Help Me to Break The Breeding Cycle

Hi all, I desperately need some good advice here. I have a U2 named Sheba and she is 8 yrs old. She has laid 5 eggs in the past three months, two of them within one day of each other. Now for the past month each day that
she comes out of her cage all she wants to do is go under a blanket and stay there all day. She does although come out once or twice to eat and that is it until bed time. I have taken her to a vet and he said to increase her dark time hours is all he said to do. That was a week ago, and she still is under the blanket. I just do not know what to do with her. Can anyone help me with any advice here? We have been very careful not to cuddle her or stimulate any of her areas where it would encourage any ovulation. Any and all advice I would sure be thankful for. Thank you in advance with any help on this matter. Have a wonderful day.

I'm glad you're reaching out.

I know you'll get help here. Many Cockatoo afficionados...

Just my naive 2 cents...

Ever since the Rickeybird hit sexual maturity at about 3-4 years of age, I've had to manage his hormones! If kept on too steady a long day, and too much light, he stayed "in the mood" (aggressive, even louder than usual, pleasuring himself on my neck ) year round. If I keep him on a natural light schedule... up with dawn, down with dusk, year around... THEN he's only a little monster rooster from July to September. He has his own room, so I can do that easily.

Good luck! I'm glad you're here.

Oh, and... while you're solving this problem... I guess it would be good to make sure her diet is calcium rich...

Poor Sheba, Mother Nature can be cruel.

A few things that may help. Are you letting her keep the eggs? If you remove the eggs a lot of hen's will keep replacing each one you take away. You can replace them with dummy eggs or pierce each end of the egg with a sharp needle and blow through one end to remove the contents. Continue to avoid the erotic zones, when she gets over stimulated, return her to a play stand or her cage. Don't give her access to hiding places, or soft cloth, blankets, towels, etc. Toos are ground dwellers, they love to find anything that looks like a nest. Change her cage, move her perches and toys, sometimes something new and different will create a distraction. Provide lots of chew toys, I'd stick with wood and avoid paper or anything that looks like nest material. Feed her lots of fresh foods, high in calcium, add some egg shells, no warm food, if you feed soft cooked food serve at room temperature or cooler.

I hope that helps and I hope Sheba's hormones level out soon.

Allee said:

Poor Sheba, Mother Nature can be cruel.

A few things that may help. Are you letting her keep the eggs? If you remove the eggs a lot of hen's will keep replacing each one you take away. You can replace them with dummy eggs or pierce each end of the egg with a sharp needle and blow through one end to remove the contents. Continue to avoid the erotic zones, when she gets over stimulated, return her to a play stand or her cage. Don't give her access to hiding places, or soft cloth, blankets, towels, etc. Toos are ground dwellers, they love to find anything that looks like a nest. Change her cage, move her perches and toys, sometimes something new and different will create a distraction. Provide lots of chew toys, I'd stick with wood and avoid paper or anything that looks like nest material. Feed her lots of fresh foods, high in calcium, add some egg shells, no warm food, if you feed soft cooked food serve at room temperature or cooler.

I hope that helps and I hope Sheba's hormones level out soon.

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Thank you so much for your response and advice in regards to Sheba my U2. Actually I have already been doing most of what you advised except the blanket, towel, dark places thing. I did not know that. I am putting her into a night time cage/sleeping cage beginning tonight.I also re-arrange her cage weekly, but I will begin to do it every few days. Unfortunately Sheba was hurt when she was a chick and does not chew like other Too's do. Sheba was abused and neglected I was told in her first home. In her second home she had been stimulated from this woman for almost eight months before I got her. Only because the woman did not realize what she had been doing. I am her third and final home. I also have had little success getting her to eat veggies. I have although gotten her to eat a organic baby food with bananas and squash. I have made her fresh veggies such as carrots, green beans, corn and have had no success with her eating them or to even be interested. I have a few cuttle bones in her cage because I can not even get her to eat any eggs. She will drink a little milk. I was thinking as of tomorrow to begin some training, only after all the blankets and/or towels are hidden completely from her. I also intend to do my best to keep her distracted and as busy as I can for the next week and see if that will level her hormones. I have already increased her dark time to 14-15 hours. When she is awake she is always out of her cage which is currently only 8-9 hours. Thanks again though and I will keep doing updates on her progress....

