# Wild pigeon ready to be released, but strange growth on head.



## sbarra1x

So, a couple of weeks back I found a young wild pigeon (wood pigeon I believe) in my local park field, sitting by the bottom of a tree; it was unable to fly and could barely even walk. This particular field is a hot spot for foxes and the like so I decided to take the little fella home with me to be on the safe side; I have pigeon lofts in my back garden, hand-built by my step dad (he would breed and race pigeons, and usually win ) so I have been able to provide a nice safe living environment. 

The little fella has been coming along nicely and is now feeding and drinking on it's own. It has also learnt to fly as I have seen it swooping around in the pigeon loft a few times now, thus it looks like the time has come to release it back into the wild.

My only reservation is that the pigeon has slowly been developing a strange growth on it's head, by it's right eye; I first noticed it a day or two after taking the little fella in, and it has slowly been getting larger and larger. I want to let the pigeon go but I would first like to find out what this strange growth is, and more importantly if there is any way I can treat it.

Attached some pictures. Would really appreciate it if anyone could give me for information. Also would be great to know exactly what breed he/she is, and roughly how old?


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## Charis

Contact this group. They are UK based and really great.

http://www.pigeonrescue.co.uk


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## sbarra1x

Thanks Charis. Sent them an email, got back to me pretty quickly. I'll update this thread if/when we find out what the growth is just in case anyone is curious.


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## Quazar

looks like pox although normally more than one lession appears. Nothing you can treat it with, but keep it separate from any other birds.
It will run its course & dry up & fall off. Once it does it will be immune from it again, but while it has it it is contageous to other birds.
Also, make sure you thouroughly clean the area it has been in when it does heal, as the virus can linger in the loft long after the bird is well.


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## Dima

Scroll down for pox natural treatment:
http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showpost.php?p=72577&postcount=1


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## sbarra1x

Hey, thanks for the responses. Would have gotten back sooner but been super hectic around here as of late.

Took the little fella to a local vet a few hours ago to have him examined. Turns out he has a fair few more lumps on him than first thought, mostly on his body and wings, hidden behind feathers (some a little bloody.)

The vet couldn't tell me what these lumps were for sure, though he suspected they could be tumours or cysts. I asked him whether they could be Pigeon Pox but he said he doesn't know what that is and thus he can't be sure.

The general verdict was that the poor fella is not in good shape and sadly he may not make it (vet also noticed poor breathing though this could have possibly been due to nerves/stress/shock.) 

The vet has however provided me with some antibiotics ("Baytril 2.5 % Oral Solution") and I will be keeping the little fella in my loft, treating him once daily. Hopefully he will pull through as he is not acting unwell and seems to be active (flies around the loft whenever I go to change water etc.)

As a side note, when the vet was examining him he did tear the lump on his eye open so now it is just kind of hanging there and you can see the inside of it (I don't think it was intentional though I did not actually see; I noticed it just before leaving.) I know it is hard to say as we do not know for certain what these lumps are, but do you think there is a risk that it could get infected like this? I am sure the answer is no as you would think the vet would have mentioned that to me, though I do regret not asking now just in case. In any case I will get a photos of it tomorrow when I go to give him his antibiotics and I'll upload it here.

Cheers!


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## Quazar

sbarra1x said:


