# Female Brooding Behavior Normal?



## Aero (Jun 11, 2018)

Hello,

My ten year old female cockatiel is displaying many of her typical spring brooding behaviors, with a new twist: she won't shut up.

My cockatiel, Amelia, usually lays a few eggs in her food dish during the spring and makes the sweet little nesting cooing sounds when she hangs out in there. This spring, however, she has only minimally displayed this behavior and is instead spending a lot of time on the perches in her cage making a loud, consistent chirp every second or so. This behavior has persisted for nearly a week.

This chirp is usually her "where are you?" or "what the heck is going on?" chirp. Usually, if I pet her through the cage or take her out, she calms down. However, now when I put my hand in the cage she runs to the other side. I opened up the door and she was very eager to come out. She nested behind some books on my desk for a few minutes, then promptly took off and flew into a wall. She seems fine from the collision, but is still making this chirping noise. I don't know what she needs or how to help her.

Any suggestions???

If I close the door and turn out the lights, she pipes down. She does not make the noise if she does not know I am home. It seems like she wants something from me... I think she wants out of the cage, but I am afraid to take her out right now; I don't want her to have another accident, especially while she's trying to produce an egg.

Since she hasn't laid an egg yet, I don't know if I should discourage her from doing so by limiting her light exposure (so she thinks it's winter). Or, if I should place a nesting site in the cage.

I also purchased this calcium supplement at PetSmart and will incorporate it in her diet. Does anyone have experience with this?
https://www.chewy.com/kaytee-forti-...EtxYtijiv_a7t7R0hATXwWA2faHlS3lhoC4A8QAvD_BwE

Any advice is much appreciated.

Thanks!
Ciara & Amelia ied:


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## Darkel777 (Jun 7, 2013)

As hilarious as this is going to sound, it sounds as though she is bonded to you as this cooing sound is typical behavior in females trying to proposition other male cockatiels into copulation. I would discourage this behavior, don't interact with her while she is making that noise. Also avoid any type of petting that involves touching her back since this might be interpreted by the bird as a mating ritual encouraging more egg laying. It isn't uncommon for birds to get bonded to an owner in this way; it is pretty typical.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Food dishes are an excellent place for hens to make love to themselves, because they can press their vent against the edge of the cup. If your hen starts cooing in the food bowl again, take a close look at what her backside is doing. 

As for the calling behavior: is it possible that she's calling to a bird that she can hear outside? If one of your neighbors got a cockatiel recently, they might be calling back and forth, or there might be a wild bird that sounds sort of like a cockatiel. 

It's best to discourage her from laying eggs. They can't be fertile since she doesn't have a mate, so they're just a useless drain on her physical resources.


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