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Submitted by: The Vet

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You asked: "Am I crazy for purchasing a bird with this problem?" No. "Will it ever completely go away?" Probably. "Should I repeat a blood draw to determine the zinc levels are going down?" Yes, and probably several times. Zinc toxicity is a serious and complicated problem. With the right management most birds return to normal, sometimes in a couple of months, other times in more that a year. The antibiotics are not a treatment for zinc; zinc needs to be chelated. Antibiotics are good because they can treat and prevent secondary infections. One chelation never treats zinc. Generally we go through a minimum of 3 chelations, but often times it is 5-6 or more. So if your bird has been chelated only once, he is probably not cured of the zinc poisoning. You need to have him retested to see what the levels are, treat again if necessary. Also do follow up x-rays to monitor the changes in the liver. Thee also needs to be serial blood analyses to determine the condition of the liver and other organs. Dr. B

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