An update on Matilda: a pigeon with severe stringfoot

I want to give a Matilda update in case people are worried or wondering how she is.

I managed to find a vet who would treat her yesterday. I’m very happy to now recommend Ashgrove Vets to anyone in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire with a similar issue. They know how to treat birds and are generally accommodating of exotics. The vet never once mentioned the “e” word.

The foot was hanging by a thread when I went and I don’t mean metaphorically but literally. It probably didn’t require much medical expertise to remove in the end but I was happy to have a professional take a look and to also get some antibiotics for her. The vet also sprayed on some local anaesthetic which hopefully gave her some relief. I’m hoping most of the pain has gone now as it would have been the foot causing her the most agony.

The vet let me take the foot home so prepare yourself for a gruesome photograph.

I wanted to examine it to see whether I could possibly have missed some string but there’s nothing there. I must just have been too late helping her and all the damage was already done. I’m sorry I didn’t get to you sooner, Matilda.

I also wonder whether I should have kept her longer previously but all I had was a dog crate and birds start to lose important flight muscles when contained in a small space for an extended period. I’ve since bought an upgrade for her. She’s now recovering in a much bigger cage with platforms she can fly up to.

She’s been eating and learning how to walk again with only one foot. I think she’s managing very well.

I’ll see how she goes in the coming days before deciding what to do but I’m leaning towards releasing her back to her flock eventually. It’s easy for me to keep an eye on her there and I can always catch her again if she’s struggling. But for now she can enjoy our hospitality at least until the end of the antibiotic treatment.