# My Cockatiel Hen is Sick...HELP!!



## questionare (Jul 9, 2012)

Hi dears,

Today morning I went to check the birds cage (I have a pair with 3 babies; in age 3 months); I found the hen was still sleeping on the perch (tucking her face under her wing) and totally fluffed; usually she wakes up directly and reacts, however, today she was too lazy, I tried touching her with a wooden spoon, but she barely moved, or bite. 

The hen lately was a chronic egg layer, I tried everything to stop here (removing nest, providing darkness, changes in the cage). The last time she laid two eggs (two weeks ago); one of the eggs dissapeared after 1 day; (it may be a soft shell one).

I provide seeds, veggies (brocolli, Sipanich, greens), cuttlebone, and water. last week the temperature dropped dramitaclly, and I was covering the cage with a heavy blanket all day/night, with leaving a quarter of one of the sides not-covered to provide air.

Please advise what I can do for her, here in the middle-east we don't trust vets; as they are not-knowledgble and it is difficult to find a trusted one.

Thanks,


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

The first thing you need to know is whether she is eggbound, because that is an emergency. Can you pick her up and gently examine her rump/vent area? Is there swelling? Is she able to poop?

Unfortunately it sounds like she is seriously ill, and her symptoms are not specific enough for us to even make truly educated guesses about what might be wrong. Her best chance at this point is probably a vet.


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## xNx (Jun 6, 2012)

questionare said:


> Hi dears,
> 
> Today morning I went to check the birds cage (I have a pair with 3 babies; in age 3 months); I found the hen was still sleeping on the perch (tucking her face under her wing) and totally fluffed; usually she wakes up directly and reacts, however, today she was too lazy, I tried touching her with a wooden spoon, but she barely moved, or bite.
> 
> ...


You're best bet is a vet, even if they can't be 'trusted' in your area


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## questionare (Jul 9, 2012)

enigma731 said:


> The first thing you need to know is whether she is eggbound, because that is an emergency. Can you pick her up and gently examine her rump/vent area? Is there swelling? Is she able to poop?
> 
> Unfortunately it sounds like she is seriously ill, and her symptoms are not specific enough for us to even make truly educated guesses about what might be wrong. Her best chance at this point is probably a vet.


I will check if she is egg bound, and will try my best to get her to vet by today, also after an hour I will be back to home, so I will check her


xNx said:


> You're best bet is a vet, even if they can't be 'trusted' in your area


Thanks xNx, I will do my best to have her to a vet.


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## questionare (Jul 9, 2012)

I have if she was egg bound, and found she was. I have been able to successfuly extract the egg (used steam and olive oil and a gentle massage). The egg was so soft, I am providing warmth to the hen. However she barely moves, and hardly can hold her head up. Is there any midication I can get for her, as I won't be able to get her to a vet today.

thanks,


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

You really need to get her to a vet today, or she may die. Egg binding is very serious, and can result in devastating internal damage, neurological problems, or internal infection. Since there is no way for us to judge if any of these possibilities is present in her case, we cannot advise you on medication, and appropriate medication is unlikely to be obtained without a prescription either way.


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## roxy culver (May 27, 2010)

If you can get your hand on some tums, nonflavored ones, I would put it in her water. Or crush it up and sprinkle it on her food. If she's not eating or drinking, try to see if she'll take some from you finger.

Do they get any natural sunlight?


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## questionare (Jul 9, 2012)

roxy culver said:


> If you can get your hand on some tums, nonflavored ones, I would put it in her water. Or crush it up and sprinkle it on her food. If she's not eating or drinking, try to see if she'll take some from you finger.
> 
> Do they get any natural sunlight?


Thanks Roxy,

I didn't succeed in getting her to vet today. She doesn't eat or drink, I gave her some drops of gatorade before half an hour, she was able to open her eyes, and stand a little, however, now she is almost sleeping with laying her wings; similar to this picture:









In the last two to three weeks, I was almost covering the cage with heavy blanket, due to winter here, so lately she was not getting any sunlight.

Thanks again


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

The soft egg indicates that she has a calcium deficiency. Can you get some liquid calcium with vitamin D in it? The type made for birds is best, but you can use a type that's made for humans as long as it doesn't have zinc or iron added to it. Put a drop directly in her beak. Calcium is essential for good muscle function and vitamin D is essential for calcium absorption. Once she has absorbed some calcium it may improve her heart function and general muscle function. 

