A look inside our X-ray room © E. Brendel
Most of the diagnostic methods and veterinary treatments used at the Swift Rescue Center meet the standards of modern avian practice.
Besides the clinical examination, radiographic examination is often indispensable in injured swifts. For some years now, the Swift Rescue Center has had its own X-ray unit.
Further investigations are not carried out routinely, but only when they appear necessary for the diagnosis and/or further treatment of the individual swift. These include parasitological, microbiological and histological examinations; the latter are commissioned externally from a veterinary laboratory ("Vet-Med-Labor" / Ludwigsburg).
The indispensable ophthalmological examination in cases of eye injuries is carried out for the Swift Rescue Center by the veterinary eye centre in Frankfurt-Kalbach; we would like to take this opportunity to thank the entire team of the centre. https://tierauge.com/
Soft tissue and bone surgery, e.g. intramedullary pinning of wing fractures, but also conservative treatment methods such as beak corrections and special bandages, are routine at the Swift Rescue Center. Great importance is attached to the subsequent physiotherapy of convalescent birds, and individual training programmes have been developed for the swifts.
The Swift Rescue Center specialises in particular in the treatment of damage to the flight and tail feathers. For several years, the falconry method of imping has been successfully practised on a large scale in Common Swifts.