> Hey, thanks for the responses. Would have gotten back sooner but been super hectic around here as of late.
> 
> Took the little fella to a local vet a few hours ago to have him examined. Turns out he has a fair few more lumps on him than first thought, mostly on his body and wings, hidden behind feathers (some a little bloody.)
> 
> The vet couldn't tell me what these lumps were for sure, though he suspected they could be tumours or cysts. I asked him whether they could be Pigeon Pox but he said he doesn't know what that is and thus he can't be sure.
> 
> The general verdict was that the poor fella is not in good shape and sadly he may not make it (vet also noticed poor breathing though this could have possibly been due to nerves/stress/shock.)
> 
> The vet has however provided me with some antibiotics ("Baytril 2.5 % Oral Solution") and I will be keeping the little fella in my loft, treating him once daily. Hopefully he will pull through as he is not acting unwell and seems to be active (flies around the loft whenever I go to change water etc.)
> 
> As a side note, when the vet was examining him he did tear the lump on his eye open so now it is just kind of hanging there and you can see the inside of it (I don't think it was intentional though I did not actually see; I noticed it just before leaving.) I know it is hard to say as we do not know for certain what these lumps are, but do you think there is a risk that it could get infected like this? I am sure the answer is no as you would think the vet would have mentioned that to me, though I do regret not asking now just in case. In any case I will get a photos of it tomorrow when I go to give him his antibiotics and I'll upload it here.
> 
> Cheers!


Obviously the vet knows nothing about birds if he doesnt know what pox is  so with that in mind take the vets opinion as to whether he will make it or not with a pinch of salt.
Good of him to give you the antibiotics though, but if it is pox, they will be of no use as it is a virus which is not treatable by antibiotics.
Also, it is not good to give antibiotics for no reason, did the vet tell you what they were for ? Giving for no reason is actually more harmful and any vet should know this.
Please do not keep him in the loft with other pigeons as they will catch it off of him, (or even off the lessions when they fall off as the virus remains active in them for weeks) and also he is not a feral pigeon, but a young WOOD PIGEON.
They are very "skittish" or highly strung and do not interact with humans well
and the heavy breathing will more than likeley be caused by stress.

.


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## Dima

Have anybody heard of PROTEIN CYSTS? That could be it, if the vet ruled out POX.


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## Quazar

Dima said:


> Have anybody heard of PROTEIN CYSTS? That could be it, if the vet ruled out POX.


The vet didnt rule it out, he didnt know what pox was


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## Jay3

Dima said:


> Have anybody heard of PROTEIN CYSTS? That could be it, if the vet ruled out POX.


Dima, if you reread his post, the vet doesn't even know what Pox is. He didn't rule it out. He had no idea what it is.


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## Jay3

Oops! started my answer, then had to do something, came back and finished it, and you had already posted. Sorry.


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## Dima

_"I asked him whether they could be Pigeon Pox but he said he doesn't know what that is and thus he can't be sure."_
I did not read it the way you did. I understand that he doesn't know what the LUMP (_that_) is therefore can't be sure it's pox.


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## Jay3

Dima said:


> _"I asked him whether they could be Pigeon Pox but he said he doesn't know what that is and thus he can't be sure."_
> I did not read it the way you did. I understand that he doesn't know what the LUMP (_that_) is therefore can't be sure it's pox.



Well if he knows anything about birds, and knows what pox is, then should be able to tell him if it is pox. If he has to test for it, then he should say that. 
Think you read it wrong.


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## Dima

Jay3 said:


> Well if he knows anything about birds, and knows what pox is, then should be able to tell him if it is pox. If he has to test for it, then he should say that.
> Think you read it wrong.


Probably i read it wrong. But it's hard to believe a vet doesn't know what pox is.


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## Jay3

He very well may not if he doesn't normally treat birds. Waste of time and money taking him to a regular animal vet, unless he knows birds.


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## Quazar

Dima said:


> Probably i read it wrong. But it's hard to believe a vet doesn't know what pox is.


In the uk, vets have a 4 (and 6) year course. The 6 year course is normally for those that want to go on and do research work in vetinary science or those wanting a broader spectrum, but the 4 yr course is general and has the 1st year in basics, then a choice of speciality as in "house pets", "avian and exotics" or "farm animals" 
So it is entirely possible that a normal vet would know little or nothing at all about birds, or for that matter cattle & horses.
A farm vet on the other hand would know about house pets and some knowledge as crossover between birds & chickens etc. but a farm vet would know little of exotics.


