Molting Cockatiel?

Question

Hi. My friends cockatiel is molting and her attitude is horrible! She does not like to be around us like normally, and just stays in one spot throughout the day before they put her back in the cage (she flies around when they are home). Will this stage pass? Also, she is very cranky with my friend who found and saved her from outside. She loved him at first, but now hates him and wont even let him get close to her!!! Why is this?? Could it be he was not home that much due to work so she bonded with his parents?! LOL soo many questions but I though these birds were very friendly and shes cranky!! Help!

Pickiechickie-
Thanks!! They have had this bird for about a year and only let it out supervised. But thanks, and we do think its funny that she doesnt like my friend. thanks for the info! :)

Answer 1

Rotflmao! I used to breed cockatiels! They are basically one person birds if they are the only bird in the house. Once they decide who their person mate is, they can be very obnoxious towards others! They are ALWAYS crabbie when moulting! Wouldn't you be! Cockatiels are very sweet birds to whom they decide to like. They will, for one reason or another, take a disliking to someone and no matter what that person does, they won't be able to change anything! This bird has bonded with the person/people who it spends the most time with! Try to see the humor in it! Also, the bird's wings should be clipped. If not, they can really get hurt by flying into windows, mirrors, toilet, washing machine, out the door or open window, etc. If you don't do this, you will one day regret it I guarantee you! To view an excellent and detailed illustration on how to trim flight feathers, click on this link:

http://www.animalsheltering.org/resource_library/magazine_articles/jul_aug_2001/how_to_trim_bird_wing_feathers.html

Answer 2

When cockatiels go through hard moults they would be the crankiest bird I have ever seen, reall little turds.

Some (mainly normal greys) have a ratehr lowsy attitude towards life & loved ones through there adulthood too. They can be grumpy & unpredictable at times. Then you can get real sweeties.

Cockatiels go through the "terrible two's", this is when their attitudes can offen change & they can lash out at their loved ones, just cos they're grumpy! This is really hard to change in some tiels & they stay like this all their lives, grumpy old men....

Also tiels are very sensitive to change, sudden movements, any tiny little thing can spook them. If for some reason something has upset them & they relate it to the owner, even if it had nothing to do with the owner, they'll take it out on the owner.

If his cage, toys, anything else in & around his cage been re aranged or new things put in place, this can upset them too.

Some tiels do just sit there do nothing, occasionally chew something, but that's about it. My tiel is only ever active after dinner, he's got everything he needs & lives on a play gym. go figure.

Please DO NOT clip the feathers unless you're 100% certain you can do this! Otherwise take him to the vet & get them to show you.

As a general rule you should learn to see which are blood feathers so you don't ever cut them. When they're moulting & have new feathers (blood feathers) coming through they have viens going through the center. This is what you cut off when you cut a blood feather. The bleeding is dangerous & the vien will not retract until the feather has grown it's full length which is why they bleed. This can be painful to the bird. An avian vet will be able to tell how to spot them so you avoid them in future. You should also not clip them until they've finished a moult, especially if it's a heavy moult.

Hot bathing I'm pretty sure doesn't stip natural oils from the birds featehrs as tiels don't have oil glands, they actually have dust glands that keep their feathers in shape. A hot bath will burn them. A bath more than about 3 times a day can be too much. 3 times a day is enough for these little guys to bathe. More than this & their skin can flake & can have skin drying & irritations from excessive use of water.

Answer 3

The molt can final for a era of a few months to lingering for the excellent twelve months. in maximum situations birds in North u . s . start up a molt in August and have a clean set of feathers by skill of early Dec. some kind of birds molt two times each year. as long as you supply your cockatiel a on a daily basis tub, stable weight-relief plan and clean water he would be ok. I even have seen cockatiels to have their finished head coated in pin feathers very equivalent to that they had lost each and every feather at as quickly as. In parakeets there's a genetic fault this is observed as French molt. Their secondary wing feathers, known wing feathers and tail feather never end molting. earlier they are able to end the molt they start up returned. some human beings/shops sell them as runners because of the fact they never are waiting to fly.

