# Incredible inflatable bird (air sac rupture pics)



## TheSnipes (Apr 9, 2007)

All,

Look what i discovered in my loft this morning while feeding. 


http://www.neptunetechnical.com/LJ/pigeons/balloon_baby/balloonbefore.jpg
http://www.neptunetechnical.com/LJ/pigeons/balloon_baby/balloonafter.jpg

Before and after 'popping' the poor thing with a syringe needle. He does still show a tendency to inflate...I guess this one is going to have to stay inside for a while 

I have never, ever, seen such a case before. The poor thing could barely breathe. I'm not sure if it is "ok" otherwise it seems a little..retarded. I gave it some baby food and it's on heat in a towel with a stash of syringes and alcohol nearby in case it needs further assistance. I'm not sure about it though. 

FYI although it's discussed plenty elsewhere, the method of treatment is simply to swab a spot on the extended skin and pierce it with a syringe needle. You can hear the pressure when it's relieved and the bird just deflates, like a balloon. Simple..but weird. 

Poor little beeblet!!


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## TerriB (Nov 16, 2003)

Holy cow!! That must have been a shocker! I've never seen that in such a young bird. Sure hope that whatever opening there is closes up without any complications!


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## TheSnipes (Apr 9, 2007)

TerriB said:


> Holy cow!! That must have been a shocker! I've never seen that in such a young bird. Sure hope that whatever opening there is closes up without any complications!


It was a shocker. 2-3 times the size of its clutchmate I would say. I think I yelled out loud when I saw it. Actually I'd reached into the nest to assess what was going on in there cuz it's up high and my fingers touched it and I jerked them back like I'd stuck my hand in a bucket of worms and said something like WHAT THE HELL IS THAT. When I picked it up to bring it in I was afraid the poor thing would burst.. 

I'm not sure what else there is to do for these cases except help them out if they get another severe inflation. He seems to get some air under the skin that deflates on its own now, not sure if it could still be 'leaking' out the little punctures i made or if it's absorbing by other means.

I'm just gonna keep an eye on him and take care of him best I can...of course I discoved this as I was feeding up so I could go away for a couple days...now I have to take a "medical emergency" with me on vacation. What is it with their timing anyway.


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## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

OMG, never have I seen a case this severe. Geez, his entire body was inflated. I'm glad you were able to catch this in time. I know we have had many with inflated air sacs that only required a couple times of being pricked but this baby may need it for a few days.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Oh my goodness.....That is awful.

I'm glad you treated it and are keeping a close eye on the baby, I can't imagine how that poor baby felt.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

he looked like a little piece of popcorn! I feel so bad for him.


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## Hunterex8 (Apr 3, 2009)

Oh the poor thing...it does look like a balloon...what causes it? you said "inflated air sac" whats that?


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## della (Jan 29, 2009)

There's always something new to learn about pigeons, isn't there! Poor little fella - What does cause it, and is it entirely curable?


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## Hunterex8 (Apr 3, 2009)

It sounds like something got ruptured inside...maby the bird equivalent to a collapsed lung in humans? Soo i think i would heal just like collapsed lungs heal.


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## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

This site gives a pretty comprehensive description of air sacs.

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=15+1829&aid=2721

Most of the pigeons we get in to rehab that have inflated air sacs got that way through a fall from the nest which is usually built pretty high off the ground like a bridge overpass. Their body gets bruised and that sometimes causes the air bubbles to form.

A lot of times you don't even have to release the air if the bubble is small. In TheSnipes bird's case, the bubbles had to be deflated. It is a pretty simple procedure but you have to be careful not to hit a blood vessel with the needle.


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## Hunterex8 (Apr 3, 2009)

Huh...well thats something i didnt know! so it is kind of like a collapsed lung...except lungs arent involved XD. TheSnipes bird looked like it has some bruises on its back from the pressure? Poor thing must have been in pain


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## lwerden (May 31, 2008)

OMG..........The poor little bird!!!! I have never seen anything as bad as this before. Thank God you got to him in time. 

I hope and will pray that this baby will be OK.


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## TheSnipes (Apr 9, 2007)

Hi, thanks for the good thoughts. Yes his little skin was SO distended he had developed some broken blood vessels. Through the day littler bubbles would form and go away on their own...tonight though I had to 'pop' him in 3 spots, the crop area and one prick on each side where large bubbles were forming again.

To my relief though he finally pooped. Two nice bigs ones, so I think his digestion is moving again. He was cold and clammy when I found him this morning (who could sit on him? He'd have popped for sure?) and maybe being on the nice warm pad has helped his digestion start going again. So he's had the air let out and a full tummy again. He has also started moving around more normally and is squeaking.

Maggie, it's good to know that he might need it for a few days cuz I was already starting to worry having done it twice. At any rate I always say I won't give up till they do


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## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

Snipes, I'm so happy with your positive report - especially the poops!