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## Stina

In any country vets are generally going to get significant education only on what they are interested in. I went to vet school for a year (before deciding I just plain hated school too much to go back....and really didn't think it was what I wanted to do with my life anymore anyway).....In researching vet schools (I considered going to Australia for vet school...and know people who went to other countries), and having spent a year at one, I can tell you from looking it up and experience...that most vets will know next to nothing about any animals they didn't take a special interest in. I would not trust any "regular small animal" vet to work with ANYTHING besides dogs and cats. With anything that isn't a dog, cat, horse, cow, sheep/goat, or large pig...you want to be very careful choosing a vet...because if you use someone who isn't experienced with the species in question, you probably aren't going to get the care you are going to pay for....


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## sbarra1x

*NOTE: GRAPHIC IMAGES BELOW.*

Hey, cheers for the replies.

Just to clarify, the vet said he doesn't know what Pigeon Pox are and thus he can't be sure.

I was able to get some more photos an hour ago when I went to give the little fella from fresh water.

I will warn you *THESE PHOTOS ARE GRAPHIC.*

The first set you can see the lump on the poor fellas face, now that it has been torn. Do you think there is a risk of infection here?

The second set shows the state of the Pigeons wings; note the strange bare lump (protruding about 1 cm.)

The final set of photos shows one of the lumps itself, detached from the Pigeon; he had one on his foot that was very similar in appearance to the one of his face. When I released him back into the loft after handling him he flew quite violently and caught this lump on the meshing of the door. A few minutes later the lump dropped off and I picked it up to snap some photos.

The little fella is still acting normal but I am yet to see iof he eats or drinks today. Seems to have sufficient energy.

I don't think I will be handling him any more however as it gets him very stressed, though I assure you I am as gentle and careful with him as I can be.

Any opinions as to what these lumps may be in light of these new photos would be welcome, as well as any advice in general.

Cheers!


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## sbarra1x

*second Set Of Photos*


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## sbarra1x

*final Set Of Photos.*


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## Dima

As i mentioned before it could be and the content with grease it looks like protein cyst or epidermoid cyst. You can protect the open area with antibiotic ointment.


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## sbarra1x

Yeah it looks like that may well be the case.

Any idea what the lump on his wing could be? I have been talking to people on other forums as well and we suspect it could be Salmonella.

Cheers!


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## sbarra1x

Another update.

Gave the little fella another check over today and it has come to my attention that he has some "yellow stuff" on the inside of his bottom beak, more to the back near his throat. Could this be canker, or are there any other possibilities? I will try to get a photo soon, sadly did not have the camera on hand.

If it is canker, any idea what I need to treat him?

Cheers!


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## Jay3

Jedd's sells canker meds and they ship to the UK.


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## sbarra1x

Cheers, I'll have to look into that then. Also saw some pills on Amazon that are highly regarded.

Was able to get a photo just now, am I correct in thinking this is canker? 

http://imgur.com/C9MX6


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## sbarra1x

Just another update.

The little fella is still acting OK, though he is still not eating as much as he was a few days ago. I think this is likely due to the canker. I'll make sure I buy some frozen peas as as suggested by "Teresa" on another forum and start hand feeding him again. Any suggestions as to anything else I should be feeding him?

As a side note I did find an animal sanctuary based in Emsworth, so only about a 10 min drive from me, however when I called them and told them of the situation they gave me advice but sadly did not offer to take the bird. I was going to ask them myself but then the lady went on to say the kindest thing to do would likely be to have the little fella put down. I disagree as he is still not acting unwell, aside form not eating as much, and has ample energy, so I don't know if I could trust that they would take care of him as opposed to having him euthanised.


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## Jay3

They would probably put him down. Hand feeding the frozen defrosted peas is a good idea. Make sure he is drinking by dipping his beak into a small dish of water, but not over his nostrils. You should start hand feeding right away, as you don't want him losing weight. No reason to put him down. That's crazy. You can also buy baby food jars of peas and corn and even carrots that would be easy to feed with an eye dropper, as they are all squashed up like a paste.


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