Answer 4

There are feathers all over the cage. What’s going on?

Despite knowing in theory that their birds will molt new owners are often shocked and startled by suddenly finding the cage floor covered in feathers. The fact that their cockatiel may be lethargic, grumpy, and out of sorts during the molt may either worry the owner into thinking that the bird is ill or cover up an actual illness. A molting bird is not ill, though it needs a bit of supportive care. You will want to mist it a bit more frequently, add some extra protein to its diet (feathers are almost pure protein), and respect its need for extra rest. Bean mix and hard cooked egg are both good sources of protein. You should watch a molting bird carefully though. The stress of the molt can cause a latent illness to flare up. Don’t hesitate to call the vet if you think you have reason to suspect illness.

A young cockatiel molts at about 6 month, at about a year, and then about once a year thereafter. The molt usually lasts between 4 and 6 weeks. Sometimes environmental conditions cause variations in the pattern of molting. Tiels kept in warm climates with little seasonal variation may have a subtle molt where they drop a few feathers at a time throughout the year. Birds in more temperate areas with more pronounced seasons usually have a more pronounced molt. Sometimes a molt doesn’t seem to go right. There are several diseases that affect feather growth and birds experiencing an abnormal molt should see the vet.

The quality and condition of the feathers is strongly influenced by several factors. Diet is probably paramount. My rescued tiel, Rocky, came to me pale-colored, ratty-looking, with feathers that were crossed with stress bars (improperly developed areas due to stress, malnutrition, etc.), and broke easily. After three years of a good diet with plenty of protein during molts and lots of vitamin A sources he wouldn't be recognized as the same bird. His grey is dark and velvety, the pale top of his central tail feathers is a lovely silver, the yellow of his face and the underlying yellows beneath the grey elsewhere are rich and bright, and the orange cheek patches are deep pumpkin orange (in fact the high levels of carotene in his diet are betrayed by the bleeding of his cheek patch feathers into other parts of his face -- a bit too much of a good thing which will be corrected next molt). The feathers are strong and flexible, he hasn't broken a single feather in 2 years.

Another critical factor for feathers is access to either natural sunlight or full spectrum lighting. Birds kept only under ordinary artificial lights become dull-feathered and pale. This may be due to the production of vitamin D by the interaction of sunlight and the preening oil on the surface of the feathers. Since birds inevitably ingest some of this oil as they preen they supply their own Vitamin D in exactly the correct form and amount. (Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin that can build up to toxic levels in the body when supplements are overused. I would NOT recommend giving a bird vitamin D supplements unless proscribed by a vet).

Finally, bird need regular baths to keep their feathers at their best. I mist my birds daily with plain water and often offer a bath dish in the cage. Tiels have definite preferences about there baths. Some like misting (use a clean plant sprayer that has never held any chemical), either a soft fall from above or a firmer spray from the sides or below while others only enjoy still water. A soaking from the dish sprayer will delight some and terrify others. Many enjoy a lukewarm shower with their human friends. Water temperature is a matter of individual preferences. Some like lukewarm, others like quite warm. Never use truly hot water -- even if it doesn't actually burn the bird will strip the natural oils from the feathers. My Dandi actually prefers truly cold water (not ice water, but as cold as a New England well will run in early summer. I either have to give her mate his own warm dish or he will wait until the water warms up. Bath dishes run the gamut from glass loaf pans to metal pie plates to terra cotta plant saucers (disinfect carefully since they are porous), to Dandi's favorite -- a crisp outer cabbage leaf set concave side up with about a quarter cup puddle of water in it. Anything big enough, safe, and not too slippery or hard to clean will do.

Answer 5

Birds have different personalities just like people. The bird probably doesn't trust your friend.