Sprained, Possibly Broken/Fractured Leg

[zackfair]

Ok let's get the obvious out of the way:

Yes I've looked for an Avian Vet service, no there are none close by (I live in the middle of nowhere in Wales). I can drive but have no car, I live with someone who cannot drive at all.

I have Budgie knowledgeable friends in the area, and even they acknowledge that it's a long drive to get to the nearest one, and the travel costs would be steep let alone having to pay the vet to do whatever it is they need to do. No they cannot drive either.

Basically, short of a good £150 for this all to travel and sort out the vet fees, I'm screwed. I'm a newly graduated student and I have no finances, no job. Sucks, but it's not like I haven't tried.

Now that all of that is out of the way, you're all aware of the situation; I have to deal with this myself. I bought the Budgies while in Uni and was good financially, circumstances have changed however, no point looking back on it now.

2 of the Budgies were grooming each other, the hen fell off the perch while reaching around the other, and tumbled in whatever way she managed to, but basically got her leg caught in the rails and then flopped over to land on her right leg (I was watching the whole time, and she didn't fall from anything higher than the height of half a foot).

She would never greet my hand with much love (she's only about 3 weeks into hand taming), but I noticed that she wasn't moving much, so when I put my hand in the other Budgies went crazy as usual and made for the corner, but she stayed still and came up on my hand (which is crazy, because she never usually comes straight away, but she's the most tamed).

I noticed she was hopping on my hand, but on one leg. Her right leg was completely limp. She obviously knows something is wrong, because she's trusting me to pick her up and move her around without biting me like she used to. I put her inside a small plastic container lined with comfy fabric, she's next to my lamp where it's warm and in my line of site on the desk constantly. She CAN move the leg (I've seen her twitch it very slightly) but she has nowhere near full control.

Budgie friends have said I could splint it to help it recover, but I don't think it's needed as she's lying down in the fabric nice and comfy without moving, and her leg is nicely tucked into it for support. Is there anything I can do besides hand feed her, keep her warm and comfy, and keep her on the desk with me giving her the occasional stroke to let her know she's being looked after?

I reiterate, I CANNOT get to a Vet, I no longer have the money nor the means to get there. It feels like a sprain more than a broken leg. There is no blood, no cuts or extrusions of any kind. The leg looks 100% normal, and the pelvis looks fine, the only thing wrong with it is that the foot can be moved around freely and there is no muscle tension besides the occasional bit of movement she gives with it every so often.

Even if you guys can't offer any tips to deal with this, just talking about it would be nice because this is the first time I've had this problem with a Budgie. I've always had healthy ones from Birth until natural Death, so this is strange for me not being able to physically do anything besides wait I guess?
I was told it can take any amount of time to heal (as much as it can do, it's never the same after), but to expect a good 2 weeks to see any significant improvement.

Oh ye, I've ordered some cuttle bones to give her calcium to help the bone growth. Common sense says to do that anyway as it's essential anyway.

[stace]

I've never had to deal with this before, but maybe someone will come on soon who has.

Definitely keep the bird in constant warmth, as you are doing. Shock from injury is a real issue with these little guys when they hurt themselves, and they lose the ability to regulate their temperature.

Can you see or feel that the leg is broken? If it's a sprain, it may just heal over time - it differs depending on the extent of the injury. Maybe a couple of weeks, maybe six weeks or so.

If the leg is broken, I know some people try to mend it with a splint. I've heard of people using cotton buds or a straw cut to length, then wrapping the leg in gauze.

There's a product in the UK called Guardian Angel, available online, which is highly recommended for short term use for sick or injured birds. I believe it gives the birds a rapid dose of energy and nutrients to get them past the initial danger period to recovery.

[zackfair]

I gently wiggle the leg and it seems to be just the foot/ knee equivalent for her. She's tucking the leg up on her own now, so that alleviates the worry of it being the whole leg that could be sprained.

I put my finger in her claws too, she gently grabbed my finger with her toes, it's ever so subtle and I wouldn't really feel it unless I was looking out for it, but she is trying to use them which makes me think it's a bad sprain more than a fracture.

It makes sense that it's a sprain, because she didn't fall from a high height, and she didn't fly into anything at speed, she simply fell from a low height and landed on it awkwardly, so I doubt her body weight has the potential to break anything if someone can back me up on that assumption?

I'll look for that product online, I've isolated the other Budgies because they keep calling out to her and she keeps trying to fly out of the plastic box and I had to chase her down to grab her gently again. So they're no longer a problem either.

Initially I had wrapped her leg in memory foam (the type you lay as a layer on your bed), I just cut a hole in the middle of a chunk and gently fed her foot through it but she started eating it later on, so I've laid her back inside a sponge (I carved out a little curve for her to rest in like a nest) and she seems happy to stay in there, and again; I just hand feed her millet sprays and seeds with some egg sticks. Thanks for the tips, I'll be around for as long as it takes even if my roommate isn't around, so she'll have me here at least.

The plus side to all this will be the bonding, she loves my hand right now and wants nothing than to be stroked (she starts falling asleep when I stroke her under the beak ).

I don't think we have to worry about shock anymore, after a shaky few minutes of uncertainty straight after it happened she's back to her old self (I spend a lot of time just watching the Budgies) the only difference being the lack of eating my hand. Her movement patterns seem to be normal too, only when i place her in her sponge does she stop moving around and goes to sleep.

**Edit**: Just to show how bad she bit my finger before all of this, here is just ONE side of ONE of my fingers XD

lh6.googleusercontent.com/BdjOqB_xbSqDLgiRvZ1xl0xprTbLfaKRYnEhnvRFZdHQgfotTjcm4DB994dkrkH-dMpC9ZVVFDQ

My Webcam doesn't do it justice, but my hand is just covered in tiny scabs from when she jumps up on my finger and just starts nibbling away. I don't chase her with my finger she comes to me.
I think it's just that whole pecking order business.

[stace]

That all sounds positive. From what you've said, let's hope it is a sprain, not a break or fracture. It's good that she's able to tuck it up, and that her toes are working. Sounds more like a sprain, doesn't it.

Even so, it may take several weeks to heal. Do you have a spare cage? Maybe you could put her in there for a while, with just one or two perches placed right down low?

I couldn't access that url for some reason.

[stace]

Also, if you are gently wiggling it, and she's not showing immediate signs of pain, I imagine a sprain is more likely. If it was broken, I think manipulating it would hurt.

[zackfair]

Yup, the more she tries to move the leg the more I'm thinking it's a sprain too

I smile because I'd rather the lesser of two evils seeing as it has to be one of them. I don't have a spare cage, I've made a makeshift one out of a plastic box until the one from Amazon arrives (it's good to have a 2nd cage anyway I guess). Punched some holes in the sides and placed the spare perches I've got low down so she has a little more interesting of a place to occupy now.

She has no pain at all when I wiggle it, but I don't really want to test that theory out too much so I'm avoiding touching it all together tbh.

Sorry about the URL, I thought linking the .jpg would work, I'll just give the google docs link and open the sharing properties:

docs.google.com/open?id=0B36oYY0luJ5xX05zUlV2Z0c5c28

Like I said, the pic doesn't do it justice, my fingers are all scaly and scabbing, as if I've been playing a guitar using my whole fingers instead of just the tips XD

I'm avoiding using this hand with her atm in case she gets an infection from a bleeding cut/scab of mine.