Hi Leigh, sorry you and Wheezer are going through this.  I have a little bourke parakeet that I'm fostering for another list member who has liver problems also.  His vet also made up a concoction of lactulose, dandelion root & milk thistle for him.  When Burke was first diagnosed over a year and a half ago his liver was so enlarged that the vet had no problems with finding it.  We were going in for re-checks every 2 weeks for the first month or so, then once a month, then once every 3 months...now we're down to every 6 months.  He's a breeder bird, so I have to catch him and force a drop down him twice a week.  Not fun for either one of us, but has to be done.  But...that nasty concoction seems to be working for him, he will never be off the meds, but he can live a fuller life now.  But I can imagine how your relationship with Wheezer is compromised during this, Burke sees me now with the bottle in my hand and freaks out.

 

My B&G macaw has had terrible sinus and allergy problems ever since Katrina.  She's on meds 2x a day, and will probably be on them for some time in the future unless she develops some immunity to the strange molds and stuff that blew in with the storm.  She likes belgian waffles, the sweet kind that Kroger sells, so in the mornings she gets a piece of that with her meds in it, in the evening I mix it in with a bit of handfeeding formula and baby food.  There is no way that I would be able to get the meds into her by holding her.  It took trial and error to find a soft spongey bread/cake that she would eat: I tried sponge cake, banana and blueberry muffins, vanilla wafers, pizza crust, you name it, anything that would soak up liquid I tried until I came across these waffles.  Do you maybe have time to give her a little bit of meds at a time, instead of the whole dose?  Maybe if you got a piece of cake for you and a bit of doctored up cake for her and ate it together?  Or something else that she sees you eat and wants?  Gotta be something.  Sending positive thoughts your way.

Nancy

Leigh, I'm so sorry you are going through this hard time with Wheezer.  She is a beautiful bird.  I hope you will be able to find a way to get her to eat her meds without it being so stressful for both of you.  Kathy

Hello Leigh... just to let you know you and Wheezer are in all of our thoughts and prayers... keep us updated daily if you can spare the time....

Leigh what kind of med is she on?

If it were an antibiotic those can be given by a shot once a week... I wonder if they can do the same with other medication?

Is there by any chance a Feed Store close to you... where they sell farm products, chicken feed, grains, and the like?...

Usually places like that sell baby bird foods and I buy the Kaytee in the round container... 

Sounds like she ready for a baby feeding and the syringes I get while shopping at the Feed Store.

Just don't try to read anything negative into her actions and motions... they pick up those right away and stay positive and playful...

 

Hi! Everyone gave you great ideas.  I just want to add I know how you are feeling.  I had to give my Grey meds twice a day for 14 yrs.  And sometimes the stress to the owner can get over welming. But don't give up.  They can feel your stress and it can make things worse,

 

I figured I gave around 10,000 doses in those 14yrs and sometimes had to get creative.  The key is to find something they love and then to use the least you can when putting meds into it.  This way they will get the full dose.  Also watching they don't get alot of treats so they are actually hungry at dosing time.

 

I want to warn you of one possible problem.  Birds can aspirate if you rush and squirt liquid into their mouths.  This can be fatal.  And not right at that moment.  Allie had a seizure once and we thought she aspirated from vomit.  She had to stay with the vet for 5 days.  I just wanted to warn you of liquid going down into their lungs can cause big problems.

 

I was able to give Allie does through a syringe.  I mixed it with baby cereal.  Using the smallest amount of cereal.  I also was able to put meds into peanut butter and then put on the tiniest pc of toast or into cheese. 

 

You should be able to try putting it into oatmeal or baby cereal and feed off a spoon or even in a bowl if he won't take a syringe.

 

It might be too late for your bird to accept a syringe but anyone else with a parrot (before they get ill) should think about trying to get them to eat from one once in a while or even practice with mushy food in a spoon.  It helps so much.

 

 

Indy

I remember you and Wheezer--and it's sad to see you under these circumstances  YN's are near and dear to my heart

 

I would suggest this--instead of making handfeeding formula something reserved only for medication or IF she doesn't eat enough other food, plan on giving her a set amount every day, at least 2 times/ day (divided into more feedins would even be better, if she learns to accept them without fear), to be sure she gets the nutrients and quantity of food she needs to survive and stay strong, and then if she eats any other foods on top of that, it's a bonus.  Discuss with the vet, the total amount of formula she would need in a day.  Annie and a few others here can also give you an idea of how many cc's needed in a day--I knew the number but it's been several years since I had to do it.  If she has good days and eats quite a lot of other food, you can adjust the formula-per-feeding accordingly.

 

You can put her medication in the formula, but should concentrate it in the bottom part so you're sure to get it in her.  When I was medicating Rio, I mixed the medicine with formula and flavored yogurt and had that at the bottom end of the syringe, with plain formula above it.  There's a trick to getting it all in there in the right order, but I can't remember exactly how it went.

Personally I think handfeeding formula is the smartest to feed due to the nutrition in every bite. Oatmeal has a few nutrients she needs but not as many as is in formula.  I think you will have better results with a spoon than a syringe since she is long past the handfeeding age. 

I have never handfed an amazon so I don't know total ccs needed in a day's time.  If you can get 20 ccs in her twice a day it will help, especially if she is eating other good-for-her foods. If that goes well you can add another feeding or two each day.

One way to prepare formula is to use the dry formula and hot water in a tiny 3 ounce plastic drinking cup. Set that in a short glass of very hot water or in a coffee cup.  Check the temp before feeding, no higher than about 106 degrees, preferably with an instant read digital thermo. If you don't have one, test on your wrist like with human baby formula. I think she will sling cold formula out of her mouth. You never know. Be sure to stir the formula well during feeding so she doesn't get a solid glob and choke on it. The texture is so different than real foods that she knows.

Indy is absolutely right about a fast squirt. You can choke them easily. It needs to be given slowly and allow her time to swallow after about every 2 ccs or so. Adult birds cannot be fed in the same way as babies. Babies pump to keep the throat open for formula to go down fast but an adult would choke if fed that way. Spoon feeding is much less likely to cause choking.

I give Diana 2 ccs and let her swallow and then she opens her mouth for 2 more. She's used to being syringe fed and it's so easy.

I need to mention too, that since Diana is naked I can see her crop as it fills. 10 ccs of food makes her really bulge. So you may have to make meals smaller than the 20 ccs I suggested. Adult birds crops have shrunk considerably from the size they were as babies and  cannot hold as much food.  Too much and they will vomit.

Very best wishes to you and Wheezer. I sure hope this works for you.

Annie