# In Need of Great Help (Bulbul)



## nourhh (May 29, 2011)

I bought 2 nestling yellow vented bulbuls around a month ago, and i have been taking real good care of them, feeding them with the yellow paste the shop keeper told me to feed them. They started flying at an early stage, but both of them recently stopped using their legs. At first it started with them having 1 leg above the ground while they would use the other, and now one of them has both his legs hurting him, making him not able to move and he tries to move using his wings only which doesnt work out. that one is looking really bad and keeps rejecting food unless i feed it forcefully. what should i do about both my birds ? Is there any treatment ? there are no vets nearby. They are getting worse everyday and i need to knw what to do about that


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## Heedictator (May 19, 2011)

you sure from asia too^^ there are lots of yellow vented bulbuls here in our place too and they eat small bush fruits and even chili pepper~


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## Heedictator (May 19, 2011)

maybe that is a sign of calcium deficiency~ try letting them take calcium supplement like powdered dried egg shells after feeding them or mix the powdered egg shells to their yellow paste food


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## Jaye (Mar 13, 2008)

That's a good idea.

YES - you have to continue to hand feed them...or they will likely die. *You also have to diversify their diet.* Sounds like if they naturally eat fruits and vegetables, the 'paste' may not be enough.

Can you buy/find any pelleted food for finches ? Kaytee, Lafaeber's, Zupreem, Harrison's, anything like this ? This would be the easiest thing because then they would not need a calcium supplement.

Also, if I were you, I would start them on some antibiotic. This is a guessing game; really they need to see a vet ASAP, but because you said getting them to a vet is not possible....one has to make a decent guess.

But I would try to find some *trimeth sulpha* ASAP...perhaps at a local pet store, or perhaps at a store which carries supplies for farm animals ?


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## nourhh (May 29, 2011)

thank you for all your help so far. I am going to try my best to find a vet and get them to that vet fast, and they are from the middle east. Another thing that might be helpful for you is that the one that is really in pain has his eyes closed most of the time, and he does not eat, i have to open his mouth to feed him, while the other is more energetic even though he has 1 leg off the ground.


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## nourhh (May 29, 2011)

Also i've had one yellow-vented bulbul before these 2, and he basically lived off that yellow paste they would sell at the pet shop, so i don't think its a dietary problem, could it be because they started flying at a young age ?


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Can you post a picture of how they hold their legs? Do they get calcium and Vitamin D3, which they need in order for their bodies to process the calcium.

Are their legs splayed?


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## nourhh (May 29, 2011)

They're asleep now so I won't be able to post a picture. But I can tell you that their legs aren't splayed. On the contrary they seem to still be able to move them, like when they grasp my finger with their talons. They just can't stand up on them and put their weight on them. 

I'll definitely post a picture tomorrow, so please check back later if you can help.


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## Heedictator (May 19, 2011)

nourhh said:


> They're asleep now so I won't be able to post a picture. But I can tell you that their legs aren't splayed. On the contrary they seem to still be able to move them, like when they grasp my finger with their talons. They just can't stand up on them and put their weight on them.
> 
> I'll definitely post a picture tomorrow, so please check back later if you can help.


maybe you are letting them stand on a smooth surface~? but can they stand in a twig or any perch?


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## Heedictator (May 19, 2011)

nourhh said:


> thank you for all your help so far. I am going to try my best to find a vet and get them to that vet fast, and they are from the middle east. Another thing that might be helpful for you is that the one that is really in pain has his eyes closed most of the time, and he does not eat, i have to open his mouth to feed him, while the other is more energetic even though he has 1 leg off the ground.


seems like i have the same problem as you are whenever i had a small passerine bird~ it would be easier if they are seed eating birds but bulbuls prefer small fruits~ i have also kept small birds like black headed munia/mannikins, scaly breasted munias, house sparrows, olive sunbirds (nectar feeding) and also adult pair of yellow vented bulbuls~ i had problems rescuing black headed munia (chestnut mannikins) chicks whenever passerby children who had nothing to do but take on birds life around would steal their eggs or even catch the parents leaving the helpless chicks~ whenever i have black headed munias my problem is that by the next day or 2 they would start feeling ill (even though they always have their meals) and sooner or later they'll take their own life by suicide and die..... i also once had a fantail chick i brought home from school because i think the children who catched it doesn't know how to take care of him i get it from them and they just let me~ i catched small grasshopers and insects until he/she grew feathers and moult~ that was long time ago when i was a kid^^


