Working through the Avian Medical Encyclopedia…

Last week, on Wednesday the 2nd of March, we had another visit from the vet.

It appears that Perry is working his way through an avian medical encyclopedia & I told the veterinary nurse that I had lost track of what letter he is up to. She suggested that he might be at ‘L’ for leg.

So yes, he has a problem with his leg.

About a week prior to the visit, I had noticed Perry holding his left foot up & barely using it. I could not see any visible signs of injury. He could rest it on the perch but only lightly. As the days progressed it got a little better in that he could lift it to scratch the side of his head, which suggested there was no problem with the actual foot. My concern was that perhaps one of his lumps was beginning to press on the leg & causing the problem.

The good news is that the problem is not lump-related. He must have caught his leg/foot & sprained it as his knee joint is swollen. Otherwise, all appears fine with his foot. The vet gave him an anti-inflammatory injection to expedite recovery, but basically we just have to wait for it to heal, which could take 2-4 months.

To help with any pain or inflammation, I have been putting cayenne pepper & turmeric in his water, that he seems to like. I noticed the cayenne pepper does not dissolve fully, so I wait for it to settle & then skim off the top, without bits, to put into his water. Before giving it to him, I taste the water to check for ‘pepperiness’. I also put a spoonful or two in my own drink!

Whilst the vet was here, she gave Perry a little makeover by trimming his beak (it was longer than it was the last time she trimmed it) & his toenails. She also weighed him & he was 55g, which is a bit less than his last weigh-in but nothing to be concerned about.

In this video you can see, about halfway through, how long his beak was: