P'let suddenly becomes weak and foot cramps up

[olooko]

I have a p'let that is almost 1 year old. while my baby was perched on my hand, I noticed one of his eyes was closing. Then he became weak, and his grip on me was giving. In addition his foot was cramping up. He was unresponsive (he didn't respond to his favorite treat). If I didn't cup him he would have surely fell, so I held him in my hands for a while and now he seems fine. This is not the first time that this has happened.

Can anyone tell me what is happening? :(

[chapala]

He needs to be seen by an avian vet ASAP! We are not vets and can't diagnose your bird. It sounds serious, and I would suggest getting him in to see a good vet right away.

[jodeg]

I definitely agree with Reta -- an avian vet needs to see your P'let asap!

Good luck, and please keep us posted.

[ElliesMom]

I agree that he needs to be seen by a vet, but it could be something as simple as hypoglycemia.

[Jinx n Noodle]

It definitely does not sound good! Keep us updated if you can about what's happening!

[olooko]

Thank you all for your replies.

We took our little Toki to the vet the next day. The vet told us that she suspected he had had a seizure due to zinc poisoning. He is now on medication and is his normal energetic self. This vet visit was definitely a wake up call. We are purchasing a new cage that has been advertised as being non-toxic (I plan on getting this in a written form because you can never be certain) and we are in the process of removing any and all things we suspect to contain zinc.

Before this visit I was ignorant. I thought that any bird toy or cage was safe for birds. At the time I bought his, soon to be, old cage I felt reassured because I was buying it from a big manufacturer, PETCO. I am outraged!

For those of you who are looking to buy a cage: Spend the extra money on a cage that is certified to be iron or stainless steel and make sure that the powder coating is new. I read that the old powder coating had a huge amount of zinc in it.

It does not take a long time for a bird to get sick: Toki has only been exposed to zinc for 10 months, and he is only one years old.

This is the cage we are thinking about buying: (http://www.mybirdcage.com/double_flight_cage). If anyone knows this cage or this company (HQ) is not safe PLEASE let me know ASAP. I want to get my baby out of that death trap soon.

Thank you again!

[jodeg]

So glad your baby is going to be all right! What a scare!

I have three of the HQ flight cages, one for each P'let. They are the single flight cages, but I sure like the look of the double flight cage too! I bought the first one from Windy City and the other two from BirdsComfort.

I love the HQ cages and haven't had any problems with them. All the powder coating is in tact.

HOWEVER, I don't believe they are made of stainless steel, but you can check with HQ. I believe a stainless steel cage would cost a LOT more than the HQ flight cage. I got an e-mail from Kings Cages this morning regarding their stainless steel cages. Here's a link:
http://www.kingscages.com/SearchResults.aspx?CategoryID=Cages&SubCatID=Stainless Steel

It looks like the prices range from $899 to near $3000, depending on size.
Kings Cages makes very good cages, by the way.

You might try contacting HQ or BirdsComfort to get more information about what the cage are made out of, the powder coating, etc., before you purchase. I know lots of us on this forum have the HQ cages and have been very happy with them. I haven't heard from anyone about problems with them.

Keep us posted on your baby and let us know how your cage search turns out!

[BeakerLuvsBunsen]

thanks for letting us know what the cause was.
Zinc poisoning is a scary thing, it's sad how many things
are sold for pets that we assume are safe when they are actually not.

I hope your little one likes his new cage! :-)

[chapala]

Hope he responds well to treatment, and glad you got him diagnosed! Many of us here have the HQ flight cage, and I haven't heard of anyone having a problem with this cage.

[LovelySydney]

Im so glad to hear you took him to the vet and I hope he responds well to treatment!! It can be very scary how quickly birds can become exposed and sick, good thing you caught it!!! & the cage youre getting looks great - Im sure Toki will love it!!

[lineola]

Thank you for taking your little Toki to a vet!!!

Make sure you haven't attached anything to his cage with twistie-ties. Those are the fasteners for plastic bags that are metal wire covered with paper. The wire inside them is toxic.

Check all Toki's toys and dishes and make sure there are no suspicious parts. Sometimes you can still use the toy, if you remove an offending part. Also, when he is out of the cage keep aware of things he likes to chew on, and remove them if you think the paint or base metal may be toxic.

I'm so glad Toki is feeling better!

Maddie

[Lola B.]

I think it's a buncha bull that we buy these cages and they contain things that can hurt our animals. It's really really wrong.

[ParrotletsRock]

I think it's a buncha bull that we buy these cages and they contain things that can hurt our animals. It's really really wrong.

I agree. You are buying an enclosure to put a living creature in and it is toxic...hmmm...what part of the logic that they use am I missing??

Glad to hear he going to be ok...good luck.

EDIT: oh btw ...I do see the logic they are using...it looks someting like this .......$$$$$$$

[raiven]

In a world where manufacturers use lead paint in children's toys do you think they care about a bird?

[ParrotletsRock]

In a world where manufacturers use lead paint in children's toys do you think they care about a bird?

Sad but true!!

[BirdyBirdyBirdy]

Have you had the cage tested to be sure that’s the culprit?

[olooko]

No, I have not had his old cage tested. I would love to be 100% positive that the cage is at fault but, unfortunately, after spending so much money on everything, I just don't have the time or money to do so. I suspect the cage is the leading contributor because Toki frequently chewed on it until the paint peeled off the bars. If his old cage is faultless (and I would be greatly shocked if it was) then anyone of these could be reposible:

-metal cuttlebone holder
-metal Quick links already attached to toys
-brass bells
-metal prongs attached to food dish

I am currently working on replacing all of the above items with stainless steel or nickle plate.

As an update, Toki is finishing up his treatment and is going to see the avian specialist to make sure that he has fully recovered. I'm crossing my fingers.

[Lola B.]

Feel better Toki!

He really loved to gnaw on the bars, huh? I made Delphi this sisal preen that she goes nuts for. I hope it keeps her off the metal. I hope my cage isn't toxic but it probably is. I bet many many of them are. :/ She loves to chew!

[Dambae]

Unfortunately, so many toys (bird, dog, cat, human, etc) are made in other countries where there are no regulations. I tend to not buy (if I can avoid it) from the chain pet stores, as they really don't care as much (not saying they don't care at all, just not as much) about the animal as they care about the bottom line. I try not to buy any toys made in China. The cage is a Vision cage, and I did a lot of research before buying it. I highly recommend Grey Feather Toys, as the owners are absolutely amazing, and they love their birds the way all of us do. Their toys are of the highest quality, and are all stainless steel and nickel based, with lots of chewies.