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## Heedictator (May 19, 2011)

just this summer i saw a pair of bulbuls on the backyard and i was holding the hose for water that time~ i tried to point the hose upwards and it was like a water fountain and to my surprise the bulbuls came to it and bath happily since it was a hot summer afternoon that time~ it looks like they wanna thank me for the free summer party^ ^


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## nourhh (May 29, 2011)

ya i've heard that the yellow vented bulbul are very weak birds too :\ the one that was in a very bad state died yesterday  the other is doing fine thank god and is very energetic but still can't get up on 2 feet, i'm going to upload the pics now, i'm just creating an account on a image uploading website so i can upload the pics to it and post the link of the image here.


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## nourhh (May 29, 2011)

this is first picture, as u can see the bird is balancing itself using its wings rather than its legs.








this is the second picture with his legs shown closed to his body.


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## nourhh (May 29, 2011)

here are the links to the pictures since the pictures didnt show:
Picture 1 http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/849/img2011053000169.jpg/
Picture 2 http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/198/img2011053000170.jpg/


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

How much calcium and Vit. D is he getting?


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## nourhh (May 29, 2011)

well i really dont know how to answer that. The food im giving him is basically the same food my old yellow-vented bulbul lived off for 4 years, so im pretty sure it has all the calcium and vitamins it needs. could it be because he flew at a young age and fell several times? but when he used to fall from flying he wouldnt be affected because they were usually small falls. might this be the outcome of all the falls he has taken and does that help anyone realize what they need ?


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Where are you located. It could be so many things. It could be something diet related, or bacterial, and without getting the poop checked by a vet, it's hard to know what to treat for. Although they should be fed what they would eat in the wild there, they shouldn't be on a paste forever. Is there a wild life place in your area that could help?


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## nourhh (May 29, 2011)

I'm in Lebanon, and i took him today to supposedly one of the most reliable vets who told me to give him the antibiotics, the vet couldn't know exactly what's wrong with him. Sometimes he's vomiting the food after taking the antibiotics :S I'm going back to the vet tomorrow , and i am going to try feeding him his natural diet rather than the paste given by all pet shops. Please stay updated with this thread everyone, i will post how the bird has become tomorrow night at around this time, i really need the help and thank you for all the help so far. Even though the bird is still not able to stand on both feet, i feel like he is very energetic and will get through it, whatever the problem is.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Exactly what is the paste you are feeding with?

If you give your bird one drop of Pepto Bismol before you give the meds, it sometimes helps stop them from vomiting. Don't know if you have that there.


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## Jaye (Mar 13, 2008)

Nothing much I can really add to this. I PM'ed you, but basically have nothing new to add; without a very thorough exam, bloodtest, fecal test, culture test...one can only make their best guesses. 

Keep on the antibiotic. Most certainly with a Bird that small a crash or fall can harm it, so it could be that, too.

As Jay said, impossible to guess exactly what is going on...so in these cases you just keep her/him nice and warm and quiet, well-fed, and try a wide-net antibiotic and hope things improve.


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## Heedictator (May 19, 2011)

you have to try different foods for them~ they eat small fruits and i often see adults eat chili peppers in our back yard~ the adult you were telling had survived with just the yellow paste probably you have took care of it when it was already adult.. but young ones and chicks may not be getting all the nutrients they need to grow from just one type of food~ try researching more about yellow vented bulbuls on the web~ they may lack calcium and vitamin D. i have a chewable supplement called 'bio-cal' it contains calcium and cholecalciferol (vit D) that i was planning for my breeding parent pigeons to take few days before the eggs hatch~ and also try placing the chick under the early morning sun for about between the first ray of sun to 9 am for them to regulate their vitamin D and to receive heat for their body and also always provide clean water every after meals which may take several times a day and will be lesser while it grows. hope it helps^^


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