Injured Lorikeet

[tamigrl]

My husband found an injured lorikeet and brang it home. I assume that its wing is injured as it does not sit as well as the other one and Willow (that is what i named it - and i would not know how to tell if it is boy or girl) does not particularly like me touching there. Do i need to take it to the vet (we have had it for 3 days now) or will the wing heal on its own?

Willow is pretty comfortable with me putting my hand in the cage and climbs onto my finger. No biting yet, but she has put her beak onto me.

I was wondering if Willow is a lost pet because she is so friendly. But looking at the chats, i am beginning to think that it may also be because they are friendly birds.

Does anyone have any ideas about how long an injured wing would take to heal. And should i be trying to handle Willow. My family and i have fallen in love with her and even though i am a little worried about how much work they are and our inexperience... we would be happy to keep her.

Our concern also is that would it be mean if she can fly again to keep her caged up. Also, i have a cat and dog outside and there are other neighbourhood cats, so i want to keep her inside. We have her in a round cage about 50cm by 1m. I am looking for a bigger cage and was wondering at the ideal size.

Do i need to get another lorikeet as well? i keep on seeing "pairs". Is it ok to keep Willow on her/his own? And do i clip a wing and let her out of the cage inside. If so, how often should i do this (both letting her out and clipping)?

Looking forward to any suggestions...

Tam

[choco]

take it to a vet, they will probably treat an injured wildlife for free,
sorry have no idea on cage size though

[Robyn]

Take the little guy to the Vet, if the wing is broken they will be able to fix it. It won't get better on it's own plus it will be in pain.

If the injury is bad the Vet will make the decision on what should be done. The longer you keep it the wing will heal & the bird may never be able to fly again.

[tamigrl]

Thanks for your replies...

I took her to the vet this morning and they said that she is a juvenile with an old injury. The wing was broken weeks ago and has healed, so unless we want to give it surgery on the slim chance to fix the wing... it will have to remain as is. She is malnourished, which is to be expected after not bing able to feed in the wild properly. But now that she has care, that will improve. She will not be able to fly properly again, so will not be suitable for release.

I have a number of a carer for lorikeets and i need to decide whether to see if they will keep her or raise her myself. I am going to phone DERM on Monday and see about any permits that i may need to care for her.

[vankarhi]

Good luck with her and I am glad you took her to the vet.

[scalynewb]

Hi!

May I ask what area are you in and what kind of lorikeet is it ?
I am in Sydney area and we lost a pair of Scaly Breasted (all green) lorikeets a week ago.

Thanks,
tim.