# aspiration pneumonia?



## GandyPigbird (Mar 28, 2013)

I took Gandalf (a white homing pigeon I rescued about a month ago who was in pretty bad shape) to the vet 5 days ago to get a checkup. To my great relief the vet said he had recovered 100% from when I first brought him in, had gained weight and no longer had any signs of liver problems or "bad bacteria" in his gut. 

The only problem was the worm I found in one of his droppings. She gave me a dewormer medication to give him orally for five days to correct this.

This morning, after having finished the five day treatment, I found him on the floor of the living room blinking and squinting his eyes, falling asleep, and opening his beak slightly every time he breathed in. He was also doing a movement with his neck like he was trying to swallow every few seconds and shivering. I immediately called the vet and scheduled an appointment for tomorrow morning. 

Based on the symptoms I described, she suspected aspiration pneumonia from the oral medication I gave her. Her thought was that he might have inhaled some of it when I was giving it to him, or that he may have regurgitated some and inhaled it that way. 

She told me to keep him very warm so I have him in a small bathroom with a space heater facing away from him so there won't be a draft and he seems to be doing ok as long as I leave him alone and don't startle him enough to cause quickness of breath.

I'm just wondering if anyone else has had experience with this and knows whether he is likely to recover from it or not. I have also heard of bird pneumonia causing fatal illnesses in humans and am wondering if I or my family is in any danger having my beloved bird in the house with this illness.

Is aspiration pneumonia different from viral pneumonia?

And does anyone have any tips for orally administering medicine like the dewormer without accidentally getting some in the windpipe? If I did it wrong I want to make sure I don't do it again if I have to give him oral meds in the future!!

Thank you so much to everyone in the pigeontalk community. You have all been so helpful in the past.

Love, Gandalf's mom


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## Dima (Jan 15, 2011)

I wouldn't be worried for you and family that will get sick.

Best medicine is pills, they are easy to pop them in his back of the throat and pigeons just swallow it.

The most popular pill is ivermectin for worms.

Good luck and i hope your pigeon will be safe.


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## GandyPigbird (Mar 28, 2013)

thanks Dima. i hope he will be too. i've really gotten attached to him!


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

You won't catch it from him. You probably didn't get it all past his trach, and some went down. Giving liquids to birds is difficult. You can aspirate them and kill them. You need to go toward the pigeons right side of his throat, over the tongue, to the back of his throat. Dima is right in that pills are usually easier to give, and even then you must be careful to get it over the tongue and to the back of his throat.
Maybe he will be okay, and not too much went down wrong. Let us know how it goes.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

*what wormer did the vet give you and dosage? Be careful, there are some wormers the vets use that are not made for pigeons and the dosage also might be an issue.

It is best to get wormers from the pigeon warehouses, they are made specifically for them and dosage guidelines are exact. I myself use garlic caps.*


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## GandyPigbird (Mar 28, 2013)

Thanks for the tip! Now he isn't eating at all and has a fluid in his mouth that he seems to keep swallowing. It's clear, not yellow, and the vet didn't find any crop infections of any kind in her tests this morning, but he is possibly regurgitating liquids and having difficulty swallowing. He was down 40 grams in only 6 days and has mild pneumonia in his left lung, though this is likely not the whole problem based on how sick he is.

Since he's not eating, I'll have to start feeding him from a syringe, so this is good information to have.

I don't know what the dewormer was called as I wasn't familiar and threw it away when I was done with it, but I do remember on the label that it said it was for cats and dogs and "other pets". So maybe it wasn't really for birds. Also on one day I gave him a little too much- was supposed to be 2mg, and i gave him about 2.3mg by accident, pushing too hard on the syringe in my haste to get it down before he struggled and I had to force his beak open again... poor guy. 

Anyone have any tips for feeding him with a syringe? What are the best foods for a sick pigeon that can't eat?