If you can't get liquid calcium, you can use Tums as roxy suggested. It doesn't have the vitamin D but it does have calcium so it may do some good. If she will eat some cooked egg, the yolk has calcium, vitamin D, and lots of other nutrients in it.

Be sure to keep her warm. You can cover one end of the cage with a cloth and shine a lamp on it at a range close enough to send some heat into the cage.


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## flippityjib (Dec 13, 2012)

Poor baby. I hope she is ok.


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

Your bird is critically ill. This type of posture and behavior is often seen in birds that are imminently dying. Please, please find a way to have her seen now, before it is too late to help her.


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## BabyMoo (Dec 19, 2012)

I also would like to leave a message begging you to take your hen to a vet. I know you might not trust the vet but the vet is her best chance right now. If she is that lethargic she needs immediate attention. If she was a human, I would tell you to please call 911 or take her to the emergency room right now without any hesitation. Please, take her to the vet. She needs immediate attention.


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## urbandecayno5 (Oct 24, 2012)

Your bird is suffering
I hope you have gotten her to a vet. This is really upsetting


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## xNx (Jun 6, 2012)

I hope you get to a vet, if you're gonna breed Cockatiels, or any birds for that matter i would have hoped you'd be prepared for something like this. 
Best of wishes.


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## questionare (Jul 9, 2012)

Dear All,

I tried my best to get her to vet yesterday, but was unable. Here, we don't have emergency vets as you have in the US or Europe.Actually, we have issues with Emergncy to humans 

To be honest with you, I was totally upset yesterday due to here health, and was alarmed over the day, and tried my best to give her the best care I can offer.

Based on tielfan recommendation, I gave her some drops of calcium +D3 vitamin, along with some gatorade. Heating was provided to her also over night.

Today morning, she was alot better; she was moving, able to climb cage bars, and to fly a little, and to perch. 

One thing I noticed that she has a watery dropping; would this be from the gatorade and the liquid calcium?

I provided her with food and water, and will monitor her if she is eating.

In the meanwhile, I will be making an immediate appointment with the nearst vet I can find.

Thanks for your help, and I totally understand each one of you. I hope that she recovers and be well.


Thanks again,


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

It's probably best if you continue to give her one drop of calcium per day until you're sure that she isn't going to lay any more eggs. Liquid calcium is very easily absorbed and it's possible to get into an overdose situation if you give too much; but it looks like she was severely deficient, and she will definitely need calcium if she lays more eggs.

I'm glad that she's feeling better. If you can put a millet spray close to her, that might encourage her to eat. If she's tame, you can hold food in your hand for her to eat.

The watery dropping might be from drinking liquid or it might be because of stress. What's important now is for her to start eating food, and I hope her droppings will be normal once she's eating well.


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## questionare (Jul 9, 2012)

tielfan said:


> It's probably best if you continue to give her one drop of calcium per day until you're sure that she isn't going to lay any more eggs. Liquid calcium is very easily absorbed and it's possible to get into an overdose situation if you give too much; but it looks like she was severely deficient, and she will definitely need calcium if she lays more eggs.
> 
> I'm glad that she's feeling better. If you can put a millet spray close to her, that might encourage her to eat. If she's tame, you can hold food in your hand for her to eat.
> 
> The watery dropping might be from drinking liquid or it might be because of stress. What's important now is for her to start eating food, and I hope her droppings will be normal once she's eating well.


Thanks alot tielfan, 

Really your recommendations saved her, I will see if she starts to eat or drink, she is untamed, so I don't want to force feed her; in order not to cause more stress to her.

I wish she will stop laying eggs, really she laid too much eggs in the past period, I hope moving her from the original cage, and putting her in a new cage would help her.


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

I'm glad to hear your tiel is doing better. I hope she continues to improve and hope you can find a vet to see her. Keep us posted on how she is doing.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Chronic egg laying is very dangerous. You might be able to stop her with hormone control techniques, see http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=32330

The need to keep the cage mostly covered for warmth may have contributed to the current problem; the cage would be enclosed and dim but not completely dark, just like a nest. If you can arrange to shine more light in the cage so it's brighter inside in the daytime, that might help reduce her hormones.

It's essential to make sure that a chronic egg layer gets ample calcium and vitamin D along with other important nutrients. There's more info on meeting the vitamin D requirement at http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=27549

I have some information on egg binding posted on my website at http://www.littlefeatheredbuddies.com/info/breed-eggbinding.html


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## questionare (Jul 9, 2012)

Dears,

I have went to the vet, and got a mutlivitamin medication, a capsule that is dissolved in water. As I remember, I read somewhere that this is not a recommended way to provide vitamins.

