How should I care for my Society Finch's dead toe?

Question

About 10 days ago my little female society finch was sitting on the bottom of the aviary. I picked her up and noticed that her little toe on her left foot was swollen from the nail to the first joint. I put her in a hospital cage to rest. After 2 days of no improvement I decided to do a course of OTC antibiotics. A week later, the toe now looks dead. The blood vessel in the nail and the first joint are both black and she is still favoring the foot. Will the toe fall off or should I cut and cauterize it? My husband and I are both out of work at the moment so my desire to take her to a veterinarian has been thwarted. Anyone have any homecare suggestions? Thanks for your help.

Answer 1

All you can do is play it by ear. It may or may not fall off but it is always a matter of time with these things. Cutting it off could not only cause more pain but kill the bird from the pain alone, and it could very well bleed to death. So leave it alone and play it by ear. You have done your part in making sure she got rid of the infection but now all you can do is wait and watch if you can not take it to the vet for more treatment or advice. GOOD LUCK!