Horrible day for my favorite pair of cockatiels

So almost 5 years ago I got a beautiful 6 month old female cockatiel... I named her Loki, she is and always will be my best buddy... Well about 7 months later I found that I just couldn't be her only friend... I wanted her to have a husband and honestly I wanted another bird... So I bought Thor... I wasn't sure he was a he because he was only 3 or 4 weeks and in my opinion he should have NEVER been given to me at that age.. I hand no idea he wasn't weaned or even how to handfeed.. Well I googled and figured it out and he did turn into a boy.. And later met Loki and Won her heart :smile015: no really I've never seen a more bonded and loving pair... On top of all of that o was lucky enough to have 2 beautiful birds love me even when they bonded and bred... But I didn't allow them to breed for roughly 1 1/2 -2 years... I wanted to be sure they were happy together and bonded and grown... Finally when Loki the female was 2 or more I added the nest box, put the light up just a little and added seed and more fresh foods... Only 2 weeks later EGGS.... 6 and well 5 hatched and I lost 2 in the first two days... The rest grew fast and fat, I handfed them and they all grew into beautiful birds, well after her first clutch I've only lost 2 other babies out of the other 4 clutches, most being 5 babies... Again that's only 2 clutches a year... So she has been a great momma and Thor a wonderful daddy...

But something happened this morning that just hurts me so so much... She had 5 babies already hatched and 1 egg due today, they all hatched very very close together.. I noticed last night that Loki wasn't letting Thor in the box so I checked on her and all the babies seemed ok.. Well when I came out this morning both Loki and Thor where in the box.. I opened it and all of the babies where dead.... There was no warning that I saw at all!!! Loki was trying to feed one and Thor was pacing back-and-forth and making a sound that I can only say was a cry... They where both devastated... I removed the babies about 30 min later because of risk of bacteria or illness.. Now Loki is sitting near her nest, and Thor is trying to groom her... It's just sooooo sad for this to happen.. And I have other breeders but these are my first birds and I wish I knew why or how it happened.. It was less then 8 hours... No blood, no signs that the babies where ill... no signs other then Loki not letting Thor in the box for a day.. Me Loki n Thor are all baffled by this... And we are all really upset.. I can see it in her eyes.. I wish I could fix it for her... I wish I saw any sign.. I might have been able to help... I have lost babies before but never so unexpected, unexplained and never a whole clutch..

I'm truly so sorry to hear about the loss of all the babies. If you want clarity, I'd have at least one little body necropsied.

I'm so sorry about the loss of Thor and Loki's babies. What a sad thing to happen to the parents after successfully raising chicks before. Hugs to you and skritches for Thor and Loki.

Took Loki and Thor to the vet, with one of the (passed) babies... The doctor told me that they are both in perfect health and that it seems the babies passed from a particularly nasty bacterial infection. I have disinfected the entry cage, I removed the nestbox and will replace it with a new one in a few weeks.. He told me that it was probably transferred to the babies from the parents who have a better immune system. The babies just couldn't fight the illness the parents spread... But I'm just lucky that Loki and Thor are and where heathy enough to get past there birdie flu...

Very sorry to hear this, Brook! But it sounds like you're doing everything right and providing a stellar environment. You've got the parents in good health, and there will be more clutches. It's a shame, but couldn't be helped. I'm not sure if "re-housing" new hatchlings immediately after birth is a great idea (ie moving them to a new, separate nesting box), but perhaps research into that area might assuage your concerns when you're next in this situation.

I'm so sorry to hear this happened to the babies .
Are Loki and Thor being treated for an infection? Did the vet do any swabs to identify and confirm the bacterial infection, or any sort of tests to send into a lab to make certain that no illness (that can't be seen visually) is ruled out? Best of luck with your guys!