I feel that if the vet saw the hen when she was extremly suffering, he would advised me to get rid of her 

Here people are not professional, and they are not specialized, and to be honest with you, I trust people in this forums more than them.

As for the hen , she is doing great, she is moving around, eating, drinking, climbing 

I am watching her closley, and wish she won't lay more eggs. If you have any recommendation for me, please don't hesitate, as every tiny suggestion has really contributed to saving her.

Shall I get her back to her original cage; with her male, and chicks?

Thanks,


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## debra150 (Dec 20, 2012)

hi,i hope you managed to get her to the vet..my little buddy looked like before he passed away..i got to the vet,they gave him antibiotics and hydration, perked up a little,just like your saying,however unfortunately he didnt make it....he is definetely not well,do you have any rusty clips on cage,has she eaten any metal,could be lead poisoning.My little buddy had kidney failure.I hope this helps you in some way.Please try not to make him suffer any more than is necessary.


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## questionare (Jul 9, 2012)

debra150 said:


> hi,i hope you managed to get her to the vet..my little buddy looked like before he passed away..i got to the vet,they gave him antibiotics and hydration, perked up a little,just like your saying,however unfortunately he didnt make it....he is definetely not well,do you have any rusty clips on cage,has she eaten any metal,could be lead poisoning.My little buddy had kidney failure.I hope this helps you in some way.Please try not to make him suffer any more than is necessary.


Thanks debra150,

Actually the hen was suffering from an egg bounding, which leaded to calcium deficincy. I am monitoring her, and all I got from the vet was the multi-vitamins.

Hope she will be ok, and I am trying my best to provide her with all needed.

Thanks,


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Vitamin supplements can be useful for birds who aren't eating a balanced diet. Since she has just been through a difficult experience it might be good for her to have extra vitamins for at least a few days. 

How good is your birds' normal diet? If they are eating a wide variety of foods they don't need vitamin supplements. If they're seed junkies it might be beneficial to provide ongoing vitamin supplements.


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## questionare (Jul 9, 2012)

tielfan said:


> Vitamin supplements can be useful for birds who aren't eating a balanced diet. Since she has just been through a difficult experience it might be good for her to have extra vitamins for at least a few days.
> 
> How good is your birds' normal diet? If they are eating a wide variety of foods they don't need vitamin supplements. If they're seed junkies it might be beneficial to provide ongoing vitamin supplements.


Actually, currently I feed her seeds, boiled eggs "every other day", greens (although she is not interested in them). 

She seems healthy, as I have been monitoring her through the past 6 days, actually she stands on one leg (which I read is a good sign of healthy cockatiel).

I don't know if it is a good thing to get her back to her family in the original cage? what do you think?

Thanks,


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## roxy culver (May 27, 2010)

Since she doesn't eat the greens she's really on an almost seed only diet which is not healthy for her. Will putting her back with her family cause her to be hormonal or try to lay eggs? If so, until you get her eating better I wouldn't recommend it. She's not on a good enough diet to lay.


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## bassamgaillany (Nov 16, 2012)

questionare said:


> Hi dears,
> 
> Today morning I went to check the birds cage (I have a pair with 3 babies; in age 3 months); I found the hen was still sleeping on the perch (tucking her face under her wing) and totally fluffed; usually she wakes up directly and reacts, however, today she was too lazy, I tried touching her with a wooden spoon, but she barely moved, or bite.
> 
> ...


I do feel sorry for you dear  I am suffering of not having good vets in the Middle east, too. I live in the *middle east* and i totally depend on this great forum. The best thing to do is to let her in a warm,quiet and dark place for a while. And then offer her a healthy food as good as possible. Scratch her if she allows you ! Good luck and get recovery soon Insha'allah ​


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## questionare (Jul 9, 2012)

bassamgaillany said:


> I do feel sorry for you dear  I am suffering of not having good vets in the Middle east, too. I live in the *middle east* and i totally depend on this great forum. The best thing to do is to let her in a warm,quiet and dark place for a while. And then offer her a healthy food as good as possible. Scratch her if she allows you ! Good luck and get recovery soon Insha'allah ​


Thanks bassamgaillany,

The hen is doing better, and I am monitoring her on a daily basis.

I totally agree with you that this forum is so great, and helped us alot.

Thanks again,


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