Does anyone have any experience with cockatiels? Mine is about 5 years old and she seems really sick. Earlier today I was taking a nap when she woke me up cos she was screaming, which is relatively normal for her when she feels ignored. This time, she fell from the side of her cage onto the bottom and has been acting odd since. It's common somewhat for her to fall but she's never acted like this. Now she's sitting at the bottom of her cage poofed up. I gave her her favorite veggies and a honey seed bar but it's not helping. It's already 7:45 so I can't get her to an avian vet and none of the local animal hospitals take birds. Does anyone have any idea of what I can do?
It doesn't open til 10 tomorrow morning so my mom is going to take her while I'm at school. Right now I'm just trying to get her through the night. I keep refilling her water dish every 10 minutes or so with warm water because she likes to crouch under the dish and the warmth is supposed to help. My poor Fugl.
Your poor bird sounds really sick and I hope he has been to see the vet by the time you read this. Keep him as warm as you can, anywhere up towards 30 deg celsius is best.Put a lamp with the shade removed close to the cage so the light bulb heats the cage, don't worry about him not being able to sleep with it on because he will. Put a towel around the cage to keep the heat in and an ordinary thermometor will help you keep track of the temp so he doesnt overheat. Do you let him out of the cage? Could he have an injury to his head? This will make birds fall off their perch. Remember all birds are from the wild so they will only show signs of sickness at the last minute due to their survival instincts. If you feel that he gets bored and lonely this will most certainly make him sick and unhappy, especially a cockatiel. Let us know how he is recovering. August x
My mom took her to the vet and apparently she has a vitamin deficiency and was dehydrated. Don't feed your birds birdseed! We never knew that wasn't ok because that's what everyone feeds their birds, but it's not enough. I don't really understand why she was dehydrated because even last night she was still drinking whenever I put fresh warm water in the cage. She's still at the vet now so they can keep an eye on her and also because it was really cold outside (snowing and windy) so we didn't want to have to take her outside more than was needed. She never has been a very social bird and bites, probably because she's from a pet store, so that makes it hard to take her out. I let her out by opening one of the gates on her cage and when she flys over to my bed (rare, but sometimes) it's because she wants to play so she lets me pick her up. I don't think she's bored though becase she talks all day to her reflection in the mirror and we always talk to her. Thanks for all your concern guys!
She passed away this morning. She had been doing better, but then this morning apparently she went downhill really fast and the vet had to put her on a feeding tube to try to give her more energy when she fell into a coma. She supposedly didn't feel any pain. For any of you that have birds- MAKE SURE YOU FEED IT PELLETS! I wish I had been told that before it was too late...
OMG, I am SOOO sorry for your loss. I have a cockatiel & all I feed her is pellets. I had one before her that died too. She was given to me & was on a seed diet. I had no idea about the difference between pellets & seeds either. I'm glad I know now. Get another birdy, it will help you get over the loss. Here's a pic of my Phoebe. Sorry again for your loss.
So sorry for you! There is another birdy out there that needs a kind home.....he is waiting for you! kindwomen, you bird is gorgeous!
Hmm.. I came into this thread rather late, unfortunately. This is sad, and I'm sorry for your loss. I have 8 birds (one of whom is a cockatiel) - I love them as if they were my children. I can tell you from much research and much experience: 1) Feed your bird very limited amounts of seed. 2) Feed your bird a LOT of vegetables and fresh fruits (AVOID avocados and apple seeds, they can be poisonous). 3) Pellets are ok, but they should NOT be the sole source of nutrition. They must have fresh fruit/vegetable as well!!! 4) Do not place seeds *and* vegetables in their cage at the same time. They will inevitably go for the seeds and ignore the veggies. 5) Avoid salt and dairy products (an occasional *small* nibble of cheese is ok) 6) Chocolate is poisonous to birds. It may be difficult getting your bird to eat fruits/vegs at first, unless they have done so before. They will get used to it. A common tactic I've used if the bird won't eat something is for me to eat it right in front of him. Birds, especially if they're bonded with you, will want to share. Eventually, they will eat it. Here is a recommended recipe to feed your birds (amounts vary depending on number of birds, how big they are, etc...) * Mixed vegetables (either fresh or frozen with no sodium - don't use canned). Peas, corn, carrots, green beans mixed together. * Chunks of apple (don't let them have apple seeds!!!) * A couple orange slices * Lettuce, spinach * Squash * Green or Red Peppers * Sweet potato * 12-grain bread Cook what needs to be cooked and then let it cool to room temperature or colder before offering it to birds. They usually prefer room temp. over cold. You may need to chop it up into very small pieces for cockatiels and budgies. If you have any bird-related questions, feel free to send me a note. I have 8 birds (1 African Grey, 1 Cockatiel, 6 budgies) so can speak from experience BTW, I'm considering authoring a book on parrot care at some point in the future. Have more research to do first.
Someone mentioned a cockatiel that isn't very tame. Here's another trick I've learned from experience and have tried on many birds: NOTE: This applies only to budgies and cockatiels and *not* to larger parrots. It also assumes you've had the bird in your house for at least a week. Small Parrot Taming 101 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1) Initially approach the bird with your hands out of sight. Smaller birds tend to be fearful of hands. 2) Get close to the bird with your face but only glance periodically at the bird. Keep averting your eyes. Staring at a bird will make it feel threatened. 3) Talk softly and calmly. You might try whistling a bit for a cockatiel - I've had good succcess doing this with females... they tend to think you're another 'tiel 4) Once the bird is comfortable with you being up close with your face, continue doing what you're doing with your hands visible (but don't approach the bird with your hands yet). 5) After a while, you can bring your hands *slowly* near the bird. At this point, they'll either accept or reject. I tamed a timid female cockatiel in 10 minutes using this approach. She then became very friendly and offered her head for a little tickle. IF THE BIRD REJECTS YOU... and this one is tricky... let it calm down for a bit, then slowly put your hand into the cage. If it becomes nervous, back away. Try again. Eventually, they'll get used to it. Once you can get hold of the bird, hold it cupped in your hands against your chest. Do this for 10 minutes or so. You'll have a tame bird when you're done. Note, when holding a bird, never hold it around its chest... they can't breathe if you do... I know this was brief and not especially detailed, but I hope this helps.
im sorry for your loss sweetie! it must be very hard for you to deal i dont know what i would do if my little Rio died... i love him like he was my kid.. well he pretty much is, i do need to take him into the vet for a check-up. again, i hope you are coping well. just remeber the good times
