I have had incredibly poor luck with pets of mine eating things they shouldn't. My cat died while being put under for surgery to remove a swallowed sewing needle (this kitty was also known to chew through Tupperware to get at food *L*). My dog OD'd on his pain meds, ate 6 bean burritos at one time and a tube of hairball remedy, all on separate occasions. I really hope I don't have to add Baby to this list!

 

She was sitting on my shoulder nibbling at my earrings. She was having particular fun with one of them and it almost seemed like she was eating something. There was a little stone in the dangly part of it and I reached up to feel the earring and it (the stone) was gone! There was also some gunk built up on the earring and she had a beakful of it. I'm really hoping there isn't any harmful substances in it. I'm also hoping that was all she was 'eating'. I wasn't able to find the stone where i was sitting though. It could have fallen out long ago though.

 

So I'm hoping that a little stone won't harm her crop if she did in fact swallow it. Birds eat gravel and grit.... I have no idea if there was a sharp edge on it unfortunately. If there wasn't, i wouldn't worry as much. I'm not terribly familiar with the digestive system of birds, so I don't know how much danger she's in. I'll have to see if I can find anything out in any of my textbooks (vet tech in training here). I know enough to watch for signs of blood in her droppings (either fresh or from higher up in the gi tract), make sure she's still pooping and eating. Other than that, I'm not sure what else to do. I don't even know if there is equipment small enough to reach down her throat to retrieve it. It would be simple enough to xray her to see if its in there, but she'd probably need chemical restraint to do so and she's too old for that (the vet already nixed that idea when we had her there a few weeks back).

 

I'm gonna keep a close eye on her tonight and possibly call the vet in the morning to see if its something she should be brought in for. I'm hoping that if she did swallow it, it can just hang out in her crop like stuff does when cows swallow things.

Oh no! I hope eveything is okay.

What kind of stone is it? If it's big enough it will just sit in the gizzard and break down slowly over time. If it's small it might pass through.

Wild birds swallow small hard bits of things all the time. It sits in their gizzard to help them break down food, acting like teeth. It could perform the same function in your budgie. Most people say that grit is not needed (with the diet our birds are on I would agree) but they evolved to be able to use stones, I don't think it would hurt budgies. Surely they might have eaten things with edges on them in the wild?

I'd call the vet anyway just to be sure. What you've said seems sensible, keep an eye on her and let us know how it goes. Hope everything is okay!

Edited December 21, 200618 yr by Chrysocome

It was a little crystally sort of stone, not quite an eighth of an inch in diameter. I'm really just hoping that it will pass without perforating anything or else just sit and hang out. I did a little reading on the digestive system of birds and foreign bodies could cause problems in any number of areas, so I'm gonna have to be extra watchful of her poops to be sure she doesn't become impacted or have any of the normal movements stop. She seems to be still eating fine and is as happy as usual. Unfortunately, birds are the type of animal to hide that they're not feeling good, so it won't be easy. However, yes, like you said, birds eat bad things all the time. Lets keep our fingers crossed that she'll be okay!

Oh, I am really sorry to hear this. I have a little soft spot for Baby, because she is so special, being such a grand age. I do hope that she will be okay. She has gotten through a lot to get to her wonderful age, so I'm hope this will just be another little bump in her road.

I hope she is fine and she didn't eat it. I have a soft spot for Baby too, it's great to read and see a little fighter like her.

how is she doing?

I tried to take note of how many droppings were in her cage when i went to bed last night and I think it looks like there's plenty more. They all seem to be the same size and color and stuff as usual, so hopefully nothing is awry. She's been her usual friendly little self so far today, eating well and everything. But unless I'm mistaken, problems could show up at any time, like if it suddenly gets lodged somewhere weeks down the road or something.

 

Its so cool to hear that Baby has her own little fan club here! Thank you everyone!

Yeah Baby! Give her a little budgie kiss from me too and tell her we are all pulling for her.

Shell

could it be possible she didn't even eat it but it dropped on the floor and it being so small it couldn't be seen? Either way I am glad she is doing well

Glad Baby's dietary indiscretion hasn't slowed her down, hopefully it has passed through her system by now.

With baby birds you can gentle squeeze their crop to get out air and some food,it would be to late to do that now and Baby is not a baby, but does anyone know it you can do that with adult birds if they eat something they shouldn't?

I hope Baby is doing all right. Keep us posted.

 

Thanks Carri

Yeah, I was wondering if there was a way I could feel if it was in her crop or if it would just be more risky. I'm kind of more tempted to just let things be and wait and see, but if anyone knows if this is okay or something, I'm all ears!

things are sounding okay, if you really want the reassurance maybe a quick trip to the bird vet? As for feeling the crop I don't have a clue about that one, someone with more knowledge may know for sure.

 

you may want to PM Daz and ask him how a crop wash works he posted something about a bird vet doing it in his area

 

Here is a site I found all about crops http://www.v-e-t-s.co.uk/crop_infections.htm

Thanks for the link lovey! Baby hasn't done any regurgitating, but its another good thing to look for.