Good news. I spoke with a Dr. Jackie Gai who was recommended by UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. She put me in touch with a Dr. Brian Speer, avian vet in Oakley, CA. He agreed to see Stuart at 2:00 p.m. We took Mary Catherine by our local vet’s office before we left for the appointment to have her x-rayed too. She has twice as much hardware in her as Stuart! I called Dr. Speer’s office and he agreed that we could bring them both down. We made the 215 mile round trip with both of them in the back of the Hummer. Dr. Speer was wonderful, has had his own emus for over 28 years! He reviewed the x-rays and in the end, decided that the best course of action at this point is using Metamucil and just biding our time. He is not overly concerned about the zinc, stating it is an acute illness and they both seem fine since ingesting the screws several days ago. He doubts the screws will cause perforation given the anatomy of the emu. He said he has seen worse in the gullet of emus before these guys. I was thrilled to find such a great resource. He happens to know our local vet as they were classmates, so as we go forward he could collaborate on their care. So we wait and see. Dr. Speer also did an exam on both of their private parts and thinks they are both boys! Not 100% but most likely. Mary Catherine Gallegher left the house as Mary Catherine Gallegher and came home as M.C. Hammer!
Teresa Loop says
OMG! LOL! The emus 'thoughts' are hilarious!! I can't believe how big they are already!!