PurpleHeart wrote:In all due respect Monica the amount of aspirin given is a prescription determined by a competent Doctor of Veterinarian Medicine (DVM) and that should not be printed in an online forum like this. In fact when the OP first mentioned that this accident happened I figured the Dr. would give a Rx to her but "on purpose" just left out what that would be. It is very dangerous to medicate our birds but when done with the direct care of a DVM it can be a lifesaving measure.
Some information in the wrong hands can be out right disastrous.
People come on line here to get information in order to make their life with birds better. It should never be a quick answer to a medical problem or in any way circumvent a complete Doctor's exam and or advice. The DVM has the final say in any matter affecting the life of your bird and people should be cautioned about "Practicing Medicine" without a license, or using home remedies.
BY ALL MEANS MEDICINES SHOULD NEVER BE ADMINISTER UNLESS UNDER THE DIRECT CARE OF A DVM!
Anyone who would tell a person "NOT" to follow the advice of a competent DVM is just plain wrong.
Believe me, I have a good enough reason to ask! Otherwise, I wouldn't be asking in the first place. I recall an incident where a vet recommended aspirin for two lovebirds. Both died. I don't know if in fact the vet was an avian vet or not, and can no longer look up this information. However, I *DO* have this information.
My vet suggested aspirin therapy for one of my birds who had a stroke. Both of my birds have now died and I am wondering if it was caused by the aspirin. Can aspirin kill a bird? I gave them (1) 325 mg. aspirin in 4 ounces of water for about a day and then cut it down to 1/2 an aspirin in 4 ounces of water. I did that for about a week. The one bird stopped eating and was bleeding internally. The other had a seizure.
My own (old) a-vet suggested this to one of my birds.
My avian vet prescribed Noel (150+ grams) 1 tablet of baby aspirin (81mg's) crushed into 30cc's of water, and then given .04cc's twice a day, along with 1 part flax seed oil to 4 parts corn oil, given .03 cc's once a day.
Guess who's bird(s) didn't die????
Am I trying to prescribe medication to a bird I've never seen, that I have absolutely no right to medicate due to lacking education in the particular field??? Absolutely not. However, what I am trying to do is possibly save a bird from a *POTENTIAL* death!!!!
A DVM *SHOULD* have the final say, yes. However, there have been plenty of stories of birds dying due to the care provided, or not provided by a DVM. Although my cases are "minor" compared to others, it still goes to show that even THEY can be wrong (after all, they are just humans, too!) My old a-vet misdiagnosed my cherry head conure with liver disease. I then asked DVM Brian Speer of Oakley, CA (through e-mail correspondance), about Noel's test results. He told me that there was *NO* indication of liver disease, but there *might* be kidney failure. Not long after that, I switched vets.
At the new vets, I took a budgie in that I *knew* was sick, but they said he was fine. He was dead not even 2 weeks later. This goes to show that the avian practitioner (and DVM) was not listening to me.
I recall one story, where a client was *SURE* her amazon got a sliver of wood in her esophagus, but half a dozen vets said there was nothing wrong with the bird...
Stuff You Probably Don't Know, But Should
My first words of wisdom for you are these: It always pays to listen to your clients. They live with their birds and they will often pick up on subtle clues that you won't see during the stress-filled (hopefully, just for the bird) office exam. If they think their birds are sick, then they probably are! One referral client of mine insisted that her Amazon swallowed a sliver of wood and it was stuck somewhere in the oropharynx or esophagus, and she went to half a dozen avian vets, all of whom insisted that that was an impossibility. Well, guess what? A piece of wood had pierced the oropharynx and had causes a derangement of the TMJ on one side due to the abscess and fibrous tissue that resulted. The astute owner had observed that the bird had begun making choking motions, rubbing its beak and yawning immediately after chewing on a wooden toy. That began a six-month period of frustration for the owner as she tried to get an answer about her bird's illness. She visited five or six vets in her area, drove five hours to a veterinary school and began making calls to set up phone consultations. That's how she found me. When I told her that if she thought the bird had a splinter of wood in its throat, then it probably did, the woman burst into tears. I was the first vet to take her seriously about what she thought was wrong! Please, please listen to your clients when you are taking the history and signalment, and don't form any preconceived ideas about what the problem is (or is not, as the case may be), as that might color your diagnostic impression. First and foremost, listen to your clients.
So do you see my concern? As it is within the best interest of the bird, after all!
And hey, if you feel that Brian Speer is a competent DVM, then here's what he says in regards to aspirin! Which, btw, is this to replace what the OP's vet suggests? No, but it just goes to show how little amount may be needed. I don't know if more than 5 mg per kg of body weight would be recommended, as that *should* be entirely up to the avian vet, so long as the bird in question is *NOT* being overdosed.
This recommendation was made concurrently with a low dosage of aspirin, calculated at 1 mg/kg body weight once daily.
Many thanks for letting us know. Hope she's all well really soon.
