General
Medicating birds are home is stressful and sometimes challenging. A small section of material around their neck and wings will help keep them secure. This video will take you though how to give oral medications. Remember, birds do not have a diaphragm, meaning they rely on intercostal movement to breath. If the patient is held too tight they may suffocate.
In this video we are utilising the inguinal fold on the inside of a birds thigh. Remember birds don't have a diaphragm, so do not restrict their thoracic movement when holding. We suggest placing half your fluid volume is placed in either either side.
This video will take you through how to microchip a bird. In my opinion this should be done under a very short general anaesthetic to minimise the stress to the bird. It is a very short procedure, and one we will normally perform in a 30 min consultation.
This video will show you how to place a hormonal implant in a bird. I would recommend performing this under a short anaesthetic.
Jugular blood sampling should be performed under general anaesthesia. I personally find it easier to sample from the blood vessel by raising the neck with my index finger, raising the jugular with my thumb and inserting the needle into the blood vessel, aiming towards the body. 1ml/100g of bird is a safe volume to remove in a healthy bird. This should be halved if the bird is unwell.
Intravenous access in birds is often essential when they are hospitalised. For medications and fluids. This video will take you through the technique of placing a cannula in the basilic vein, found traveling over the point of the elbow. Another video will show you how to suture this in place. This technique should be performed in the anaesthetised patient. However it can be done conscious in the collapsed avian patient.
This video is intended as a follow up from the “how to place an IV cannula in a bird (basilic vein). Once your cannula is in place you will need to secure it. With any avian procedure it is advisable to have all your equipment ready. This is especially the case when you patient is under anaesthesia, as you bird should be for intravenous cannula placement.
Sometimes in the severely collapsed patient intravenous access is not possible, but medications and fluids are still vitally needed. In these cases you should consider placing an intraosseous catheter. The tibiotarsus and the ulnar are the only bones that should be used in the avian patient, due to others communicating with the air sac system. In this video a post mortem specimen is being used (with permission from the owner). In the live patient they would be anaesthetised, and the area aseptically prepared. Any medications that can be given intravenously, can be given intraosseously.
This video will take you through how to perform crop tubing in birds. This is utilised for many reasons in practice. To give food, fluids and medications predominantly. The trick is to enter the mouth from one side, gently insert the tube across the tongue down the opposite side of the back of the throat to hopefully miss the open glottis. It is however essential to check that the metal tube and the trachea can be palpated separately. Sometimes after medications or food you many need to flush the metal gavage tube before removing it. Always hold the patient in an upright position and replace the patients back in its enclosure after finishing, both to avoid aspiration.
Medications come in many forms. Tableting chickens is often required when giving antibiotics. This video will show you how to do this. Using a towel to secure the wings is a helpful tip.
The use of a crop tube is essential for many situations, from medicating to support feeding. Go slowly and ensure you avoid the airway.