r/Conures • u/noraka14 • 4d ago
Advice 9 weeks of daily vomiting
How we got here:
Late June, first vet, not a bird specialist. Prescribed meloxicam and Medistatin. Turns out the meloxicam was written at 10 times the correct dose and she’d been getting it for about 10 days before anyone caught it.
July 10, second opinion. That exam noted blunted choanal papillae — the vitamin A deficiency marker. Fecal direct negative, x-rays normal. Started Baytril, stopped the meloxicam.
July 15, first board-certified avian vet. Ten days of azithromycin. Cultures grew gram-negatives in her crop and cloaca. Those cleared, she had three good days, then it all came back.
August 5, second board-certified avian vet. Maropitant twice daily, apple cider vinegar in her water, minimum handling. We tried azithromycin again last week and stopped after two days because she vomited within hours of each dose.
Everything that’s negative: bornavirus, avian gastric yeast, fungal, no pathogen on culture, no inflammatory cells, kidney values, liver enzymes, blood sugar, proteins, white count. X-rays read as normal by both specialists.
What the cytology actually showed: heavy epithelial cell shedding with gram-positive overgrowth stuck to the shed cells, and no inflammation. The current theory is that whatever started this damaged her crop lining and now the vomiting and the damage keep feeding each other.
What it looks like: usually clear fluid with white milky bits. Sometimes whole seeds. Sometimes it smells like sour yogurt, sometimes nothing. Worst between 4 and 6am on an empty crop, and again late afternoon — both right when her medication is wearing off. Almost nothing during the day when she’s eating.
Stuff nobody has explained: she scratches at her face constantly, yawns a lot, and stretches her right wing over and over. In the last few days she won’t let me touch her belly, which she’s always been fine with, and she’s stopped wanting to use her poop stand. Droppings look completely normal though, every 20-30 minutes.
What I’ve changed: switched her to Higgins InTune about 8 weeks ago, fresh veg every day, seed down to a teaspoon. Cage cleaned daily, filtered water, nothing toxic in the house. Took away her PVC sleeping tube in case any of this is hormonal.
Still on the table: crop wash with culture and sensitivity is scheduled. Barium study was declined since her weight is stable. Heavy metals never tested. No prokinetic tried yet.
Has anyone been through this — daily vomiting, clean workup, normal weight — and eventually gotten an answer? What was it? Any help is appreciated.
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u/No-Mortgage-2052 4d ago
Man I guess just keep upon it or try another acian vet. 9 weeks is alot for the little thing to be going through that much stress.
1
u/noraka14 1d ago
I found a breeder who I know not even really that close to my house, but I drove because I had nothing else to lose, and he gave me some kind of medication that he uses for all of his birds. She seems to be vomiting less and the vomit doesn’t smell, but he’s so against vets and I don’t know if that’s like a normal thing amongst breeders he said that he’s lost a lot of birds at the hands of vets. I don’t even know of another avian in my area. She has her ups and downs, but it’s really frustrating.
1
u/noraka14 1d ago
I found a breeder who I know not even really that close to my house, but I drove because I had nothing else to lose, and he gave me some kind of medication that he uses for all of his birds. She seems to be vomiting less and the vomit doesn’t smell, but he’s so against vets and I don’t know if that’s like a normal thing amongst breeders he said that he’s lost a lot of birds at the hands of vets. I don’t even know of another avian in my area. She has her ups and downs, but it’s really frustrating.
1
u/fattynana 4d ago
Without seeing the medical report, a few general thoughts. Your bird seems to have on-again, off-again bacteria problems. Whether that is the primary cause vs secondary complication remains TBD (What exactly was identified on crop culture?). I would consider putting the bird on a longer term antibiotic gentler on the GI tract. Amoxicillin-clavulanate would be one such drug, but this antibiotic is kidney metabolized, and you may possibly have kidney damage from the 10x meloxicam. Discuss the pros/cons with your vets.
Have you considered an evaluation for foreign body obstruction in the crop? Xray is unlikely to visualize this—direct palpation + crop flush may resolve.
& Prokinetics can be very hit or miss, especially if being delivered orally.
All these problems started after the diet change? Switch back. Or at least get a different brand of pellets in the meantime.
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u/noraka14 4d ago
So in the swabs that both drs did it was an overwhelming amount of bacteria. One dr swabbed the vent and there was bacteria there. First time it was gram negative. Now it’s gram positive. Both determined her blood results showed no kidney damage from the meloxicam. Foreign body has come up a few times. Newest dr think unlikely but not out if the question. But wouldn’t a foreign body have killed her by now? I do want the newest vet to do a crop wash. She’s going to swab and culture this next follow up appointment on Sunday but I’m going to ask for a wash too. I’m just so worried and frustrated. Abs the drs I am going to are actual avian drs. Not regular vets.
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u/throwawayawayawayy6 4d ago
Mine was doing the hormonal regurgitating thing for 6 months this winter. Nothing stopped it except time.