Sounds like the bubbles are going away as he heals. Its pretty fascinating to see how quickly they go down when the bubble is pricked.


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## TheSnipes (Apr 9, 2007)

Here is what the vet replied via email. I post it here to add the info the the "PT archives." I'm going to put him on some meds soon as I get home tonight.

"The under the skin airsacs empty into the other ones by a one-way valve. What causes the problem is if that valve gets gummed up. Usually there is an underlying infection that messes things up and then the valve just stays messed up. I would do antibiotics for two weeks and empty the air out as needed. Keep in mind that he may blow up occasionally forever."


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

How is the baby doing today?

Thanks for the information.


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## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

TheSnipes said:


> Here is what the vet replied via email. I post it here to add the info the the "PT archives." I'm going to put him on some meds soon as I get home tonight.
> 
> "The under the skin airsacs empty into the other ones by a one-way valve. What causes the problem is if that valve gets gummed up. Usually there is an underlying infection that messes things up and then the valve just stays messed up. I would do antibiotics for two weeks and empty the air out as needed. Keep in mind that he may blow up occasionally forever."


Snipes, thanks for that info. I know we have used antibiotics with air bubbles at times if they are really bad but in most cases there was also severe bruising from a fall. I sure didn't know that the blow ups could continue forever.


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## TheSnipes (Apr 9, 2007)

His crop is too slow to empty. 

I wonder if it is due to the severe distention of the skin, that it has lost its elasticity? His digestion is working, cuz he's pooping, but it seems I have to fill him up to push it along and I never get to wait for it to empty in between feedings because it never seems to empty. 

Bubbles come and go under his skin but so far today I've not felt it necessary to bleed any air out.


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## Charis (Feb 11, 2007)

Add some baby applesauce.


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## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

You can also try Benebac (can get at Petsmart) and/or plain yogurt.


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## TheSnipes (Apr 9, 2007)

*Update*

I wanted to post with a pic of this guy's clutchmate, for comparison, but I will have to post such a pic later as I cant get the pics off my camera right now.

He is very stunted in his growth, I would say he's about 2 wks behind. This is due, I presume, to the fact that he can't get enough food in his system fast enough, cuz of his in-elastic skin which allows his crop to bulge and never retract.

He had a rather expensive visit with the vet that basically only confirmed this, so I could have saved myself a lot of money and gone with my gut but this one is all new to me.

Anyway...possible further complication. I'm aware of something known in the poultry genetics as "frizzle" (Fr) which causes some curly or malformed feathers. In the back of my noggin, I dimly recall that such a condition is also occasionally seen in pigeons, and I also recall that the prospects for survival (in pigeons) are poor. I do not recall why that's so. I do recall a thread here on PT by a member who picked up a frizzly-feathered youngster at a local feed store and fell in love with it only to lose it very soon after, and another poster replied that was often the case with birds that exhibit that feather condition. I can't find that thread now, does that ring a bell for anyone else? I'd like to revisit it now for comparison.

I tried to get a picture of this guy's feathers because I don't think they are right, but for some reason the computer at work is refusing to read the data disk so I will have to post pics later on in a followup. I know they grow in some downy fluff, but these just seem wrong to me. If that's the case I wonder if this poor guy has some basic underlying genetic thing that affected his immune system as well...maybe a root cause for all his problems.

Anyway, he is still kicking, though not exactly thriving, and I would appreciate any feedback from anyone who knows anything about this frizzly feather thing especially w/ regard to longevity / vigor. Danke!


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## Charis (Feb 11, 2007)

I think it was Horsegotsix that had the frizzled baby that didn't survive. If I recall correctly, she bought it off eggbid and it arrived sick. It died shourtly after and was a heartbreaking. I think that was sold as a Frill.
I have seen parrots with that condition too.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Sorry, I remember the post, just not where or who. That's really too bad. Sorry.


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## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

Charis said:


> I think it was Horsegotsix that had the frizzled baby that didn't survive. If I recall correctly, she bought it off eggbid and it arrived sick. It died shourtly after and was a heartbreaking. I think that was sold as a Frill.
> I have seen parrots with that condition too.



Here's the thread where she bought the bird. The part about it dying is somewhere else though. I'm still looking.......
http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=24042


Here's the specific post where she said the pigeon died.
http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showpost.php?p=247369&postcount=28

Here's the link for the whole thread.
http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=24256


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## TheSnipes (Apr 9, 2007)

Thanks for those nudges Chars and LB, I found and re-read it. so it doesn't seem necessarily that the bird may be doomed if it has this silky or whatever the feather condition is. (I guess it's not frizzled but silky).


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## Marsha McClelland (Jun 4, 2011)

TheSnipes said:


> All,
> 
> Look what i discovered in my loft this morning while feeding.
> 
> ...


