Our African Grey, Mercy, started acting funny this morning-- tail bobbing and wheezing and a very hard time breathing.
My brilliant Emily decided to record her because she was worried that with the adrenalin at the vet, she wouldn't breathe like this. We took Mercy to the vet and Emily takes the recorder out and plays it for the vet. He put his arm around her and told her she was brilliant. He said she was the smartest bird owner he had ever met. Because of her recording, they immediately ruled out any upper respiratory stuff and numerous other things, they would have had to spend hours if not days testing. Then he offered her a job. :-) Told her she was amazing and brilliant (Yes my head swelled and Emily turned a bit red)
The sad part is that Mercy either has an egg problem or she has heart failure. The vet has a unique intensive care unit that we saw today. It's a chamber that heats to the temp he wants, forces in oxygen, and nebulizer- it's amazing. He is very concerned it's her heart and told us to prepare that she may pass during the night, he told us to come back and see her (He never did this with Paco). Mercy was so abused as some of you know. Her tail feathers weren't red, they were a light pink, they didn't turn red-red until we had her for several months. She was also grey all over, the real dark feathers came shortly after her tail turned red. She had been on a peanut and sunflower diet for we don't know how long. So now we wait. If it's heart failure he said she'll go quickly. If she still alive tomorrow morning they will run tests and xray to see if it's an egg or an infection or a heart infection. The best thing for her now is to be in this oxygen chamber- she's had pain meds and they are watching. He'll call us this evening.
I will never regret taking in Mercy Mae- she has brought joy and laughter to us on a daily basis for 10 months. I would like this to be a testament to the adopt a bird program. Loving a bird no matter their past is the most enjoyable experience you can have no matter how long the future. No matter what the next days hold---the real gift was not giving Mercy a home, but having Mercy in our lives. The true gift is ours.
Kim and Emily