Billie, Thank you for all you've done for Sheba, I know you are a dedicated guardian. Eleven or twelve hours of uninterrupted sleep should be sufficient even during hormone season. Instead of milk, I would offer 100% fruit or vegetable juice, parrots lack the essential enzymes to break down lactose found in milk and dairy by-products. It may help you to know a healthy parrot can lay a couple of clutches per year with no serious lasting effects. Egg-binding is a potential risk, especially if the bird isn't getting enough nutrition from it's diet. If the laying continues, Sheba may need another vet visit.

Allee said:

Billie, Thank you for all you've done for Sheba, I know you are a dedicated guardian. Eleven or twelve hours of uninterrupted sleep should be sufficient even during hormone season. Instead of milk, I would offer 100% fruit or vegetable juice, parrots lack the essential enzymes to break down lactose found in milk and dairy by-products. It may help you to know a healthy parrot can lay a couple of clutches per year with no serious lasting effects. Egg-binding is a potential risk, especially if the bird isn't getting enough nutrition from it's diet. If the laying continues, Sheba may need another vet visit.

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I did not know that it was healthy to lay a few clutches a year. Thank you for the information. She only drinks milk once in a very great while, it is not on a daily or even a weekly basis. She currently drinks fruit juices and I will get her some vegetable juices today. When I removed all the blankets, towels, pillows and anything else I could think of she seemed a bit out of sorts for awhile. She then climbed on my husband beaked him for awhile, got some head scratches and proceeded to puff up and stand on one foot for quite awhile. I was sure happy to see that. She also ate some seed, and some pumpkin and banana organic baby food plus her usual ritz cracker. She was addicted to ritz crackers when she came to me, and loves making parrot soup from them. She got aggressive with her toys for a bit, and then when she realized my husband was not in the room began to have a tantrum screaming and displaying, so I put her in her cage for a time out for 15 minutes where she is currently at this moment. Again I can not thank you enough for all your help with Sheba, you are a Godsend. :57:

Yeah, don't let her have any dark places to nest. Any dark places, like in a box, under a dresser, under a blanket, etc., is irresistible for a hen. To Sheba, those dark places are perfect for raising a clutch. This is the case for most female parrots. It's just like with female mammals in heat. Female mammals have a strong biological urge to mate while in heat, and female parrots (and many birds for that matter) have a strong biological urge to lay eggs when presented with dark enclosed places.

Now, I want you to understand that I'm not criticizing you when I say this: buy Parrots of the Wild. It's an excellent book written by a scientist, based on over 2,000 scientific studies on parrots. There's some basic things that you'd didn't know about, such as not providing dark places to nest, and I think you and Sheba would benefit from reading this book. Oh, and check out the World Parrot Trust website. They have a number of informative podcasts from experts on a variety of topics, such as foraging, diet, and health. I'm constantly learning new things about parrots, and I'm constantly learning from my mistakes, so I'm definitely not trying to call you out or anything on what you do and don't know. I've been learning about parrots for almost a decade, and I still have a ton to learn.

You'll definitely want to redirect her nesting behaviour to healthier endeavors. Try occupying her with foraging. You could also do trick training with her so she can feel a sense of accomplishment from using her brain and having to work for her food. What about flying? That's a very rewarding way for her to burn excess energy. I'd get her an aviator harness and retractable leash and take her for flights outside, or even just strolls in a quiet park or something. You could also buy a carrier for Sheba from Celltei and have her feel secure while going for walks with her. You could also teach her shapes, colours, and how to count. To her, raising a clutch of chicks is a rewarding project for her to do. You want to give her other projects to occupy her time and look forward to.

Teddscau said:

Yeah, don't let her have any dark places to nest. Any dark places, like in a box, under a dresser, under a blanket, etc., is irresistible for a hen. To Sheba, those dark places are perfect for raising a clutch. This is the case for most female parrots. It's just like with female mammals in heat. Female mammals have a strong biological urge to mate while in heat, and female parrots (and many birds for that matter) have a strong biological urge to lay eggs when presented with dark enclosed places.

Now, I want you to understand that I'm not criticizing you when I say this: buy Parrots of the Wild. It's an excellent book written by a scientist, based on over 2,000 scientific studies on parrots. There's some basic things that you'd didn't know about, such as not providing dark places to nest, and I think you and Sheba would benefit from reading this book. Oh, and check out the World Parrot Trust website. They have a number of informative podcasts from experts on a variety of topics, such as foraging, diet, and health. I'm constantly learning new things about parrots, and I'm constantly learning from my mistakes, so I'm definitely not trying to call you out or anything on what you do and don't know. I've been learning about parrots for almost a decade, and I still have a ton to learn.