Hello. I'm new here & because of your success with your little one with the sac problem, I have submitted the following as a new thread here. I am placing it here, too, so you will be sure to see it TheSnipes;

I have what I think is a baby Robin that needs help, really bad. I know his parents threw him out of the nest & wouldn't take him back because of his problem so I nursed him back to health. 

I was reading at this site about air sacs so that's why I am asking for help, here, & hope it's okay, being, this bird is of a different feather than those this site's about. 

He has two air sacs on each side on his back that take up almost a third of his tiny body & connect to his crop area & it looks like one great big bubbly mess. 

After eating his crop expands into the same transparent looking bubble. The crop & each bubbled side on his back has two sections. So all around his head is surrounded by what looks like five bubbles after he eats. I hope this can be popped, too, somehow like the success story at the thread here called, "Incredible inflatable bird (air sac rupture pics)" 

I can't take this little fighter to a vet because they will probably destroy him as he'll need constant care they won't be able to give. He's such a fighter & when he wants to eat he's loud & up in the air standing on his own letting us know. Between feedings, though, he seems not able to use his legs that well as I think it may be because he's just so young. At least, I hope that's the reason. They flop at his sides in the most uncomfortable looking way that worries me most of the time. When he wants to scurry under the grass I have in his box or to a corner, he gets there with no problem, though. He just seems so wobbly. 

I'm not sure he's even a Robin. He still has fuzz on his head & body with black & grey or white looking pin feathers, like streaks, & his wings have those same feathers & they're covered. Down his back he has those same black & white or maybe it's grey, I can't tell, feathers that look like a mohawk & the rest of him is naked. His tail is square & short. He has yellow on the sides of his beak. 

He shoots little sacs of poop out when I feed him. I don't even know if he's a him but he feels like one. Those poops don't seem so little compared to him as they're almost as big as his head. It's white with a black tip in a protective sack, now, that's he's recovered. 

He wasn't pooping at first when he was found & it started out just white & runny. No sack. 

I looked at pictures on the net but it didn't help me identify his species. I think it's a Robin because I've had him three days & the diet I've been giving him has made him strong so I think I guessed right. I hope I have. I read if you feed them the wrong diet it would be toxic. 

I had a very hard time getting hold of anyone at first at the wild life rehab centers & didn't even know we weren't supposed to feed abandoned or injured birds until I got on the net & learned. If I followed that rule, he would have starved by the time I received a call back & died. 

I have called every rehab center in my area & some outside, for help, to no avail. Our main expert here in Ohio is Fran Kitchen but she's camping. When I was younger Fran worked with me to educate me in helping injured & abandoned birds but that was 16 years ago so I am rusty & at a loss & no one will help me by giving advice as by law they say they are not allowed. 

I spoke this morning to a vet I was referred to & they said I could bring him in, they called it, surrender, but I know they'll euthanize him. If this bubble can't be corrected he won't be released in the wild & I can't bear to take him to the vet knowing his chances will be slim to none to be loved & cared for. 

He eats every 45 minutes & I am worn out after three days & nights. My oldest Granddaughter has been helping me but I have the nights to tend to by myself. I have recruited help & they are coming to take shifts. 

I would gladly buy a licence just to save this little guy & any others I come across to get past that law if anyone can advise me on this. 

He was unresponsive when my son first brought him to me three days ago. He found him, almost, under a bushy pine tree. He had heavy labored breathing & no voice. No chirping until 24 hours later. He could not even sit up. Still doesn't sit that well but is doing better & better. 

I first got water in him & he seemed to revive a bit so I could get some pureed worm into him. He's eating chunks now & I smash organic apple & insects my Granddaughter gathers. I just added a bit of tomato & would appreciate any suggestions for his diet. I'm watching his poop carefully so it remains healthy looking & in the sack. The only insects so far are ants as I'm afraid to harm him with flies or mosquitoes. 

He seems to be needing fed every 45 minutes as he starts begging so I have been setting an alarm all through the night & I can't wait for the recruits to come. I feed him until he stops opening his mouth & hope I'm not over feeding him. I need help with those bubbles & advice on his diet, please. I can't believe no one will advise me under these circumstances so my hope is in you here who care & are expert. 

He's a feisty little guy my Granddaughters call Erwin & all my family & friends are telling me that his only hope is being with us at this point. He looks really gross as the last person stated who just saw him. I could upload a photo I think, so I'll go work on that.


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## Marsha McClelland (Jun 4, 2011)

TheSnipes said:


> All,
> 
> Look what i discovered in my loft this morning while feeding.
> 
> ...


Hello, Matriarch. Could you please weigh in on helping the Starling I'm trying to save since you have experience with popping these sacs? Please look at my post here titled;

"I'm frantic to save this baby bird" And see the pictures & "Update on Erwin." Thank you for any time you can give to help determine if his sacs shoud be popped.


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