# Baby pigeon with hole in it's crop



## dsessom (Aug 18, 2010)

I have been combing through these forums in search of info on how to save this little guy. I found it on the concrete at a gas station and I believe it fell about 15 feet from atop the gas pump roof. I saw mama Pigeon on top of the tin gas pump roof so I'm pretty sure it took a long fall.
Anyway, I was getting gas and noticed to poor little guy crying on the concrete and I just couldn't leave it there. So I took it home and put it in a box about twice the size of a shoe box, with a towel, and paper towels on the bottom and put a heating pad beneath the box to keep it warm. I read on these forums to get Kaytee Exact baby bird formula and tube feed it, so I went and got some. I mixed it into a soupy consistency with warm water and read several how-To's about how to safely tube feed a baby Pigeon. 
After feeding it, I noticed the food leaking out of the left front side of the crop. This broke my heart because I know that's not good at all. Im not sure if it happened from the 15 foot fall or what. I really don't want to see this little tyke die.

Please, please tell me what to do to help it heal. Should I clean the wound with peroxide? Can I give it a tiny dose of human antibiotics? Would a mixture of orally administered water and honey help? Should I bandage the hole, or is it better not to? I cannot afford to take it to a Vet. I wish I could. So, I am going to have to depend on help from this forum, and my own medical knowledge. (I work in a hospital, but not many doctors are sure about aviary medicine.)

By the way, from photos I guess his age at 9 days when I found him on Monday, so it is 11 days old today. The hole is about 1/8" in diameter, or a little smaller.

Thank you in advance for any help. I live in Lawton, OK if anyone here is nearby that can help.

Thanks again,

Dwayne Sessom


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## dsessom (Aug 18, 2010)

Here's a picture of the little guy.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

Take him to your vet so he/she can close it up and give appropriate meds.. these things can heal pretty quick.. some fanciers have sutured healthy adult birds torn crops and they heal fine, but not sure if you want to do a do it yourself type thing with a little one in need.


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## sky tx (Mar 1, 2005)

I Hate to post because of the comments I'll get.
Put a Drop of Super Glue over the small hole.-That should stop the leaking.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

sky tx said:


> I Hate to post because of the comments I'll get.
> Put a Drop of Super Glue over the small hole.-That should stop the leaking.


I have heard of that actually.. so.. there ya go.. they have a glue suture at the vet pretty much the same thing just some componds removed to make it safer.


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Hi Dwayne, 


There needs to be some evaluation for how come there is a hole there...in order to decide on how to treat it.


Was the Baby shot with a Pellet Gun?

Is it a small tear, or puncture, somehow occasioned in the presumed fall?

Is it an erosion/perforation of Tissue from a localized infection?


Can you post some really good, close up, in focus images of the Hole?


Also, post some images of his poops/urates?



Phil
Lv


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## ptras (Jun 29, 2010)

sky tx said:


> I Hate to post because of the comments I'll get.
> Put a Drop of Super Glue over the small hole.-That should stop the leaking.


Good idea. Some emergency rooms are using superglue to temporarily "suture" wounds.


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## Budd (Jul 20, 2010)

Does anyone have any idea how much the vet bill would be in a case like this? Ask friends if they can donate towards a vet bill. The pigeon is just to cute to die.


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## dsessom (Aug 18, 2010)

Thanks for all the replies. When I got home from work today, the baby was having a hard time breathing. I was so devastated. I have been crying for an hour. I don't know what happened. He may have gotten too cold last night. The stupid heating pad switches itself off after a few hours, so I had to check it and turn it back on from time to time. Either that, or it aspirated some food at some point. He doesn't look good. Lethargic and labored breathing. He isn't even squeaking anymore.
I don't think it will live through the night. It will still eat, but it's going downhill fast. This time yesterday, it was energetic and very vocal. Now it doesn't move or squeak. I am heartbroken. I really wanted the little guy to make it.


