# Need advice asap



## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

I will have to go take a look at a duck a nice lady rescued. The story is this poor duck was bitten by an aligator (a baby aligator someone put in a pond where the ducks live) The duck has a torn wing and she has worms in the wound. 
How do we eliminate the worms and I guess antibiotics are also waranted, right?
I am at school now and I will go after the lectures to see what can be done.
Any ideas of what to do with the worm infested wound?

Thanks
R


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Worms as in maggots? They must be picked out individually and killed, then treat with something like Moxidectin plus to kill off any missed.

I had this problem with a little dove.

Someone told me there was a powder that could be appiled but I haven't come accross it yet!

Cynthia


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Well, if those worms are maggots then you've got worse problems. Maggots won't eat living flesh so you have to wonder how much is rotting.

Pidgey


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

BTW the fly strike itself can send them into shock so use heat and rehydration. And examine the whole bird for worms and eggs, the wound attracts them but they can lay their eggs in other areas: the vent, the feather shafts etc. My dove had them at the base of the tail and flight feather shafts.

Cynthia


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Actually I am certain that they do eat living flesh, Pidgey. There was nothing rotting on my dove, she didn't even have a dirty vent, just the pipey feathers.

Flushing with sterile saline helped bring them to the surface for disposal.


http://www.rabbit.org/journal/4-3/maggots.html

By the way, the little dove survived and was released.

Cynthia


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## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

Thank you so much. I haven't seen the poor thing yet, will go there right after school.
Would Scat be of any help to apply? In addition to removing the maggots or worms manually?
How about Ivomec?

Reti


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Ivomec is only effective against blood-sucking parasites and these may be living on dead flesh. If they are, then that dead flesh might be your worst problem, especially if the entire wing is devitalized because it may require amputation. Systemic antibiotics almost surely will be required. 

Pidgey


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## jazaroo (Jan 1, 2006)

Hi Reti,

My understanding is similar to Pidgey's, that maggots will not eat healthy, viable flesh. As gross as it may sound the maggots in the wound may actually be a good thing in terms of treatment. I remember sometime ago reading or seeing something on this, I did find this link, http://www.cnn.com/2004/HEALTH/02/23/offbeat.maggots.antibiotics.reut/index.html , and there are others if you search "maggot therapy."

I know maggots are hardy little things and using any insecticide at a strength that could kill them, I think may bring harm to the bird. My thoughts are a good sprayer bottle with sterile saline to flush the wound free of them, using perhaps a Betadine soap and warm water to finish. Then looking through the feathers, as Cynthia suggested, and remove any you see and perhaps even a hose set to lower pressure to flush through the feathers to remove any missed travelers. As well, since they aren't self-propagating any missed I think would soon die from lack of necrotic tissue to sustain them once the wound is properly dealt with.

Ron


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Well, it looks to me like some consideration has to be made for the type of fly. I, myself, would be inclined to get the maggots out for a certainty. I was just trying to point out that while you're doing that, you need to check for the viability of the tissues to see if you've got a worse (or as bad of a) problem brewing.

Pidgey


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## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

Thanks Ron and Pidgey.
I will definately check for the vitality of tissues and give some Cipro.
If there is necrotic tissue, can I debrid some, I think I should right?
Ok, will see what exactly we are dealing with and let you know tonight.

Thanks

Reti


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Best of luck but the story so far sounds pretty ominous.

Pidgey


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Hi Reti,

I guess it would be best to prepare for the worst then, but I will be praying for the best, and hope it isn't as bad as it sounds.

I wish you could find a qualified duck rehabber, like Terry, in your area.


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## jazaroo (Jan 1, 2006)

Hi Reti,

One of the links in maggot therapy I saw is for using them for debridement. Although I have no first hand knowledge or insights on this, if these little guys work as reported, perhaps in a best case scenario they will have cleaned and debrided this wound.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/...ve&db=PubMed&list_uids=16386439&dopt=Abstract

I am hoping for the best for you and this bird.

Ron


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Hi Reti,

Yes, Ivomec will do. It is what is recommended in the Wildlife Care manual.

It is when maggots are used for therapy that they are restricted to dead tissue only. But that is done under supervision. They are not fastidious.

Cynthia


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## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

Actually I also heard about this, cleaningwounds with maggots. But it might be a specific kind of maggots? I don't know and I don't know if I see them if I can tell what kind they are.

Thanks Ron

Reti


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## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

Thanks Cynthia, will give some Ivomec.

Reti


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Sadly animals are literally "eaten alive" by maggots.

