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Hello everyone and help!
My 1 and a half year old Macaw was diagnosed today with pacreatitis secondary to zinc poisoning.Does anyone have any experience with this? Her crop is very touchy and I have to be careful about what I fee her as she vomits it. She has lost weight the last couple of days and I am concerned about her appetite.She is being chelated and on Metacam twice a day. What foods should I avoid feeding her?Is there some kind of high calorie bird diet out there similar to Ensure in people?And lastly, how did this happen? Thank-you for your thoughts.

I'm sorry your baby is so sick. It's not uncommon for digestive tract problems to be secondary to zinc poisoning and treatment. I would be asking my avian vet about the best diet for a young macaw during treatment and recovery.

There are many possible ways your bird overdosed on zinc. Are you sure your cages are safe? Are all her toys and links stainless? If your macaw is flighted or wanders on foot, what non-stainless things has she chewed? Such things as miniblinds, duct tape, and even paper towel and toilet paper rolls can be toxic. You could Google for helpful articles and discussions.

Wishing her well!

greylover wrote:Hello everyone and help!
My 1 and a half year old Macaw was diagnosed today with pacreatitis secondary to zinc poisoning.Does anyone have any experience with this? Her crop is very touchy and I have to be careful about what I fee her as she vomits it. She has lost weight the last couple of days and I am concerned about her appetite.She is being chelated and on Metacam twice a day. What foods should I avoid feeding her?Is there some kind of high calorie bird diet out there similar to Ensure in people?And lastly, how did this happen? Thank-you for your thoughts.

Remove the bird from any zinc (galvanized metal) that are either in-around or might even "BE" the cage or feeding dishes, etc..

If it were my bird I would put it on Pretty Bird Gold pellets, and Ultimate powder with warm pasta. These items when feeding clean out the digestive tract and supplements the missing or stripped out nutrients from your Rx. Do not give Benebac.

As for water I would use Pedialite.

Take daily weights and monitor any weight loss. If it slips give formula, I would suggest 22-10 mixed with Ultimate (sparingly) There are also some tricks you can get by having your DVM contact Dr. Michael directly, obtain his phone number from Pretty Bird when you call in your order.

P.S.- was the bird X-ray'd? Many times it involves ingestion of an item that is still present in the body.

Thank-you so much for your responses.Since we started chelating her, she has improved so much!! She is almost back to normal. Her zinc level was so high that she will have to be treated fo 3 weeks.Since she is reesponding so well to the meds, we don't think she has ingested a foreign body.In doing some research on the internet,I am shocked at all the things that contain zinc. Of course, I would pull whatever she was chewing on out of her mouth but apparntly not soon enough.No more metal bells or anything metal.She is my baby and I almost lost her.Thanks again!

greylover wrote:...No more metal bells or anything metal...

I'm very glad she's doing so well! There's not a reason in the world to deprive her of bells or any stainless steel toy! Grey Feather Toys products are ALL stainless. Here are their bells:

http://www.greyfeathertoys.com/cgi-bin/ ... iliate_id=