tend to disagree on what should be done next. Many breeders simply skip the whole hospital cage and just have the bird put down (culled). It's quick, humane, and often the only thing to do as the Twirling worsens.

Others try to treat the birds before any drastic measures are taken. Because the exact cause of the Twirling is unknown, the treatments have been random and haphazard at best. Antibiotics, antiprotozoals, probotics, you name it, it's been tried. The only problem with these treatments is that don't usually work. Plus Twirling finches don't have other symptoms of illness unless they actually are sick with something in addition to the twirling.

Of course it's possible the cause isn't illness at all but rather an inner ear problem. The total loss of equilibrium can result in the same symptoms. Some part of it could be dietary but no direct link has been found to my knowledge. That's not an excuse to feed your finches poorly, a poor diet could easily be a contributing factor. It is likely that the condition can be passed on from generation to generation. The trait to be susceptible to twirling is a genetic risk. Finches that have been cured of twirling shouldn't be bred.

False diagnoses of Twirling can also occur. Something as simple as too much Calcium in a bird's diet can result in a ‘drunken bird' look. When a finch is placed in a small cage for the first time or is stressed they may also roll their heads from time to time. The only difference between that behavior and true twirling is that the behavior is intermittent and gets better over time.

Now there has been some progress in the treatment area. In fact I've come across two possible treatments.

A drug called Nystatin seems to have cured twirling on several occasions and even in some of the worst cases of it. The Nystatin suspension is actually a treatment for a fungal or yeast infection but it has shown promising results for several breeders now. I suggest you read Don Thorschmidts article "Successful Cure of Stargazing/Twirling" for more information about this treatment.

The next is another drug known as SMZ Liquid or Trimethoprim Sulfa given one drop a day for two weeks has also proven to be effective.

Thankfully, I personally haven't had to deal with this condition much. I had only 1 Gouldian hen that exhibited signs of Twirling many years ago when I was first starting out. Sadly back then I didn't have the resources I have now and the female died.

© FinchNiche.com 2003

[LindsayG]

Thanks, Janine and Kenny. Currently Lucy is staying at the vet's office in an incubator. Today is day 2. She received two shots yesterday, as well as vaporized antibiotics that she is breathing in. The vet tech says she is holding her own and will be there for the next 4-5 days. The head twisting is getting slightly better today, and she is eating whatever they put in front of her. I don't know what type of medicine she is getting, but it seems to be slowly helping. I haven't been able to speak to the vet herself, as she is extremely busy, so I don't know what the diagnosis is. The tech is amazed at Lucy and says that she is "one tough little bird." She only weighs 12 grams, but she is fighting like crazy to live. I let the tech know that I will do anything to help her, but that if the vet thinks that Lucy will not get better then I don't want her to suffer any more. The tech says we aren't there yet. The prayers are working!

Go Lucy, go!!!

[lovemyfinch]

Continued prayers

[Frankenfinch]

I'm so so sorry to hear your hen isn't doing any better You are not silly for being so worried about her. You have a whole forum full of people who feel the same as you about these little creatures. It does sound like it could be a ear infection. I've had two birds who have had twirler's and i don't remember them scratching there ears on things, just spinning there heads and going in circles. I really hope the vet can get her better! I'm amazed at what she is doing with her for treatment! I've yet to find a vet around here who would do that with a finch. I'm really hoping she pulls through all this My thoughts are with you and your girl.

[kenny]

hi
my prayers are with you,i have been in that situation i had more finches than i could handle really,but when one gets sick your focus goes on to that single bird

ken

[lou]

Lindsay, sorry to hear about your finch,
I have had this problem with a couple of my finches/canaries also. They were also feeding young.It had my head spinning for awhile, so I started the process of elimination and what it came down to was that I giving to much egg food. I did have all the birds on nystatin (liquid) mixed in the water for 8 days. I lost 2 birds because of this ordeal, they where thin like they had a case o cocci. this was do to the fact that they could not eat the seed that I had put on the bottom of the hospital cage. Problem solved.

Lou

[Frankenfinch]

Any news on Lucy?