This is a hedgehog site, you will see they recommed an injection of Ivomec after the removal of the maggots.

http://www.thehedgehog.co.uk/health.htm

And just for the interest factor , this is information on how a specific type of maggot is used in wound therapy:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maggot_therapy#Recent_Maggot_Therapy_Clinical_Experience

Cynthia


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Got it!  This, from a news report on therapeutic maggots explains why we disagree on whether or not they eat healthy flesh.!

_Greenbottle larvae are used because they are known only to digest dead tissue and do not burrow down into live flesh. 

Other larvae, for example, the screw worm, do eat living tissue. _


Cynthia


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## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

Thanks, Cynthia, for the maggot article! I've heard of maggot therapy but didn't know "details." Now we know just what kind of maggots are used and why! Really comprehensive and answered questions I had...

Mmmm, wonder if Barbaro would be a candidate???

BEST OF LUCK WITH THE DUCK, RETI!!!


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## Whitefeather (Sep 2, 2002)

cyro51 said:


> And just for the interest factor , this is information on how a specific type of maggot is used in wound therapy:
> 
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maggot_therapy#Recent_Maggot_Therapy_Clinical_Experience
> 
> Cynthia


I was just about to post the same link Cynthia.  

I saw a show on 'maggot therapy' on the Discovery Health Channel & it really was quite interesting. This type of therapy has saved many fingers, hands, toes, feet, etc.  

Cindy


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## jazaroo (Jan 1, 2006)

Hi Cynthia,

Thanks for the clarification and further information on maggots. I am hoping the maggots troubling this bird are the beneficial kind and can be dealt with quickly.

Ron


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

I don't think that maggots in wild animals can be beneficial. In medicine sterile maggots are used in small controlled quantities but in wild animals with fly strike there are hundreds at a time, too many to restrict their consumption to necrotic tissue so when that runs out they apparently eat the healthy tissue. As I said, they are not fastidious. Also because of their large numbers they produce a lot of toxic waste products which would be harmful to the "host".

For the record (in case we have further cases) there is a larvicidal product called Negasunt made by Bayer, which contains coumaphos, propoxur and sulphanilamide, but that might not be suitable for small animals and birds.

A topical maggot killer can be made up by mixing 1 part Ivermectin with 9 parts tap water, to be used immediatly after and any left over discarded because it is unstable.

I gave Maggie (my fly strike dove) 1/2 drop of Metacam because she was in pain but have since found out that the administration of an NSAID helps counteract endotoxic shock brought on by the maggot-produced toxins.

Cynthia


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## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

Great info, Cynthia. Thanks.
Unfortunately the poor baby died before I could get there. It was to late for her.
Another heartbreak. Now have to think how to get the aligator out of the pond. See whom we can contact.

Reti


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## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

Reti, I am so sorry this little guy didn't make it. Sounds like it would have been a super challenge but I know you would have given him your usual best effort.

I wish some of the information in this thread could be put into a sticky. It has a lot of good information that I never knew.

The only exposure I've had to maggots was actually by a phone call from a lady a few years ago. She had a finch nest in her yard and somehow one of the parents died in the nest and maggots were on her and had moved to the babies. To make a long story short, she got as many of the maggots off as she could and put the babies in a fresh, clean basket and put it on her deck. Other finches came to the deck and not only fed the babies but picked the rest of the maggots off. She put the new nest back in the tree and the family of finches finished raising the babies. It was a wonderful story.


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Now, there, see? Sometimes things work out in reverse--in that case it was the maggots that got eaten alive!

Pidgey

P.S. I don't want to appear flippant but this sounded like a lost cause from the beginning to me. I am sorry that the bird didn't make it.


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## jazaroo (Jan 1, 2006)

Reti,

I too, am sorry to hear that this bird didn't make it. Thanks for trying.

Ron


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

I'm sorry to hear the duck didn't make it, poor thing.  

I certainly do hope the alligator is removed from that pond.


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## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

Darn, Reti...all I can add is what's been said by others: I'm so sorry the duck did not make it!

I DO hope that alligator is found (not distroyed) as he/she could be a danger to many others!!


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## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

They will probably remove him, hope too they won't destry him, just put him in the Everglades.

Maggie, that is a wondeful story. I didn't know finches are such social little guy.

Thank you all. 
This poor duck sounded bad from the beginning, poor thing.
This is a nice lady who rescues anything that needs to be rescued, including pigeons. I undestood she has a few rescued pigeons. So, I am glad I found another good person here in Miami, we so desperately need them.


Reti


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

I am sorry Reti!

Cynthia


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Reti said:


> I am glad I found another good person here in Miami, we so desperately need them.
> Reti



Ain't that the truth...there are so FEW.


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