Birds, whether they live in the wild or in urban areas, try their best to hide signs of being injured, this is natural to them. They do this to avoid being singled out and caught by predators.
If a bird were to show that it is injured, then a predator would be more inclined to attack it. Unfortunately, some injuries cannot be hidden, a bird can’t hide the signs of a broken neck.
So, how do you tell if a bird’s neck is broken? This article looks into it.
How to tell if a bird’s neck is broken?
A bird’s neck doesn’t break very easily, it is very hard to break a bird’s neck. In addition, a bird that really has a broken neck usually dies within a few minutes.
If you notice the signs listed below, then the bird may have simply injured its neck, it may have damaged a tendon, it may have a compression fracture on its neck, or it may have a damaged ligament
Neck in a weird position:
If the bird really has a broken neck, then the bird will be paralyzed. The neck and the rest of the bird’s body will not be able to move and the bird will be laying on the ground in a contorted position.
If the bird is sick from an illness like paramyxovirus, which affects the bird’s neck, or if the bird is injured, then the bird’s neck will be very floppy and limp.
The birds head will also lay upside down or in some other contorted position
On the ground not moving:
Birds are quite active animals, if you find your bird on the ground not moving, and if its neck is in a weird position, then you can assume that there is something wrong with the animal’s neck.
The bird will also not fly away when approached if there is something wrong with its neck.
Eyes closed or squinting:
If your bird’s eyes seem to be squinting, this may be because it is in distress and it is in pain because of the neck injury, not because it is suffering from an eye injury
Bleeding:
If the bird injures its neck, or breaks its neck, and the neck starts to bleed, then this is a sign of a serious injury.
If the bleeding starts then stops, then you can leave the bird alone for now, but the bird may still need to be taken to a vet to be examined at some point.
If the bleeding is continuous, then the bird will need immediate veterinary attention.
Stunned:
Stunned birds can sometimes look like they have broken necks. Birds have a very flexible neck, if the bird is stunned on the ground, its neck may be in a contorted position.
Birds usually ‘wake up’ from their stunned state and fly away. This article looks at stunned bird symptoms
What to do if a bird has broken its neck:
If you find a bird that has a broken neck, the best you can do for the animal is to take it to a vet or take it to a wildlife rehabilitation center. The people at the vet or at the center are well informed on how to treat these types of injuries.
When transporting the bird to a wildlife rehabilitation center, or to the vet, you’d need to make sure that the bird is secure and warm.
Put the bird in a carrier that allows air to enter and ensure that the bird is kept warm by placing a hot water bottle, a container full of hot water, or a heating pad under the container.
Make sure that the bird gets little visual stimulus, do this by covering at least three sides of the carrier with a towel.
The professionals at the vet, or at the wildlife rehabilitation center, will treat the bird’s shock before treating the bird’s injuries, they do this because the shock can kill the bird quicker than the injuries can.
Birds can quickly go into shock after suffering an injury and they can die from shock.
Once the vet, or the wildlife rehabilitation professionals, are satisfied that your bird is out of shock, then they will give you bird pain medications, subcutaneous fluids, and they may give the bird some antibiotics. They may also put a neck brace on the bird.
When you can finally take your bird home, avoid acting anxious around the bird, if you act anxious, your pet will pick up on this and get anxious.
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other bird related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Bird Twitching Head, Bird Floppy Neck, My Cat Caught A Bird And It’s Still Alive, Bird Not Flying Away