Harley

In May of 2003, I was given a baby Senegal Parrot as a birthday present. I named my baby Harley, and we bonded very quickly! In October of that year, Harley began scratching and preening furiously as if he itched or was experiencing discomfort from something. This concerned me, and I took him to a local veterinarian who decided to give Harley a subcutaneous injection of Ivermectin a common cattle wormer, in case he had mites. I was unsure about this, but the vet assured me it was completely safe so I agreed.

Within the following half-hour, Harley became lethargic and was uninterested in food. I tried to convince myself that it was just because of the stress of going to the vet’s office, but I was worried. I continued to monitor his behavior throughout the evening, and he became increasingly listless. I was very worried at this point, but did not know who to call after hours. Harley was, and still is, my best friend and I was worried that I was going to lose him!

At around 1:00AM when I checked on him, he was sitting on the bottom of his cage with his head drooped. There was regurgitation around his feet and on his beak. Desperate, I began calling the offices of every avian-certified and exotic specialist veterinarians even remotely nearby, and one had instructions on their answering machine to contact UGA if there was an emergency after normal business hours. I contacted the school and got directions from their staff. Everyone was very kind, and told me that the exotic specialist at the school would meet me there. At about 2:00AM, we set out on the three hour drive to Athens with Harley who was unresponsive and barely clinging to life.

When we arrived at UGA’s School of Veterinary Medicine with Harley, the students welcomed us in, offered us something to drink and pointed out the restroom since we’d had a long drive. They started the exam, getting his vital signs. The exotic specialist veterinarian was so kind to come into the clinic so early in the morning, and he examined Harley. He explained to me that Harley’s chance of survival was only about 5% at best, and that all they could offer was oxygen, warmth, and fluids, which would give Harley the strength to fight if he wasn’t too far gone already. The Ivermectin interrupted his body’s chemical signals to and from his brain, but it might be possible to flush it with fluids. I wanted to do anything possible to help Harley, regardless of cost. I brought his favorite toy to put in his oxygen tank with him, and when I left I thought I was going to lose my little friend.

Every time that I called to check on him throughout the day, to my surprise he was still fighting! The students there contacted me a couple of times each day to inform me of Harley’s status. There were not many changes in his condition the first day, but the fact that he was alive at all was surprising to everybody! The next day, Harley was more responsive, and he was gaining weight. Everybody was getting more hopeful that somehow he was going to pull through! The students and staff seemed to really care about Harley.

The third day, Harley was normal, other than a slight twitch that he did not have before his ordeal. They told me that I could take my baby home that day! We drove back out to Athens with fruits and veggies for Harley to snack on for the ride home, and when we arrived at UGA we were greeted warmly again by the students and staff who had been so compassionate to Harley and to me during this emotional time! The student on his case told us that Harley had been riding on her shoulder all day, and that everyone had been rooting for him. They informed me that he may suffer some slight neurological “ticks” from the coma caused by the Ivermectin, but that he should be otherwise completely normal. On the ride home, we even discovered that Harley had started mimicking the beeps of equipment he had heard during his stay, and he quickly lost the little twitch.

I cannot begin to demonstrate how much respect and gratitude I have for the students and staff at UGA’s School of Veterinary Medicine. They gave Harley the life-saving treatment he needed, and they also understood the pain I was in at the prospect of losing a beloved feathered family member. Today, Harley is happy, healthy 5 year old parrot. We have a very special bond, and without the awesome students and staff at UGA I would not have my baby today. He is simply the best friend that I could ask for!