Love, Lauren


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## Dima (Jan 15, 2011)

Hand feed him seeds if he has no problem with crop or anything digestive. You just open hid beak, keep him wrapped in a towel, and pop one by one regular seeds and mixed you defrosted peas ( sprinkle some bird powder vit on them). I would also pop a few pieces of grit, red stone.

May be some one has a better idea, may be using the syringe cut with a rubber, in which it can put the beak in and eat like babies. But he is not a baby. RIGHT?


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

I wouldn't give seeds. Frozen peas which have been defrosted and warmed under warm running water. Warm, not hot. Hold the bird on your lap and against your body. Open the beak. Take a pea and put it in his mouth. Push it to the back of his throat and let him close his beak and swallow. Then do another one. An adult should be able to eat 50 or so at one feeding, and you would probably feed a couple of times a day, only after the crop has emptied from the last feeding. The peas are easier to digest than seed, and I wouldn't feed him grit either. Even if he were being fed seed, he can go without the grit. Not like it is forever. He may be to sick to eat 50. Maybe start with 30 and see how he does. If he is having a hard time breathing, then his wind pipe would be open more, and the seeds could go down his windpipe. You could kill him that way. No seed please. And if he is having a hard time breathing, then stop and give him a break for a bit.


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## GandyPigbird (Mar 28, 2013)

Thank you Jay. I took your advice on the peas. Only gave him about 15 peas before bed as I read somewhere that it wasn't good to put them to bed with a full crop. But tomorrow I will aim for 30 twice a day. I'm much more comfortable with putting peas in his throat than feeding tubes!

He immediately perked up a little from the peas. My concern now is getting him enough liquids- he has thick saliva which is supposed to indicate dehydration and though he tries to drink, he just dips his beak in the water for a second and then shakes it around, water going everywhere, and then opens his beak like he's having trouble breathing. I don't think he's able to swallow any of the water. Will the peas soaked in warm water be enough hydration for him for now?

Love, Lauren


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

The water in the peas will help. It would be better of course, if he would drink, but please don't give him any more liquids. It doesn't hurt to have a full crop at night. Try offering water every so often and see if he will eventually drink some. He is having trouble breathing, so you don't want to force it.
Can you call the vet and find out what the worming med you gave him was? And the dosage?
Normally, you would give a wormer once, then wait 10 days, then give it again. It could be both a problem with what you gave him and aspiration. Can only wait and see if he pulls through. Is this a vet that normally sees birds?


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## GandyPigbird (Mar 28, 2013)

*Update on Gandalf*

Next time I go see the vet I'll definitely find out what kind of dewormer it was. 

Last night I took Gandalf to the animal hospital because he was still not eating or drinking and I was really worried about his hydration. The vet I saw gave him a subq shot of hydrating fluids and a shot of Baytril. He was really disgruntled about the whole thing last night... all fluffed up with his eyes closed but this morning the spark is back in his eyes! He cooed! And even ate a couple sunflower seeds! Still not drinking much, I think he hates his antibiotic water with Tetracycline. But I'm now administering about 8ml 1 part exact baby formula with 2 parts antibiotic water and its going down much more smoothly. His saliva is no longer gooey and thick and his breathing isn't labored at all. I think he's really pulling through!

Thank you SO much to everyone who answered my questions and offered advice. Your care about my little guy made me feel so supported the past few days.

Love, Lauren and Gandalf


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## Dima (Jan 15, 2011)

Did the vet answer the question if it's aspiration though?

I am glad you took him at the vet. Baytril is to fight infection.
I would be worried to keep feeding him by tube/ syringe. Be careful.

I hope he will get back to his normal.
Keeps us updated.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Yes. please be very careful when feeding that it doesn't go down his trach. You can use an eye dropper, and put it down his throat. past the back of his tongue and trach, but it has to go way to the back of the throat, and past the back of his tongue, to avoid getting any in his trachea, and just maybe 1/3 of the eye dropper at a time.


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