Our pigeon shows symptoms of PMV

Hi everybody. I' ve been serching the Internet trying to find some information about pigeons and how to look after them. I dicovered this site which is extremly helpful. I read the topic about pigeons with PMV. It says there is no cure for PMV. Do pigeons ever fly with this condition? My husband found a pigeon a month ago and brought him home (he was about 20 days old and couldn't fly) First, we thought that he didn't fly because he was too young. So we decided to look after him for a couple of days but it's been a month now and he still doesn't fly. On top of everything he started showing some symptoms of PMV. We are puzzled how we can help him to recover. Please help. Thanks

Welcome...I'm glad you found our forum.
What symptoms is the bird showing?

Hi Aksana.
Could you give us your general location, as there may be a member, rehabber or vet nearby who can assist you.
Would it be possible to post a photo of your pij?

We live in Lower Feltham, TW13.
For the first couple of days we kept the pigeon in the cage but now he spends all day wandering around the garden like a cat. .At night though we put him in the shed. Now he got uset to getting in the cage himself as soon as it gets dark. We feed him with wild bird seeds. Is it Ok? And he has a good appetite but also has difficulty picking up seeds often missing them . He also tossing seed backwards when eating.
When my husband brought him home he tried to fly, once he even managed to land on the fence. Now he tries to fly but always crashes on the grass, he also spins in sircles. Very often he falls into a deep sleep during the day and rests on his breast rather than on his legs.
When we feed him other wild pigeons come as well and they all eat together. Is he a danger to other birds? Can they catch a virus from him? Thanks for your help.[img][/img][img][/img]

Hello, I am so sorry that the litle one is unwell and as you will have already established, the symptoms all point to PMV, even down to the "zonking out" into a deep sleep. Unfortunately he will be infectious to other birds, because he will continue to shed the virus for 6 weeks from the symptoms first appearing. When he takes up seed and tosses it he will have left saliva on it and another bird eating that seed could become infected.

Some pigeons with PMV make a full recovery, some retain nervous symptoms but can still fly, a minority are unable to fly again but remain very active on the ground.

PMV pigeons are safer with their rescuers than at a wildlife hospital. Hospitals don'thave the faciliities to isolate them or to take precautions to prevent the infection spreading, so they put the birds to sleep. Besides which, if PMV is confirmed then DEFRA has to be notified and they would probably take the bird.

The only people that I would trust with a pigeon with PMV are Pigeon Recovery in Sutton.

I have several PMV survivors in my aviary, they are healthy happy birds.

Cynthia

Thanks Cynthia for your reply. It's nice to know that there is hope for our Peach (it's his name) :) for the recovery and he might be able to fly one day. Is there anything we can do to make him feel better? I don't have much experience looking after pigeons . We put some newspaper in his cage which I change every day and change his water every day. Sometimes he looks really happy, but sometimes he looks a bit tired and falls asleep. Peach likes sitting in the sun. Is it good for him? Please, could you give me some ideas how to look after him? Can he recover without any medication? Thank you.

Hi Aksana

Echoing everything Cynthia said.

He will be safer if kept inside, as well as no danger to other birds. I'd advise a fairly deep dish for the food so he has a better chance of picking up the seed. Also, a fairly small diameter pot for water, so that he cannot get his entire head in it - the neurological symptoms can include the head being turned virtually upside down, so need to avoid him getting water in his nostrils.

If he is kept inside, though not necessarly confined to a cage all the time, it will also be easier to check his poops. PMV pigeons frequently start off with little more than liquid and a few little wonrmlike droppings in it, but once receiving care their poops should return to a normal dark green/brown with a dob of white, providing they are able to take in sufficient food.

I have had to hand feed a few with defrosted peas and sweetcorn, to ensure they get some bulk and nutrition if they have serious difficulty eating, one at a time whilst bird is wrapped in a towel to keep still.

Vitamins for birds in the water a couple of tmes a week may be helpful, too.

If you can check his weight that may be useful information. When I had three in together last year, my objective was to get them to a minimum of 300 grams as an acceptable weight.

As Cynthia says, our ex-PMV birds are happy and healthy. Some, one would not know they ever had a problem, some may always show some signs, albeit small.

John

with everything John has said. It is important to keep him safe, because they can fall asleep and be completely oblivious to the approach of a predator...and the stress would make their nervous symptoms worse so even if they try to get away they can't.

And yes, Peach can recover without medication, but keep an eye on the water bowl, they can get very thirsty and withholding water can make the symptoms worse.

When I rescued my first PMV pigeon I knew nothing about the disease and very little about pigeons...in fact I rushed her to the vet when she started moulting because I was convinced she had feather rot.

I love the name Peach! I wish I had thought of that one!

Thank you, John and Cynthia for your help. Will try to feed him with peas tomorrow. Where can I buy some vitamins to add in his water? What are the first signs of recovery? Thanks once again.

Pet shops will sell avian vitamins.

There are no specific signs of recovery and no schedule. One rescuer, who happened to be a vet, was nursing a pigeon with severe symptoms for 17 weeks. Finally, the decided it would be cruel to keep the pigeon alive and went to euthanase it...only to find that it had made a spontaneous recovery with excellent timing.

The homeopathic remedy Conium Mac helps, sometimes, but you have to be careful not to handle the pilules as it is the coating of the pilules that holds the energy and handling can contaminate this. You also have to stop giving the remedy as soon as there is an improvement.

Giving it a couple of drops of liquid calcium 3 or 4 times a week also seems to help.

Cynthia

Tahnk you.
I contacted Pigeon Rescue in Sutton as you recommended and they are happy to look after Peach until he gets better. We are really fond of him but think that he would be better off under supervision of experts. We are also a bit concerned about other birds that come and eat his food. We used to leave him outside when we are at work but today he had to spend all day in the shed. I don't think he liked it. Gave him some peas, he ate them eagerly. I really hope he will recover soon.

for posting an update on Peaches.
as well for all you have done to ensure he's safe and secure.
You are indeed a .

It's our pleasure. When my husband brought Peach home we thought that he would stay a couple of days with us and fly away. But he ended up staying for a month and we really love keeping him, it's a shame though that he is unwell. He is so adorable and very clever. We hope he will like new home where we are going to take him on Thursday. And thank you so much everybody for your help. I am really glad I found you.

I hope that Peach will make a complete recovery and fly free

He is a lucky pigeon to have found you and to be going to Pigeon Recovery...so many pigeons with PMV not given a chance.

Cynthia