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## Msfreebird (Sep 23, 2007)

You can also get skin glue at a drug store.
But I think also, it wouldn't hurt to put this little guy on antibiotics because of the puncture. Clavamox (augmentin) would be appropriate if its a puncture or tear.
The dose is *12.5 mg for an adult bird*


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## Guest (Aug 19, 2010)

Msfreebird said:


> You can also get skin glue at a drug store.
> But I think also, it wouldn't hurt to put this little guy on antibiotics because of the puncture. Clavamox (augmentin) would be appropriate if its a puncture or tear.
> The dose is *12.5 mg for an adult bird*


I think internally stiches would be better then glue , just my opinion


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## chezd3 (Oct 8, 2008)

Aww its a sweet baby and you are an angel for helping this bird. If you did not take the baby in they would have not had even a chance. I would recommend you take the baby to the vet, you can explain you want to help but do not have tons of money. They can give you the best solution for the hole and also antibiotics. If you can get a heating pad that stays on, that would really support the baby too. It's hard to tell what happen to this sweetie, thanks for helping this bird!


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## Jaye (Mar 13, 2008)

pdpbison said:


> Hi Dwayne,
> 
> 
> There needs to be some evaluation for how come there is a hole there...in order to decide on how to treat it.
> ...


Precisely. Before one patches a hole, you gotta figure out if something's inside.

Obviously the baby has been injured...so it could be there's a bb or something inside of him/her still. Secondly, if injured, the baby needs meds and pretty fast. 


Avian vet is best course of action here because, all a layman can provide is guesswork, unless you can actually extract what may have caused the injury (if it's in there). The best thing would be an x-ray and physical exam. Short of that, one can just go with the standard, wide-net sort of treatments...but may be missing something specific.



Thank you for saving the baby. Nothing you can do now but keep him/her warm and quiet. It doesn't sound too good, but given the circumstances all you can do is hope she makes it thru the night. If so, medical attention immediately come daybreak. Best of luck.


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## Msfreebird (Sep 23, 2007)

LokotaLoft said:


> I think internally stiches would be better then glue , just my opinion


I agree that stitches would be better, but she said she couldn't afford to go to a vet, so I thought human skin glue wouldn't be as harsh as super glue 
I think she should call her vet and explain that she is trying to help the little guy, and see if he will do anything for her..........But we all know how that works out sometimes 
So if she can't find a kind hearted vet, next best thing would be to try to close the hole and get antibiotics into him.
Another good patch (which one of the vets I work for uses on injured chickens on farm calls) is a "honey paste" - 1/2 honey 1/2 sugar mixed together to make a paste which is put over the injury. This is used for wounds that can't be stitched together.
I hope the little guy has made it thru the night.


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## dsessom (Aug 18, 2010)

Thank you all for the replies and advice. Petey didn't make it through the night. I am devastated... The breathing complications were too much for the little guy to overcome. Perhaps that hole in it's crop went deeper than I thought. If it fell on a nail or something, the hole may have pierced the lung.

I got so attached to him in just 3 days. It's like losing a child.
My wife probably thinks I'm a crazy crybaby. But thank you all again for the advice. Sometimes, "all you can do" just isn't enough. At least he is no longer suffering. 

Thanks everyone..

Dwayne


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Hi Dwayne,



I am so sorry things did not work out.


You gave it a good try.


Poor little Bub...


I know what you mean exactly...



Phil
Lv


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## dsessom (Aug 18, 2010)

I uploaded a video I made of Petey before he got sick. I am gonna miss that little guy. In memory of Petey...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSgN-ZLl6dU


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## Msfreebird (Sep 23, 2007)

Oh, I'm so sorry he didn't make it. He knows you tried and he didn't pass alone.
Thank you for trying to help this little one, I'm sure another will come your way - they have a way of doing that.
My *very first baby pigeon* rescue was named "Petey" also - he's the one that got me hooked


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