tilly

[peteandtilly]

i took my little tilly to the vet today, i had thought she was eggbound but she has been eating, pooping and moving around normal..... she isnt eggbound, the vet said she thought it was a tumor, i said mabey it is an infection that can be treated with antibiotics, (please) she took a fluid sample to test, it is a tumor, i said does that mean cancer???? yes, nothing we can do.... i brought her home and put her back in her cage, her husband pete came right over and started feeding her,,,,, she will live out the rest of her life with her mate by her side and piggy and ernie right in the cage beside her,,, her band is 05 so she is only 6 years old....
any tips on what i should do about her mate when she is gone to make it easier for him,,, they are in a room in there cage and i have their boys in another cage and 2 sibling from another pair in another cage,,,, pete does like getting out and playing with the others during the day when i open their cages

[linda040899]

I'm very sorry to hear about Tilly!

Tumor does not necessarily = cancer. It might be but there are other types of tumors. Where is it located and what makes the vet say it's not treatable? It could be a fatty tumor or it could even be Mycobacterium. Both of those are operable, depending on size and location.

What kind of testing is going to be done on the material that was sent to the lab? Is your vet an avian vet and would you consider getting a second opinion based on the results you get back. Don't write Tilly off too quickly.......

[peteandtilly]

there are 2 vets in my city that treat birds and i really dont think either is an avarian vet..she just said it is a tumor and wasnt even going to draw the fluid until i asked if it could be a treatable infection ..... she said there was some blood in the fluid and she checked it while i was there.. she came back in and said yes it was a tumor and when i asked if it meant cancer she said yes... i asked if there was anything we could do and she said something about radiation that usually doesnt work on birds

[linda040899]

I would be interested to see a photo of this tumor, if possible. Blood supply could mean Mycobacterium and those can be removed.

[peteandtilly]

when the vet took the sample the assistant held tilly and she used a needle to get some fluid,,, then she was gone for about 5-10 minutes when she came back she said it was a tumor and some other stuff i didnt understand , i asked if that meant cancer and she said yes and there was really nothing to do to treat it, sometimes radiation but it doesnt usually work ... i will take a picture when i get home from work and post it,, iam going to phone the vet back and ask if she is an avarian vet and if they can fax me a copy of the test results they took today.....

[linda040899]

Mycobacterium has a very distinctive look to it. The growths tend to be symetrical. Franci, my one Abby hen, had a mycobacterium tumor right at the base of her keel bone. You could see a lump on either side of that bone and there were blood vessels going from the center of the mass to each side. When my vet removed them, both sides were encapsulated and the entire thing just kind of scooped out. Bleeding was the biggest issue, as the growths definitely had blood vessels running through them. I've seen these kinds of tumors on wings at the elbow joint. Symetrical, in wings, means one growth on each wing in the same spot. The growths are kind of a yellowish color and, again, you can see the blood supply.

[peteandtilly]

this is yellowish in color and below the breast in the stomach area , more on one side than the other....

[linda040899]

With a good picture, it's easy to recognize. I've got a couple of photos that I took of Franci before she had her surgery. Just don't know where I've stored them....... Her growth was so big by the time it was removed, it weighed 5 grams!

[Enko_chan]

Simple presence of a tumor does not necessarily = cancer, and it does not mean inoperable or untreatable! Many vets that are inexperienced with treating birds with write them off because they do not know how to treat them and yes, it would probably mean the bird's death if they made an attempt, but what they SHOULD tell you is that they are simply unqualified to treat them.

Absolutely find out if this vet is an avian vet, and ask specifically what kind of tests they did, what kind of tumor it is before deciding not to go further with treatment.

Good thoughts for you and Tilly and the rest of the flock!

[peteandtilly]

i called the vet back and asked the receptionist if the vet was an avrian vet and she said she knows about dogs, cats, birds and reptiles, i said is she an avrian vet and she said agian she knows all animals, i said is she a certified avrian vet, she said i dont know i will ask, i said ok ask also if she can fax me the report for the test she did today for cancer,, so she said ok...... later when i was at work my boyfriend got a call...she is not an avrian vet and the test that was done was to see if there was an infection because i had asked if mabey it was a treatable infection and not a tumor.... test came back showing no infection............. so she answered my question yes to cancer without really knowing............ i called the other vet in town and he also "knows about birds but isnt an avrian vet"

http://i1183.photobucket.com/albums/x463/peteandtilly/DSC01461.jpg
http://i1183.photobucket.com/albums/x463/peteandtilly/DSC01462.jpg

[linda040899]

I think a second opinion is in order at this point. My own vet is not board certified avian but all she lacks is passing the test. Some ARE that good and many know more than others. Whatever is there is fairly large but it doesn't have the classic look of Mycobacteria, although that's not to say it isn't. I would pursue this further before accepting what you've been told.

[CompassionAk]

Oh no,poor girl! I imagine that must be uncomfortable for her,she's lucky to have you to look after her. Big hugs for you,I know how stressful it can be when your babies get sick.

[peteandtilly]

thanks guys, i called the other vet that "knows about birds" he is out for the rest of the week and they said to call back on monday..... thinking i will get a second opinion...

[linda040899]

Unless this is a fast growing tumor, from today until Monday won't make much difference. Not much choice..... Hopefully, a second opinion will be a bit more enlightening.

[Enko_chan]

I may know of people in your area who may be able to point you in the right direction, should this vet that is close to you not pan out. I can't promise it, but I have a lot of parrot contacts in Canada and its worth a try. Please feel free to PM me, if you feel comfortable and let me know the general area that you live in- specific city is not necessary if you don't want to tell me, and I can put a line out to see if anyone knows of a good bird vet in that area.

Linda makes a good point, that just because a vet is not board certified, does not mean that they are inexperienced- a piece of paper does not make experience and know-how, but its important to ask questions about what they are qualified to diagnose and treat. We often put doctors and vets on pedestals and are afraid to ask questions about their qualifications and knowledge, white coats can be intimidating, but there are times when asking politely can save the lives our our family members, our flocks and our selves.

I wish I lived in your area, Linda- aside from being near family and having the possibility of picking your brain on parrot raising in person (though I'd end up buying up half your lovies' offspring) I would love to have your vet. As much as I like our vet, she costs a fortune and I disagree with some philosophies of the animal hospital where she works.

[Rotkehlchen]

Fingers crossed for Tilly ! And hugs for you, that must be terrible :(

[peteandtilly]

Well it has been almost a year since I found out about Tilly's tumor, she is doing fine and the tumor seems to have shrunk on its own, her mate died a couple months ago. He is the one that had the yellow patch of feathers on the back of his neck. Imagine my surprise one morning when I went to check on them and one was dead in the tent. I just asumed it was her. I got my boyfriend to take her out and we put her in a container to bury in the spring. I went back in the bird room and she was flying around, it was her mate that had died. Her son Ernie just loves her to death, he is such a momma's boy. I let them all out of the cages to fly around and play for a while at night. Ernie goes straight to her and starts pruning her and feeding her. Poor pig is always off on his own. I just found out the new baby Trish is a boy, I will be finding out next week what sex Suzie is. They seem to like Pig, mabey they will be friends with him.:)

[michael]

Wow. I'm sorry to hear her mate passed. .. Relative to Tilly's tumor, my lovie Goof also had one start growing on the side of his head just below the ear. We thought it might be irritation at first from an ecollar, but once it started interfering with his ear canal, there was no choice but to have it surgically removed. .. So far, he's had no recurrence. ... Hope Pig gets a friend soon. Thanks for the update!............:)

[AiSell]

I'm so sorry for Tilly :(((( poor birdie