very sick pigieons

[4lifewink]

I have some wild pigieons in the rafters of my barn. They have been there for longer than i can remember. I feed them wild bird seed every day and give them fresh water, but they are wild birds and come and go as they please. Recently i noticed a few with puffed up plumage, then I found a few dead on the floor with no obviouse sign of injury. 3 days ago 2 were on the floor alive but constantly looking skyward. I bought them in and they seemed to do well in a small enclosure indoors. But as soon as i took them back out to the barn they began displaying the same behaviour again. They would not stop this behavour and were unable to fly or even walk whilst straining there necks to look towards the sky. So I placed them onto the rafter myself in the hope that this may help, but they both fell sidways, there necks looked as if they would break as they had twisted them so far round in what looks like an attempt to look upwards.
I took both birds back indoors and again they seem to be doing well, but this morning there was yet another bird on the floor of the barn with the same symptoms!!!
What an earth is wrong with these pigeons? Can anybody help?

[Richard Baber]

They may have been poisoned, perhaps by a rat poison containing strychnine. I've seen poisoned birds crane their necks and their fluffed up feathers and inability to stand up do suggest poisoning to me. There's not much you can do for these birds, if this is the case, but finding the source of the poison is important, if at all possible. I can't explain the difference in behaviour indoors and outdoors though.

[htcdude]

Sounds a bit strange maybe it's poisoning of some sort?? Are there any rat poison pellets or anything around?

Nige

[Jonathan]

Originally Posted by 4lifewink

I have some wild pigieons in the rafters of my barn. They have been there for longer than i can remember. I feed them wild bird seed every day and give them fresh water, but they are wild birds and come and go as they please. Recently i noticed a few with puffed up plumage, then I found a few dead on the floor with no obviouse sign of injury. 3 days ago 2 were on the floor alive but constantly looking skyward. I bought them in and they seemed to do well in a small enclosure indoors. But as soon as i took them back out to the barn they began displaying the same behaviour again. They would not stop this behavour and were unable to fly or even walk whilst straining there necks to look towards the sky. So I placed them onto the rafter myself in the hope that this may help, but they both fell sidways, there necks looked as if they would break as they had twisted them so far round in what looks like an attempt to look upwards.
I took both birds back indoors and again they seem to be doing well, but this morning there was yet another bird on the floor of the barn with the same symptoms!!!
What an earth is wrong with these pigeons? Can anybody help?

Anything like this:

YouTube - Pigeon with PMV video 2

Jonathan

[valleyforge]

Hi 4lifewink, and welcome to the WAB forum.

It is always difficult to make any kind of safe diagnosis without actually examining the birds, but from your description of neck twisting (torticollis) this is a fairly characteristic symptom in pigeons of Paramyxovirus (PMV-1).

Other neurological signs typically include head tremor, tendancy to fall over, pecking near food instead of accurately picking it up, paralysis of one or both wings, and/or paralysis of the feet.

If you have noticed green 'diarrhoea' too from these birds, then that is also another positive (but not necessarily conclusive) indicator for infection by PMV-1.

PMV-1 is not necessarily a fatal disease and may run its course in around 6 weeks from first sign of these symptoms ... but they will require veterinary attention and likely gavage feeding (by tube directly into the crop) during the recovery period.

Now if your problem is indeed this virus, then the infected birds will continue to shed the virus and so will likely infect any other pigeons in the immediate area too ... ideally any colombids so exposed but as yet not showing any symptoms, need to be quarantined and vaccinated.

I appreciate that when dealing with a wild population, this is practically much more difficult than if dealing with racing pigeons for instance.

I think you really need to seek help as soon as possible from your veterinarian. Although there should be little danger of this particular virus spreading to other wild birds (other than pigeons and doves), there is a fair possibility that it may pass into domestic poultry.

[4lifewink]

Originally Posted by htcdude

Sounds a bit strange maybe it's poisoning of some sort?? Are there any rat poison pellets or anything around?

Nige

I live next door to a farm, but he knows i have lots of animals so i would hope he would let me know if he has poisoned. I will phone him later to ask him. Thank you

[RKB]

As well as PMV, the symptoms do sound like stupefied behaviour too, i.e. poisoning. Has someone been leaving out poisoned grain (often coloured blue/green) for rodents?

Although I'm not sure if any neurotoxins are legally available for pest control (Bromethalin?).

When you say 'wild pigeons', these could be Stock Doves, which are legally protected (whereas feral [town] pigeons are not).

[valleyforge]

Improper use of pesticides or rodenticides can be reported using the information at this link : Wildlife Incident Unit

Perhaps the best initial step however, would be to get a professional diagnosis from your vet. If you take along one of the sick birds, together with one of the dead ones, it will speed up the process of getting the neccessary results from tissue samples.

[4lifewink]

Firstly i must say a big thank you to everyone who has taken the time and given me advise.

I looked on the link for PMV-1 that Jonathan gave me, and the bird displaying this disease is exactly like the birds in my rafters!!

I phoned my local vet who did not really want to help me.
I contacted the RSPB who gave me the RSPCA's number.
The RSPCA told me to phone DEFRA
DEFRA told me its a notifiable disease and gave me the number of a goverment vet in Bury St Edmonds.
I phone this vet and was told its only a notifiable disease in domesticated birds and that unless my chickens show signs of the illness there is nothing to be done except to let it all run its course. I was then advised to stop feeding wild birds in the vacinity of my hens :-(
So i am afraid i am back to square one!!

I will phone my vet again and try to talk her into seeing one of the pigeons tomorrow. Fingers crossed

[valleyforge]

Thanks for the update ... it's not that unusual to get that kind of 'passing the buck' when it comes to non-endangered species.

You don't say where you are, but can we assume since you have a barn and a farm next door that you are not in an urban location?

However to find a vet who is at least prepared to look at a sick pigeon, you may well find that you need to ring around a bit ... often town vets tend to be much more sympathetic ... and may even be more experienced with domesticated doves and racing pigeons in any case.

Although the symptoms do sound like it might well be PMV, nothing should be ruled in or out until you have had at the very least a professional look at one of the sick birds, if not to take samples for further investigation.

Another source of help that should be considered, are the wildlife rehabilitators in your area. For one thing, they are likely to be associated with one or more wildlife-friendly vet practices, and they may be able to assist you with feeding and support during the birds' recovery. PMV needn't be fatal provided adequate care is given.

You need to note though that most rehabbers will probably NOT be able to take these sick birds into care, if they are already caring for casualty pigeons or doves. Birds with PMV do need to be kept in quarantine from others, so that might limit the number of pigeon-friendly rehabbers who can help directly.

Let us know roughly whereabouts you are located and we can suggest some possible contacts ... or take a look at the database of rehabbers ( & vets) at this link: Home - PIGEON and DOVE RESCUE

EDIT : more useful info on PMV also at that site.