Cockatiel in 'heat'?

[Charles Gaffen]

Is it possible for a female cockatiel to have a 'heat' period? My
daughter's little one has been acting a little strange the last few days.
Symptoms have been periods of about an hour or so of hanging around the
bottom of the cage, in a sort of 'crouched' position, doing a slow rocking
back and forth, and VERY unfriendly, which is NOT typical of this guy/girl.
After awhile he/she comes out of it, but in a minute or so makes a very
large bowel movement, looser than normal, though color is ok. It is not
foamy. We called the Emergency Vet, and were told that HE is SHE, and it
going thru her 'period'.
Food is always the same type, there are no drafts in the room, temperature
is constant, and he is never near any type of Teflon Cookware in use.
Thanks for the help!!
Chas

[pooyai]

I don't have a direct answer to your question, but after several months of
owning tiels and conures (which hardly makes me an expert), I have come to
the conclusion that we overemphasize the study of poopology.

My tiels poop is controlled by what they eat. Certain foods make it watery
or not.

My conures are the same, but have totally different bowel habits from each
other. My maroon bellied goes more frequently (what I thought was normal),
with the only big bomb being the first one after waking up.

My green cheek goes far less often, always let loose with a fairly big bomb,
and has always had a decidedly different coloration to it.

I think that in addition to watching other signs for birdie health, then
it's appropriate to be concerned with poop, or if there is a sustained
period when the poop changes (just like with humans).

Charles Gaffen <che...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:84c5ob$mlg$1...@bgtnsc03.worldnet.att.net...

[Nita]

Sounds like she may be going to lay. To discourage this, you can try
reducing daylight hours, rearrange the cage a bit (perches, toys, dishes,
whatever), or even moving the cage completely. Doesn't always work, but
worth a shot. If she does lay, leave the eggs or replace them with
similar-sized fake eggs (such as wooden craft eggs painted white). She will
eventually tire of them and stop sitting, at which point you can throw them
out.

--
Nita

www.homestead.com/nitaspages_/index.html
Visit Nita's Nest, with "Beginning with Birds" basic care guide

Charles Gaffen <che...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:84c5ob$mlg$1...@bgtnsc03.worldnet.att.net...
> Is it possible for a female cockatiel to have a 'heat' period? My
> daughter's little one has been acting a little strange the last few days.
> Symptoms have been periods of about an hour or so of hanging around the
> bottom of the cage, in a sort of 'crouched' position, doing a slow rocking
> back and forth, and VERY unfriendly, which is NOT typical of this
guy/girl.
> After awhile he/she comes out of it, but in a minute or so makes a very
> large bowel movement, looser than normal, though color is ok. It is not
> foamy. We called the Emergency Vet, and were told that HE is SHE, and it
> going thru her 'period'.
> Food is always the same type, there are no drafts in the room,
temperature
> is constant, and he is never near any type of Teflon Cookware in use.
> Thanks for the help!!

> Chas
>
>

[Paul Delaney]

"Charles Gaffen" <che...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:84c5ob$mlg$1...@bgtnsc03.worldnet.att.net...

> Is it possible for a female cockatiel to have a 'heat' period? My
> daughter's little one has been acting a little strange the last few days.
> Symptoms have been periods of about an hour or so of hanging around the
> bottom of the cage, in a sort of 'crouched' position, doing a slow rocking
> back and forth, and VERY unfriendly, which is NOT typical of this
guy/girl.
> After awhile he/she comes out of it, but in a minute or so makes a very
> large bowel movement, looser than normal, though color is ok. It is not
> foamy. We called the Emergency Vet, and were told that HE is SHE, and it
> going thru her 'period'.
> Food is always the same type, there are no drafts in the room,
temperature
> is constant, and he is never near any type of Teflon Cookware in use.

Hi Chas,

I am no eggspert :-) in these matters, but I tend to agree with the reply
from Nita. Just make sure the bird is not getting egg-bound. This can
cause much distress in the bird and could, in severe cases, lead to death.
If she has eggs but cannot lay then you should take her back to the vet ASAP
and they can remedy it. Hope this is of some help.

Dawn.