I have recently been given two birds; a 17 year old male and a 10 year old female. The male seems to be in good condition but the female is not. She has picked her feathers off of herself under her wings and had started to do so at the top of them. I found that she had been fed dog food and cat food, and many other inappropriate foods. Is there something I can do for her? The owner told me the condition was due to stress. The two birds were in a cage together.
I have separated them due to fighting. She would start pecking at the male. I am in the process of taming them. I also have a year old cockatiel that I have had for about nine months now. I love these birds and would like to get them used to me and my family. If you have any hints on taming also I would appreciate it.
Thank you,
Caroline
Caroline,
We cannot stress enough how important it is, when introducing new birds into
a home already containing birds, to have the new additions vet checked, then
quarantine the new birds. Although a bird may look and act normally, it can
still be a carrier. One carrier bird can destroy hundreds. It's probably
too late to quarantine, but we think you should have them checked by an
avian vet, especially since they have been forced to eat whatever was
available or else starve to death. That is the only way to determine if
they have suffered physically. Once you are sure their physical health is
okay, you can then begin to re-condition them mentally, but it will be a
formidable task since they are as old as they are. Mind you, we said
formidable, not impossible.
One condition which could have caused the female to pluck herself and which is extremely common in cockatiels is Giardia. You can read about that in the section on "Your Cockatiel's Health."
You are trying to do the right things to help these neglected birds and you are to be commended for that, but your first priority needs to be getting them to a vet, then if we can help you in winning their trust, we'll be more than happy to.