Crop size (sad update #3)

[inorainbow]

I have this worry about my 20/25 day old budgie, he was fed at 8am 3ml then at 11am 3ml, after the second feeding of the day (11am) his crop has not gone down and looks just as big if not bigger than at the time of the feeding (it usually goes down within 3 hours). it has now been 6 hours shy of 15 minutes and this is the case. He has been fed through a rubber crop tube 4 days now and beforehand he was fed through his mother. I spoon feed my younger budgie and tried to spoon the one in question too but he despises the taste of the formula (Exact). His activity has gone down the whole day in contrast from yesterday (trying to get out the nest box etc). He was nibbling on the nesting filler i put in. I also checked the crop for discoloration but it seems normal other than being so full. Poop also looks good dark green, albeit small poop but frequent.

 

[Zara]

fed at 8am 3ml then at 11am 3ml

Was the crop almost empty after the first feed before giving the second? It is important that only a little remains.

Did the crop clear eventually? It has been 12 hours, what is the current situation?

 

[inorainbow]

Yes, after the first feed the crop was almost empty as usual for the 4 days that I had him. Also, the crop was completely empty before the first feeding. I am very sad as my budgie has passed away. I checked him and he had what looked like a lesion under his feathers on the right side on the back of his neck.

When i was given him he did not chirp and did not fuss at all, would absolutely not take spoon fed formula (Exact) *(day one with me)

Day Two, would start to be active, preened himself, his squawks were not loud at all and almost dull sounding. tried to syringe feed but he would aspirate and reject the food too much so i barley got any in him.

Day 3, he is active, preened himself, squawking with head bobbing and squawking more than yesterday. He gets crop fed this day and crop empties as it should between feedings and during the night.

Day 4-5, He is active, preens himself, squawks more than day 3 with head bobbing at times, crop same as day 3, squawks still sound dull however even though he is squawking. he tries to leave the nest box and his activity level is the highest i have ever seen him specifically on day 5.

Day 6, Eats the first meal as described in the first post, after the second meal his crop would not empty for hours. His crop took about 11 hours to almost empty and I gave him a more watery mix of formula and only 2ml instead of 3. during the entire day he never squawked once and his activity level was zero.

Day 7, 7am he is stiff and I know he has passed away. I check him underneath his frathers and I see a vertical oval kind of dark red coloration on the right side of his posterior neck. The crop does not have this same discoloration.

I am very sad and have a mix of emotions and I want to know why he passed away. If he would have continued to live and display the same symptoms as day 6 I would have taken him into the emergency vet.

 

[tka]

I'm sorry to hear that your budgie has passed away. Unfortunately chicks can decline very quickly.

If you have his body, you may be able to get a necropsy. If you want to get one of these, contact an avaian vet as soon as possible to arrange it. Keep his body cold but not frozen - freezing causes cell damage. Wrapping his body up and placing it in a fridge will work to preserve it until the examination.

 

[inorainbow]

Thank you so much, it means a lot. I already buried him and tried to preen him as much as possible to place him as neatly as possible. I want to read on their anatomy and physiology to educate myself, but I want to put him to rest, it does hurt that he passed away. I have those clues in my story and maybe I get to find out the most possible reason for his passing. Thank you x/3

 

[Zara]

I am very sorry to hear of your birds passing.

When birds are this young, still reliant on formula, they should be kept where they have been kept all of their (albeit short) life. Changing the "home" can sometimes cause the bird to stop eating/ accepting food. This has a negative impact on the crop which works steadily allowing food to pass through like clockwork. The move can also stress the bird, impacting the crop negatively further.

I don't know your story of how you came to bring him home, but maybe this will provide a little comfort that you didn't do anything wrong. Your bird was simply not ready to go to his new home yet.

 

[Jan]

Formula wasn't too hot?

 

[inorainbow]

Formula wasn't too hot?

No, the formula was freshly made each feeding and temp was confirmed before the feeding. I also boiled my mixing spoon before preparation but not the crop tube or syringe that was always soap washed only. I never over filled the crop and the crop only slowed down once (which was the second feeding of the day, the day he passed during the night). I believe it never went down in size for 4 hours and it might've gotten a little bigger before going all the way down again in 11 hours, which is when I gave food once more, a more watery mixture than i usually gave and a mL less. The entire day his activity level was significantly decreased, he did not preen once, but he made a lot of *glossy *smaller droppings, they were of normal color (green/brown not too dark, not too light) like the ones he had been making all the other days except these had the details i just mentioned. I believe he might have regurgitated during the night because when I found him he had dried feathers on his left cheek area, very small but noticeable. Another thing I found was a dark red/brown abnormal looking oval shaped discoloration on the back of his neck, right side only. It looked like irritated skin. During the night, which is the only time he made noise, I heard meowing type noises coming from him that I had never heard before coming from him. I checked on his nest box (top view) but I never picked him up, I did not think of getting him since I didn't see him in trouble, he stopped and I didn't hear the sounds again. Then in the very morning he was gone. I held him throughout the day, I wanted to let him rest, and now I cant believe I did not hold him. Thank you for replying

 

[Dartman]

 

[expressmailtome]

I am sorry for your loss.

 

[Jan]

Could be very likely he ended up with sour crop, it happens with baby birds now and then. Sorry for your loss, I have lost babies now and then when I use to raise baby birds. It is heart breaking to say the least, there is only so much you can do when it comes to this sort of thing.

 

[inorainbow]

Could be very likely he ended up with sour crop, it happens with baby birds now and then. Sorry for your loss, I have lost babies now and then when I use to raise baby birds. It is heart breaking to say the least, there is only so much you can do when it comes to this sort of thing.

He could have gotten it between his mom feeding him and then being fed by me? His decline was very sudden. When I got him he did worry me a little as his activity was minimal and he would stay in positions he was put in, like side lying, or back lying. and would not make a sound like babies do. I insisted every 3 hours with the spoon for a day, and with syringe the next day. On the next day I had him (day2) I started to hear his baby squawking but it was dull sounding, like not at full volume or his entire voice if that makes sense. But as the days went by (3rd day and over i used a crop tube and he was being properly fed) up until day 6 with me his activity level increased alot with nibbling, preening, trying to escape the nest, squawking at me when rejecting cheek rubs, and would not lay on his back for long without fixing him self right up on my hand. And then, the next day it decreased very suddenly for the entire day, first time his crop slowed down, and he passed at night with the crop being the main symptom aside from activity…

Thank you very much, to you and everyone on this thread <3

 

[Zara]

If going forward you want to bring home another bird, look for an adult or a weaned baby if you want a youngster. Avoid unweaned birds.