# To stop bleeding in a emergency .



## twinclaire (Dec 6, 2008)

Proper Restraint:

*While checking the bird for injuries, be prepared to immediately release it, should the bird show any signs of stress (drooping head, eyes that start to close, etc.). Never grasp the chest in any way. Instead secure by gentle restraint of the head or neck. Birds lack a diaphragm and cannot breathe unless the chest is completely free to make its excursions.



Feathers:

The most common emergency call avian vets receive concerns bleeding from broken blood feathers. All feathers on the body will have a blood supply inside the shaft that nourishes the feather while it grows, and the blood dries up after the feather matures.

Birds with clipped wings are most vulnerable to breaking these new blood feathers since they will be longer than the surrounding trimmed feathers, and may break when the bird flaps its wings and hits something. Less frequently, a tail feather or smaller body feather will bleed, and all of the same principles apply to treating these.

Blood may be splattered on the walls near the cage, or smeared on the side of the body, but we have never seen a verified case of a bird dying from a single broken feather.

Course of action:

With the bird restrained in a towel, gently pull the wing out and move small feathers on the under side of the wing to expose the shafts of the large flight feathers. A blood feather will have either a pink or very dark shaft, while mature feather shafts will be clear and hollow.
Apply blood stopping powder, flour or cornstarch to the bleeding area, which may be a tiny stub barely visible protruding from the skin, or the blood may come from the end of the shaft where the feather is emerging.
If the bleeding is stopped, keep the bird calm and quiet in its cage.
Treatment by a veterinarian may not be needed if there is no further bleeding, and the bird seems to act normal.
If your pet picks at the site, or if bleeding recurs, a veterinarian may need to assist in pulling the broken shaft. However, it is not really an emergency if it is not bleeding any more, so you don't have to seek out emergency care in the middle of the night.
Source: Dr. Julie Burge
Note: *The use of Quick Stop aka Kwik Stop or silver nitrate sticks powder is not recommended, as both silver nitrate and Kwik Stop can cause systemic poisoning.



If a toenail is broken or the beak tip is injured ...

bleeding can be stopped by blotting and applying flour or corn starch, with gentle pressure for 5 minutes. If available, apply Gelfoam and cover with tissue glue. Keep an eye on your bird for a couple of hours to be sure bleeding does not resume. A vet needs to assess the extent of damage. If the tip of the beak has broken off due to trauma, there may be cracks higher up. Stabilization of the beak with an acrylic may be helpful. Beak injuries may be painful and a soft diet may need to be provided until the bird can eat normally.



Bleeding from the mouth and vents ...

... need to be considered serious emergencies. Keep your bird warm and quiet, and transport to the vet immediately.


Skin lacerations or cuts:

Do not apply clotting powder or flour to a cut in the skin. Cleanse the area gently with a 3% hydrogen peroxide solution, Nolvasan, or Betadine, and apply pressure for 3-5 minutes. If the laceration is less that ¼ inch, the wound can be cleaned with hydrogen peroxide twice daily until healed. If the laceration is greater than ¼ inch, the wound may need to be sutured by a vet. Never apply first aid ointments - or any ointment - to any part of a bird without checking with an avian veterinarian. Most ointments will do irreparable damage to feathers, and many may have serious health effects as well.



If veterinary help is not immediately available and dehydration is suspected, you may need to provide supportive care, including warmth and fluids using a small syringe to open the beak, giving a few drops of juice, water, or electrolyte solution. A helper, good illumination and magnification should be readily available. Have cotton swabs and tissues or gauze available.

On the trip to the veterinarian, someone should maintain pressure to the bleeding area. The majority of birds will clot within 5 minutes of pressure being applied to the area.

Note: Failure of bleeding to stop with appropriate first aid measures may indicate underlying liver disease. Your bird needs to be taken to your veterinarian immediately.

PLEASE CALL YOUR VET FOR MORE ADVICE IF IT HASNT STOPPED BLEEDING


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## Guest (Dec 10, 2008)

excellent post.


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