# Poop check!



## FurryBadgers (May 9, 2018)

Hello everyone,

I've you've seen my other post, one of my birds is currently undergoing treatment for suspected fstty liver issues.

I just wondered: do you all think his poop corroborates that?

https://i.imgur.com/UWkfGdF.jpg

Sometimes he's fine and sometimes it quite watery . I wonder if there's some type of food that is aggravating his condition


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## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

How was the fatty liver diagnosed, or is it just a guess based on the droppings?
Is your bird overweight, what does the diet consist of? The urate portion of the picture you posted still looks white, does it look that way in person? Sometimes in a bird with a liver issue you will begin to see that turn more yellow to green tinged as the issue progresses. To me the fecal portion of the dropping you posted does not look right, it looks to me like whatever the bird is eating is not being fully digested and it seems to me to be too loose. Did the vet do any tests on the droppings?


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## FurryBadgers (May 9, 2018)

They did a blood test. They couldn't take a lot (only a small bird), but the blood test did point to a potential liver issue.

They didn't do any fecal tests AFAIK.

He's not overweight - he was a bit underweight when they checked him 

Diet is a premium seed mix stuff with vegetables and this liver supplement. Definitely agree on the too loose.


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## FurryBadgers (May 9, 2018)

As a precaution I've sent this pic to my vet to ask for a second opinion


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## FurryBadgers (May 9, 2018)

Vet said that the poop itself doesn’t look too bad, but there is too much urine. Worth a follow up visit. I was going to after next week but I’m wondering if should do it tomorrow?


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## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

I would not wait, I would take him back to the vet asap and I would also ask them to run a test on the droppings to see if there is anything there that should not be. Under the microscope you can see what you cannot see with the naked eye and if they do a gram stain that will show the amount of gram negative and gram positive bacteria. It's normal to have a small amount of gram positive but the gram negative is what you don't want and if there is a good % of that it needs to be treated with an antibiotic. Are you seeing an avian vet?


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## FurryBadgers (May 9, 2018)

We did last week when he was diagnosed. He even spent an evening in there in their hospital


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## FurryBadgers (May 9, 2018)

Just to let you know, I've booked another vet appointment for this afternoon. Something else I noticed was that:

a) He's cleaning his vent area quite a lot (but it doesnt look dirty)
b) The actual scattering of poops is overnight, and isn't in the same spot which means that he's not sleeping properly.


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## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

That's good, ask them to do a gram stain test on the droppings, then they will be able to tell if there is any bacteria or other problems in the GI tract. I would also take in the papers at the cage bottom so the vet can see how scattered they are. Were the droppings loose before the medication was started, maybe something in the meds is making them too loose. Hope they can pinpoint the problem.


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## FurryBadgers (May 9, 2018)

Thanks.

Yeah they were super watery beforehand - it's actually why I initially booked him in. He's looked tired before but that's because he was starting a molt. This time it was definitely different.


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## FurryBadgers (May 9, 2018)

Just got back from the vets.

They reckon he may well have picked up an infection.

They've taken another blood test (this time they got more), and an avian swab. They wanted to do a gram stain but he wasn't producing enough decent feces (it's been wet and tiny again). They also gave me antibiotics.

Fingers crossed this is the turning point!


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## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

What did they swab, his throat or vent? Are you giving the antibiotics right in the mouth or in his water? Hopefully he will be feeling better soon. :fingerx:


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## FurryBadgers (May 9, 2018)

Thank you 

Vent AFAIK to determine what's going on with his feces.

And it's via syringe once a day.


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## FurryBadgers (May 9, 2018)

Hi everyone.

The blood results came back. They show that he has very high levels of uric acid. They’re now all but certain that he has kidney disease :sad:

They’ve prescribed supplements and a different type of pellet to help. He should hopefully feel better afterwards but there’s no cure and we can only help stop it/slow it right down.

Aside from the above, has anybody got any advice on what he can have to help him?

Many thanks


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## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

High uric acid levels can indicate that the bird has gout. There are two types of gout, articular gout is when the uric acid crystallizes in the joints and ligaments and visceral gout the uric acid is in the organs. Uric acid is removed from the blood by the kidneys so if the kidneys are not functioning properly they cannot remove it, gout can be secondary to kidney disease. There are medications that can help but if it is gout the bird will most likely need to be treated for it's lifetime as when the meds are stopped the gout returns, a low protein diet is also needed. I had a canary that had both forms of gout.


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

*Please check the information in the Article linked below:

Gout in Pet Birds - Avian Kidney Disease

Sidenote: Thanks to RavenGryf for bringing this article to the attention of the forum!*


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## FurryBadgers (May 9, 2018)

Thanks. It's a bit crushing to realise he's got this disease, considering the diet we give them. I guess he's secretly been a picky eater and it has taken its toll


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## RavensGryf (May 8, 2015)

I’m so sorry your little one was diagnosed with kidney disease. 

Sometimes they’re just predisposed to this or that, and it’s nothing we did or didn’t do. :hug:

The Article in the link FaeryBee posted has some great information for you.


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