# Canker: deformed tongue



## Hekie (Apr 2, 2018)

I woke up from a drunken night out on Friday to a pigeon actually in my bedroom on Saturday morning, at the farthest end of my apartment from the terrace where they come. With both my (very good, pigeon-friendly) cats. Very bizarre situation. I checked his mouth and thought it looked like possible canker, so I half-asleep stuffed a Spartrix tablet down him and one-handedly set him up in a cat carrier with food and water on my terrace. And I went back to sleep. This was Saturday.

It turned out that I was right and he has a nasty case of canker. I'm tubefeeding him and he tried to die on me every feeding for the first 2.5 days. The nastiest visible big lump on his tongue came away Monday night and there has been some blood, but he isnt nearly dying every feeding now. It's a big improvement.

I gave him 10mg carnidazole (1 Spartrix tablet) every 24 hours for the first three days. It seemed to be working but I started him on Flagyl (in part because i found a dove in terrible condition who has since died, and I opened the bottle to treat her) and will continue with that 12 hourly.

My question is about his tongue. The whole thing was covered in a nasty, white/yellow deposit. That has broken away and now it still looks all huge and chunky and swollen, but not white/yellow. Is this something which will break away and reveal his healthy tongue again? Or has the canker potentially deformed his tongue? I've had a few cases of canker but he - Rodney - might be the first to survive and I'm not sure if I'm seeing a permanent deformity or a stage in the normal healing process.


----------



## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

There was a recent post regarding a pigeon with canker and the tongue was permanently disformed by canker. The pigeon did learn how to eat by himself, but could not be released and the poster kept him. The flagyl should be given once a day.


----------



## Hekie (Apr 2, 2018)

Marina B said:


> There was a recent post regarding a pigeon with canker and the tongue was permanently disformed by canker. The pigeon did learn how to eat by himself, but could not be released and the poster kept him. The flagyl should be given once a day.


I'm following vet dosage for canker, with cats for clostridium, giardia etc it is also 12 hourly. I'm sure there can be different approaches but Flagyl has always been 12 hourly where I've seen. I'll see if I can find the post, thank you


----------



## Hekie (Apr 2, 2018)

An update on this for anyone who may find it useful in future: I put Rodney to sleep yesterday 💔 She recovered well from the meds and the canker had cleared, but it turned out her whole tongue was gone. I took her to the vet yesterday. I really hoped it was deformed and she might learn to eat anyway but the tongue wasn't there - horrifying. RIP, sweet girl.


----------



## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Am sorry Rodney didnt make it.


----------



## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

Sorry to hear that.


----------



## Hekie (Apr 2, 2018)

Thank you both. It's heartbreaking every time. They're such fighters, so many with such dear personalities. I caught two more the day after I said goodbye to Rodney, it never stops 😕


----------

