The PDD Memorial Quilt

In loving memory of all victims of Proventicular Dilatation Disease.

Perry

9 August 2002 to 5 November 2003 Perry's story, as told by Carolyn Swicegood, is excerpted from PERSPECTIVES ON PDD, originally presented at the November 2003 Avian Health Network, Inc. StopPDD Online Conference.

Perry, the Blue Crown Conure

Matt Smith shares his story of Perry, a one year old female Blue Crown Conure. Perry is the most inquisitive, well mannered, and playful companion one could ask for, except of course when she suffers the symptoms of PDD. My family consists of Perry, Tyler (a Quaker parrot) and myself. Our lives were perfect until late July when I came back from vacation and Perry was just sitting -- not talking, playing, or eating. I knew something was wrong and I took her to an avian vet who put her on an antibiotic. Four days later, she was in worse shape, and I took her to my regular vet. Five months before, Perry had a well bird check and everything was fine then. I had many tests done to make sure she was in good health. I wanted this done because only two years before, I had a Mitred Conure that died of an unknown cause. I was not educated enough to know that my parrot needed medical attention, and it was too late by the time I brought him into a vet. He died the morning after being started on antibiotics. I was afraid Perry may have gotten into something that was infected by my Mitred Conure. Upon bringing Perry to her regular vet, she was admitted for a few days to monitor her and determine what was wrong.  My vet believed she had a fungal infection, and put her on antifungals. I took her home, and she seemed to do a little better for a few days but then relapsed and got worse. She was admitted for another week and a barium series was done. The barium took days to transit through her system, when it should have taken only hours, so the subject of PDD was brought up. Perry's vet stated he had not seen a case of PDD in a few years and told me not to worry because it is a rare disease. The main reasons she was hospitalized were that she was not eating and she was vomiting. Upon X-ray, the vet discovered that she had an extremely enlarged proventriculus. She was scheduled for a crop biopsy, but at the last minute, it was cancelled it because her vet thought it would be too risky for a bird in her condition and it might not be accurate.

I brought her home once again and she got better for a day or so then got worse, this time she was having strange episodes that I had never seen before. She was bobbing her head up and down slowly, flipping her wings, and crying. I immediately left messages on both vet's cell phones and one called back and told me it was nothing that concerned him. A few days later, I called her regular vet (a few days later) and he told me that he figured she had died after that weekend and that he had no clue what was wrong with her! After this, I realized that Perry needed the attention of the best vets. I took her to Boston's Angell Memorial Hospital where she received amazing care and understanding. After reviewing her medical records, PDD was definitely suspected. Her proventriculus was huge, and she had always had very watery dropping since she was a baby. She has never passed whole seeds which is a common symptom of PDD but her small intestine is enlarged, which is another classic symptom. Perry also tested positive for avian gastric yeast, which can mimic PDD and we are still hoping that this is Perry's only problem. Her vets are very suspicious that she has PDD though. Her last hospitalization was one month ago and she has slowly returned to "almost" normal since then.

The great vets in Boston have helped return Perry to 95% of what she was before she got sick. We have had some bumps in the road, such as a horrible weekend of nonstop begging for 12 hours, and her tiring a little more easily, but other than that I am pleased to say that she is doing much better now. Her weight is up and she's eating again, as well as talking, playing, and doing all the things a baby Conure should do. She has been treated for avian gastric yeast, and she is currently still taking Celebrex as she has been for over a month. One or both medications have led to her restored health.  I am still afraid of a relapse because Celebrex is only a treatment and not a cure. I realize that she could become ill at any time so I spend as much time as I can enjoying her. I absolutely do not believe that PDD is as rare as I was led to believe by Perry's first vet. I believe there are a lot of PDD birds that die of unknown causes because owners are not willing to spend the incredible amount of time, energy, and money to aid in the recovery of an ill bird. My vet bills for two months were around $3,000. I will not be getting any other birds until there is a test AND a cure for PDD because it is much too heartbreaking.

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