Post by sweetpea on Oct 29, 2022 10:25:51 GMT
I thought I'd give an update on Perry.
Three weeks later & he is still with us. When the vet discovered the heart problem, she placed the pts option on the table, which I rejected.
He has been on the Epiphen for 3 weeks now. Most days he has the full dosage (about half a drop). To manage the small dose, I syringe one drop out onto a plate, then try to get a smaller drop out (that I can compare to the full drop). I then dip either a thin slice of celery or apple in it & most of the time (80%) he eats it. I have to get the timing right, i.e., when he's in the right mood. So far, 10:20 has been the sweet spot!
I decided, for now, NOT to administer the heart medicine (orally 2/3 times a day). Coincidentally, I had bought passionflower extract as it's supposed to be good for epilepsy, but read that it is also good for the heart. I had not used it because I was unsure of dosage, but when the heart problem was diagnosed, I thought, **** it, I'll give him some - we've got nothing to lose. I have no idea if the dosage (5/6 drops in 70ml) has any impact but it's not making things worse.
He has a glug of his 'soup' that I offer roughly every 2 hours - it comprises of chamomile tea, turmeric, milk thistle, calcivet (5 days) & passionflower.
He hasn't eaten from a seed pot in many weeks so most of the time I am holding up millet to him (he refuses regular seed), or, if he's on his own, I peg it up but he'll only eat it if he happens to be near it. He also eats celery, apple, fennel, & small amounts of basil & lemon balm. BTW, his eating pace has slowed considerably - he spends ages chewing/cracking each seed. On a good day, he'll eat at a faster (but still slow!) pace.
The last time he was weighed, he'd lost about 11g - he was overweight so got down to a healthy weight, but obviously I don't want him to lose more.
He still spends the day in M's cage & then back home with L for bedtime. He interacts with both & still has a flirt with M. Most of the time he is sleeping or preening, but he seems settled. He does have his manic moments though & sometimes wants to come out with M, but I avoid that as his movements can be erratic. I did let him out a few days ago & took him over to the curtain (old haunt), placing myself directly in front of him to avoid him flying off, but he turned & flew onto the top of the cage (after M) where he sat & preened for a bit, then did a mad fly across to the top of L's cage where I was able to get him to step up & pop him back home!
Whether it is a result of the Epiphen or not, I haven't witnessed a seizure since the 7th October. He still intermittently has what I would call the 'pre-seizure' symptoms (head-twisting/tilting, head tremor, eyes not focused). The vet said the Epiphen would not address those, only the seizure itself. He still struggles moving about. The vet didn't mention any leg/foot injury, so perhaps that's a side-effect of previous seizures (or mini-strokes). I have wondered about arthritis being the cause (he's working his way through the Avian Medical Encyclopedia, so why not circle back to 'A'?!) Sometimes, when preening, he'll just tip over & be hanging upside down (cue alarm calls from the others), so he also has some balance issues.
Oh, & he has a bald patch on his belly where a fatty lump is, so I'm not sure what's going on there! ('B' in the Avian Medical Encyclopedia...)
I didn't plan for this to be such a long post! I'll use it for a post on my blog!
Three weeks later & he is still with us. When the vet discovered the heart problem, she placed the pts option on the table, which I rejected.
He has been on the Epiphen for 3 weeks now. Most days he has the full dosage (about half a drop). To manage the small dose, I syringe one drop out onto a plate, then try to get a smaller drop out (that I can compare to the full drop). I then dip either a thin slice of celery or apple in it & most of the time (80%) he eats it. I have to get the timing right, i.e., when he's in the right mood. So far, 10:20 has been the sweet spot!
I decided, for now, NOT to administer the heart medicine (orally 2/3 times a day). Coincidentally, I had bought passionflower extract as it's supposed to be good for epilepsy, but read that it is also good for the heart. I had not used it because I was unsure of dosage, but when the heart problem was diagnosed, I thought, **** it, I'll give him some - we've got nothing to lose. I have no idea if the dosage (5/6 drops in 70ml) has any impact but it's not making things worse.
He has a glug of his 'soup' that I offer roughly every 2 hours - it comprises of chamomile tea, turmeric, milk thistle, calcivet (5 days) & passionflower.
He hasn't eaten from a seed pot in many weeks so most of the time I am holding up millet to him (he refuses regular seed), or, if he's on his own, I peg it up but he'll only eat it if he happens to be near it. He also eats celery, apple, fennel, & small amounts of basil & lemon balm. BTW, his eating pace has slowed considerably - he spends ages chewing/cracking each seed. On a good day, he'll eat at a faster (but still slow!) pace.
The last time he was weighed, he'd lost about 11g - he was overweight so got down to a healthy weight, but obviously I don't want him to lose more.
He still spends the day in M's cage & then back home with L for bedtime. He interacts with both & still has a flirt with M. Most of the time he is sleeping or preening, but he seems settled. He does have his manic moments though & sometimes wants to come out with M, but I avoid that as his movements can be erratic. I did let him out a few days ago & took him over to the curtain (old haunt), placing myself directly in front of him to avoid him flying off, but he turned & flew onto the top of the cage (after M) where he sat & preened for a bit, then did a mad fly across to the top of L's cage where I was able to get him to step up & pop him back home!
Whether it is a result of the Epiphen or not, I haven't witnessed a seizure since the 7th October. He still intermittently has what I would call the 'pre-seizure' symptoms (head-twisting/tilting, head tremor, eyes not focused). The vet said the Epiphen would not address those, only the seizure itself. He still struggles moving about. The vet didn't mention any leg/foot injury, so perhaps that's a side-effect of previous seizures (or mini-strokes). I have wondered about arthritis being the cause (he's working his way through the Avian Medical Encyclopedia, so why not circle back to 'A'?!) Sometimes, when preening, he'll just tip over & be hanging upside down (cue alarm calls from the others), so he also has some balance issues.
Oh, & he has a bald patch on his belly where a fatty lump is, so I'm not sure what's going on there! ('B' in the Avian Medical Encyclopedia...)
I didn't plan for this to be such a long post! I'll use it for a post on my blog!