Not Flying

[JohnP]

Attended the Canberra Ficnh Club bird sale today and picked up two pair of Ruddies and a male Cordon. All seemed healthy and alert but one of the ruddies when I took it out of the box just sat on my hand so I 'pushed' it onto a perch where it immeadiately flew/fell to the ground and has not flown since? Did I get a dud or could it have been hurt etc. I did find some longish feathers in the carry box (two) and was wondering if a couple of flight feathers may have become dislodged by the other birds which may explain no flight. The bird himself seems active enough hopping around the aviary floor and preening himself, drinks water from a dish I placed at floor level etc.

Does anyone have any thoughts?

[finchbreeder]

Place a perch about 30cms above the ground for him, and observe. If you are lucky it will just be those feathers.
LML

[E Orix]

Why on earth would you push or prod it. LEAVE IT ALONE.
Birds will often suffer trauma when carried around in a carry box or at times just being handled.
With experience you will notice when Fires(Ruddies) get cornered etc. they will try and head for a corner or cover and lower their head and bum up
and think they can't be seen.
In future you are far better off releasing the bird and standing back,if it is still bright eyed then all should be OK.
Even if a bird struggles to fly and providing their wing/s is not broken and dragging it should eventually get up on a perch.
Possible ligament or muscle injury is common and could take 7 to 14 days to heal.
Simply put a low perch or twig for it to roost on and this will assist greatly.
Remember when a bird roosts and is sleeping generally only on foot can be seen.
Sick birds roost on two feet.
From your post the bird appears healthy so unless the wing is broken it will recover.

[JohnP]

E Orix, thanks for the information even though you have totally misconstrued what I meant by push If the bird does not hop off you hand when you open your palm you need to 'push' it on to a perch rather than walk around the aviary with it just clinging to your hand.

I have seen the Ruddies head down and bum up which reminds me of an Ostrich syndrome, quite comical all the same. I will wait and see what happens over the week and I have already placed the lower perch. In all other aspects it seems to be very alive and active.

[flippenheck]

It sounds like the bird is a bit stressed from being moved from one place to the other. You never know how the bird was caught up in the first place. Maybe you could give it some glucose to increase it's energy. The guys at our bird club use it to assist with birds being transported or moved. Just my thoughts anyway ;)

[jusdeb]

Im sure you didnt mean push as in push and yes I have firetails that would be more than happy to prop on my hand till the cows come home , coaxing is the word we need .
As said get a low perch happening , maybe a gnarly old branch where he can climb to a higher perch . Ive found the firetails spend less time on the ground when they can climb up with the other birds .
All birds handle the stress of being moved differently and he may be just a bit roughed up by the ordeal thus the feather loss anyhoo Im sure you will keep an eye on him and if he is a dud then maybe some alone time in a quiet , warm cage may be the go.
It is dishearteneing to bring home a sick / injured bird but you wouldnt be the first its happened to.
This is the one reason I dont like big sales /shows , its basically the quick or the dead when it comes to buying , often by the time you do the rounds of the tables the birds you wanted are gone which puts the pressure to grab them when you can .
Good luck with him .....

[JohnP]

coax is a more appropriate word, thanks.

[garymc]

If you keep your seed and water bowls off the ground, as I generally do then make sure that the injured bird has ready and obvious (to the bird) access to seed and water.

Also if the bird seems untroubled by its current afflictions, in that it readily clambers through the brush and up the wire then perhaps it has had this problem for a while and was perhaps unfortunately purchased with this problem.

I think though first guess that Orix may have hit the nail on the head - muscle and tendon damage!

[E Orix]

JohnP
No offence was ment.
Unfortunately , some inexperienced people take things in print or on the internet as gospel and follow suit. That is why I did what I did.
I prime example happened several years ago in the USA. Some so called expert(drip under pressure) made the grand statement that seed eaters shouldn't be fed washed sand as it could damage the birds internally. It took a long while to get the message through that this was totally incorrect and I am sure many birds suffered. It was also too expensive to fit false teeth to birds to grind up their grain.

[JohnP]

E Orix, all good here and I know what you mean about things in print, I experience that on a daily basis at work. I took your suggestion with the perch although a little closer to the ground and also placed water and seed on the floor both of which he takes readily. He looks better today with feathers looking smooth rather than fluffed up, sorry about the description but it s the best way of explaining, plus he is now keen to hop away if I go in the aviary which he was not interested in yesterday. I have been in touch with the guy I got him from and he is happy to replace him but I will persist for the time being and see if I can bring him around. Next step is to get a perch that he can get on and climb up to higher levels to 'talk' to his mates. The seller did recommend taking him out of the aviary and placing him in a carry box so he is not tempted to fly too early in the recovery process but I would prefer not to try a catch him and thereby run the risk of aggrevating any condition. Thanks to everyone that has offered suggestions and I will keep all posted as time goes by on his recovery.