bchurch@oucsace.cs.OHIOU.EDU (Bob Church) (11/02/90)
This is a two part post. First off, We found a lump on the wing of one of our Canaries 2 years ago. We took him to the "best" vet in the county. He told us that it was cancer and that he sees it in Canaries all the time. The only solution is mercy-killing. Fortunately a friend of ours told of us an Avian health center in a nearby city. We took him there and were told that the only thing more common than ingrown feathers were misdiagnosis. This is an extreme case of self-fulfilling prophecy. The local vet doesn't know anything about birds and considers himself an expert because he sees so many incidents of this. So, those of you out there who use vets that do not specialize in birds a word of advice. Just flush your money down the commode and save the gasoline. As Dr. Mohan pointed out, there are more species of birds than all the other pets put together yet a vet is only required to take 4 hours of avian training. Now for the question. These ingrown and malformed feathers ( a lump of skin around the base of the feather ) are a recurring problem. I'm sure Cecil is miserable. He considers me an ogre. I'm the creature who captures him just to torture him by pulling his feathers out occasionally. Is this a congenital problem or is there some sort of cause/treatment known. Dr. Mohan is an excellent and caring Doctor but it is a large field. Any help would be appreciated. Sorry for rambling on so but it's great to find this forum. Being a bird lover can be quite frustrating. It's a private problem, if you know what I mean. If someones dog or cat dies people sympathize. I lost a canary named Beanie two years ago and still miss her, but if you mention your canary dying most people find it rather amusing. Thanks for listening and hopefully for some feather advice. Bob Church bchurch.oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu