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The PDD Memorial Quilt
In loving memory of all victims of Proventicular Dilatation Disease.
In Loving Memory of Electra
Lost to PDD
Electra came to live with me over a year ago. She was an untamed, cage-bound nasty little hen! But, she was so beautiful, I didn't care. I brought her home and I placed her in a nice cage with lots of toys. She seemed to be very content and happy. She was a voracious little thing and was fat as a tick!
Across the room from her was my pride and joy, Rainbow, a green wing macaw. He had been living with me for one year prior to Electra's arrival.
In the summer of 2003, Rainbow began vomiting. After much anxiety and veterinarian intervention, Rainbow was diagnosed with PDD by a crop biopsy. He began the long and slow journey with this dreaded disease. He had since become stable on his Celebrex treatment and is alive today.
However, Electra, in December of 2004 began to shred the paper at the bottom of her cage and just sit there. A friend's ecckie hen had the same habit. I thought this was nesting behavior. She would sit on her perch during the day to eat and play, then at night she would sit at the bottom of the cage. I didn't worry right away. When I was up in the morning, she was already perched in front of her bowl waiting for her food and her day to begin.
I began to notice as three or four weeks went by that she was increasingly unsteady. And by the end of December, as busy as I was through the holidays, and as distraught as I was with Rainbow and his continued maintenance, I noticed that she would not climb to her perch to eat her food. I thought perhaps she had become egg-bound and I rushed her to an emergency clinic. The veterinarians there treat birds on an emergency basis, but have no real avian expertise. So, they x-rayed her to determine if she was, in fact, egg-bound. She was not. She was hydrated with fluids subcutaneously and sent home.
It was at that time that I took her to see the certified avian vet who is also treating my Rainbow. He looked at the x-ray and told me that she was ill from PDD. Her GI was bloated and distended. Since he diagnosed Rainbow with PDD from a crop biopsy, he believed she was ill from it as well.
I didn't believe it. She was so big and fat and had such a hearty appetite. I didn't suspect it! Even though I knew that she had been exposed to PDD, I didn't realize she was sick. She had none of the symptoms my Rainbow did.
She did not respond to the same anti-inflammatory therapy that Rainbow has. She declined despite tremendous veterinary interventions. I hospitalized her for 10 days in intensive care. She had been tube fed and injected with anti-inflammatories
and given reglan to stimulate her GI tract to function. She made a gradual improvement and was released to come home.
She immediately began to crash at home. The doctor had given me the injectable carprofen (anti-inflammatory) and the reglan to stabilize her if she should fail to respond to the oral Celebrex. She declined despite the injections.
By this time, Electra and I had a loving relationship. She was ill and needed help. I provided her comfort and love and support. She became the sweetest little companion I had ever known. As she deteriorated, she became increasingly uncomfortable. I had placed her in a brooder to keep her warm. Her body temperature was not as it should be, her circulatory system was not functioning properly. She became spastic and twitched all of the time. She could not walk or perch. She could not eat, so I syringe fed her baby food from the store. She loved the peaches and oatmeal cinnamon flavor the best. I filled her crop up with warm baby food three times a day and she could only eliminate once per day.
Finally, at 4:00 a.m. in the morning, I heard quite a ruckus in the brooder and she was in there beating her wings violently. She had been so unstable and unsteady, even somewhat paralyzed, I wasn't aware she could beat her wings. I became hopeful thinking she was getting her strength back. But, she collapsed panting and exhausted. I expected her to pass, so I held her in my arms waiting for her to pass. She did not.
In the morning, she was completely paralyzed from the neck down. She was stiff as a board and cold. She breathed and turned her head and made little grunts to let me know she was still here. I took her to the vet and had her gently put to sleep. She was given an anesthesia to put her to sleep before the lethal injection was given to her.
I don't know what more I could possibly have done for this mean and nasty little hen that broke my heart when she left. I had the best quality time with her in the last month of her life. She was a loving, precious, dear little friend and I miss her terribly. I had such a treasure in my home for a full year without realizing it until it was too late.
My dearest Electra, I love you so much. I miss you terribly. You've left a great big hole in my heart and my life will never be the same without you.
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