You'll definitely want to redirect her nesting behaviour to healthier endeavors. Try occupying her with foraging. You could also do trick training with her so she can feel a sense of accomplishment from using her brain and having to work for her food. What about flying? That's a very rewarding way for her to burn excess energy. I'd get her an aviator harness and retractable leash and take her for flights outside, or even just strolls in a quiet park or something. You could also buy a carrier for Sheba from Celltei and have her feel secure while going for walks with her. You could also teach her shapes, colours, and how to count. To her, raising a clutch of chicks is a rewarding project for her to do. You want to give her other projects to occupy her time and look forward to.

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Thank you for your response to my post. I love Sheba very, very much and want to do what ever is possible to take the best care of her that I can. She is not my first parrot, I have been around birds since I was a child. She is the first bird where I have had to deal with hormonal behavior. My father owned and operated a bird rescue. I got my first bird when I was 16 years old. Thank you for all the suggestions. Sheba has been clicker training since I got her and is very smart. We had although taken a break from training due to this egg laying and hormonal behavior. We will resume training though immediately. I totally agree with the fact of keeping her brain busy. She also has been foraging since she got her with me 3 months ago. She has foraging toys I keep full of different treats and toys. Getting her to like eating things that are good for her has been quite a challenge but is something we also are working on. What she has not liked one day, she has taken a nibble at the next. Thank you also for the book suggestion and the website. Quick question about the leash. She has a harness but how does the retractable leash work? Does it not stop the bird abruptly? I was trying to picture in my mind how that would work. I was also wondering if you knew if this behavior was ever going to end? or will she always be like this, you know trying to find a dark place to lay eggs, etc.

I can offer advice on veggies. Try cooked. Try raw. Try eating with her. Dont give up. It took me almost a year to get my cockatiel to eat vegetables. He only started when he "stole" them off of my plate.
He still eats more when i eat with him.

I hope I didn't upset you or anything by insinuating that you didn't know what you were doing. Well, I wasn't even insinuating that, but it could've be been taken that way.

From what I've read on taking birds out for flights on a retractable leash, when the bird flies as far as the leash can go, the bird is gently prevented from flying any further, causing the bird to fly in one spot before flying back to you or heading in a different direction. It's definitely not like it with dogs, where the dog runs full throttle and almost crushes his or her windpipe when they reach the end of the leash. From what I've read, taking birds out on a leash is very rewarding. I'd definitely have her fully trained in flight recall in the unlikely event that she somehow gets off her leash. So, I guess you'll want a retractable leash with a very good clip to hold onto her harness, too. Same with dogs.

As for getting her to eat different things, how about buying some nut or seed butter? Unsalted and whatnot. You could put some in a bowl, add a bit of water, heat it up, then pour it over some veggies like a sauce. Nut and seed butters are rich in vitamin E and other nutrients that birds need that can only be found in sufficient quantities in nuts and seeds, plus the butters are rich in protein and healthy fats, which birds find hard to resist. In the wild, parrots forage for foods that contain the most protein and fat. Noah LOVES the "Nuts for Nature" Nut and Seed Butter that I bought for him at Costco. I mix a bit of it into his veggies, and he loves it.

You could also try the birdie bread recipe I posted in the recipe section, called "The Most Nutritious Birdie Bread." It's definitely more nutritious than most recipes. It has a bunch of healthy veggies in it, along with nutritious flours. It's very rich and moist, and freezes very well. Also, you can crumble the birdie bread, then dehydrate it to use as homemade pellets.

As for her nesting behaviour, it really depends on the individual. Some females are fine with having dark places to hide, while others can't even have bowls in their cage because they'll lay eggs in them. The fact that Sheba was sexually stimulated for eight months before you got her is a major factor in her behaviour. You could also try some herbal supplements for parrots that are supposed to help deal with hormonal issues.

As for her having issues with her beak, does she have anything to chew? I'd buy her some cork bark (check out "I've Got A Woody Bird Toys"), mahogany pods, birdie kabobs (try the "Grande" one), Planet Pleasures products, and pine cones. All of those are great for smaller parrots and parrots with deformed beaks and whatnot. The mahogany pods are like how catnip is for cats. My budgies go crazy for them, especially my girls. I buy them in bulk since they go through them so quickly. You could also try buying your girl some vine twists and seagrass mats. You could also buy her whole organic (should definitely be organic) sweet potatoes, pumpkins, and squashes for her to just destroy. All three of those veggies (I honestly don't care that sweet potatoes are tubers and pumpkins and squash are fruit) are really easy to tear apart, and I'm sure she'd enjoy it. Plus, I'm sure she'd enjoy eating the manganese-rich seeds in the pumpkins and squash.