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Click
on any topic title in the following list, or scroll down to read them
all.
Splinting
a Bird's Leg
Stabilization
of a Wing Fracture
Ball
Wrap for a Foot Sprain
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Splinting
a Bird's Leg
Note:
Please be aware that if the splint method
below is done improperly, it can result
in major damage. Any fracture above the
patella (see picture above) cannot be splinted
with this method. It is always best to get
an injured bird to an avian vet for treatment.
However if this is not possible, here is
what you can do:
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Stabilization of a
Wing Fracture
The
figure eight wing wrap is done with a strip of
cotton gauze and Vetrap (available at farm and
animal supply companies) or Elastickon by Johnson
& Johnson (available at drug stores.) These
products stick to themselves, so make it easy
to apply the wrap.
Cut the gauze material into a strip between 1/2
to 3/4 inch wide, and 10 to 12 inches long. Wrap
in the figure eight pattern, about three times,
taking care to include all three bones in the
wrap. Do not apply this tightly as it could compromise
the blood supply to the wing. If the fracture
is of the humerus (bone joining the body) then
you will also need to wrap around the body with
the Vetrap, so that strip of Vetrap will need
to be cut twice as long as the gauze strip. You
can usually see this type of fracture, as the
bird will have an obvious wing droop. Cover the
gauze with a layer of Vetrap using the same figure
eight pattern you used with the gauze, and if
there is a wing droop take the Vetrap strip that
was used to cover the gauze (not a new piece),
wrap once around in front of the opposing wing
and around again behind the opposing wing. Note:
It is important not to wrap tightly, as this will
impair the bird's ability to breathe! The two
wings should look the same, with both wings at
the same height and the wrapped wing not extending
away from the body.
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The wing
wrap illustrations are from: Avian Medicine: Principles and Application
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Ball Wrap for a Foot Sprain
At
Jackie's suggestion, I am reprinting a message
that we first posted on September 20, 1999 to
describe the technique we found useful in treating
Metro's dislocated foot/toe: About the only thing
that I would add to it in hindsight is that that
taping the foot (or doing almost anything to these
lively little birds) is definitely a two-person
job: one to hold the bird securely but gently
on its back with its damaged foot sticking out
of the folds of a soft towel, and the other to
apply the bandage. The bird may protest a bit,
but in Metro's case the trauma did not last very
long -- and she basically ignored the bandage
after 10 or 15 minutes of poking at it with her
beak. So our advice is to be firm and work methodically;
the neater the bandage is applied, the less chance
that your Starling will be able to tear it off.
Here is what we did to treat Metro's foot when she injured it back in
July 1999 at age two months: Metro's left rear claw was either dislocated
or sprained. She did not seem to be able to move it and it was pointing
up so high that it practically lay parallel to her shin. We moved it back
into position and (at Jackie's suggestion) taped it and all her toes around
a small ball of cotton about the size of an "MM" candy. Metro
fussed a bit but eventually tolerated the tape and clumped around on this
taped foot for four or five days while the joint was healing. After the
tape was finally removed she was able to control the claw --- although
she still favored the left foot for another month until it was totally
healed. We found the trick to the taping is to use very thin strips ---
no more than 1/8 inch wide --- and place the middle of the tape under
the ball and bring each end up vertically between the toes so that each
end terminates vertically on the shin. Arrange the toes to look like the
"Ball and Claw" foot that one sees on old Victorian chair legs
and use separate strips of tape to come up between each toe and end on
the shin. Once the ball is securely in place and the toes arranged in
natural positions around the ball, use one last strip of tape as a horizontal
ring around the shin itself to cover the ends of the other vertical strips
and give a neat appearance to the whole bandage.
We
found that Metro tolerated the bandage if we got it on smoothly but if
we left gaps between the strips she did the Starling thing of prying open
these gaps with her beak and generally making a mess of the whole bandage.
In short the key is to work neatly and avoid gaps in the tape if possible.
Finally we changed the bandage every two days or so because we were concerned
that Metro's frequent bathing left the bandage pretty soggy and we were
afraid of some futher complications from fungus or something related to
constant wetness. Whether this precaution was worth the aggravation of
changing the bandage is something you'll have to consider, but it did
give us a chance to observe whether the therapy was working and after
about 4 or 5 days when Metro seemed once again to be able to move the
left rear claw when she perched, we decided to leave the bandage off and
let her foot continue to heal naturally. Although it has taken at least
another month for her to stop favoring the left foot, I am happy to report
that I have now recently observed her standing on the left foot only and
using the right foot to scratch her right ear which is something she has
never been able to do with the left foot in the past --- so I guess we
can conclude her injured foot is pretty much back to normal --- either
that, or she's has suddenly developed a very itchy right ear. I hope this
is helpful information. Good luck with your injured bird. I think that
the aggravation of treating the problem now in the hope that your Starling
will be able to walk and perch naturally for years to come is well worth
whatever temporary trauma you and your pet may experience in the short
term. -- by TFLG
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