Egg Laying

I have a 20 year old Cockatoo who has laid two eggs in the past about 14 years ago.
About 1 week ago I was cleaning her cage and noticed blood droppings (coming from her vent) on the bottom of the cage on the papers.
WE took her to the vet ,left a fecal sample,which is currently being tested,and the vet told us,after an exam of Ziggy, that she possible has an egg which ishe has been trying to pass. WE brought her home ,the blood dropping stopped and we noticed last night a bright red protrusion from her anal area,and some white mucus AND what appeared to be an egg. She ekpt straining but the egg didn't come through. This morning,there was no egg, and her anal area had receeded and looked like the normal gray skin.
ANy thoughts as to what we can do to help her pass this egg? ANy help would certainly be appreciated. BTW, we don't have a male. She seems to be acting normal but her "poop" has decreased in frequency and volume.
Thanks so much!

Oh, from what you describe it looks like she is egg bound! It's a very serious life threatening condition - the best thing would be probably to take her back to the vet ASAP and tell him/her the symptoms. I read that holding her above warm (not too hot) steam could help her to pass the egg. Hopefully other people here can help more.

Welcome to the forums, ziggysmom.

I highly recommend getting Ziggy to an Avian Vet ASAP. Here is a good article:
Egg Binding: Causes, Symptoms & Treatment Options

Thanks to both of you. She tried again last night to lay the egg but then retracted. I called early this morning and have an appt. to drop her off so they can put out out a little too remove the egg with help from the vet. They will also take Xrays.No blood dropping this morning but very little poop.

Very relieved to hear you're taking your girl in. Best of luck!! Please let us know how things go, ok?

whew, that good she being helped! Let us know how is she doing! I was really worried last night after reading your post.

Hi there,Well, we took our gal to the vet and she X-rayed,took blood samples, fecal samples. We're waiting for the results that should come in today. The vet also put Ziggy out for a while and examined her and said there is absolutely no egg. The red thing that is hanging out of her is her Cloaca! It hangs out for a while(it's about the size of a man thumb to the first knuckle) BUT it does retract. Oh, the vet also gave us Clavamox to give Ziggy three times a day.so..what we thought was an egg isn't . At this point, we're so frustrated with what is going on with the vet. It would seem that after 800.00,we would know something more than"well, it COULD BE...or MAYBE it's this...We just have to wait. This vet is the ONLY vet around us for 3 hours so we're kinda stuck ,
Thought I'd give you an update.
Liz

Thank you so much for the update, Liz. Gosh, how frustrating!! So the vet didn't give you a clue as to why her chloaca is prolapsed? :11:

Here is a fairly good article about this: Prolapsed Cloaca: how to prevent and how to treat this condition

I'm sure he put her on the antibiotics for a possible infection, since they are quite common to occur with prolapses.

Hoping and praying that Ziggy fully recovers, and that you'll get some answers!

Hello again,
Yes, QUITE frustrating and as of Monday, it will one week since we took her in to the vet.
I Do have another question for you. Although I call myself "ziggys mom" the factis that she is my husbands. He purchased her before we were married. As far as Ziggy is concerned though, I am at the lowest rung of the pecking order LOL I take care of her but am afraid to take her out of the cage. My husband takes her out to play with her. I tried a few times to hold her but was bitten. My husband says it's because Ziggy was only trying to taste my arm, but out of fear, I pulled it away nd she grabbed on and bit. Ziggy is a real sweetheart and not mean but I'm still afraid of being bitten(gads, her beak is enough to scare a person ) LOL
So, do you have any ideas as to how I can have Ziggy trust and like me. I really want to hold her and love her and play with her but not be bitten(of course) MY husband bought her from Feather Fantasy about 20 years ago(we have been married for 15 years) I watch her love my hubby and jsut wish I could be on the other end of her love and have her cuddle with me too. Are they an only one man bird?
Thanks for any help you can give
feeling unloved Liz LOL

LOL Liz! I'll let someone with cockatoo experience chime in on them being 'one person birds' (or not). I'm owned by 2 big macs and 2 Amazons, and don't have any 'toos.

Hi Liz, first let me say, I feel for you, it's so frustrating to keep returning to a vet for answers and feeling like you're not getting positive results, not to mention the expense.

I'm sorry, did you mention what species Ziggy is and is she fully flighted? I have a female Umbrella. Toos do tend to form strong bonds with one favorite human, that's not to say you and Ziggy can never form a bond of your own. Our girl will let most people hold her, but if someone shows the slightest fear, she will take advantage. She's very friendly and often falls head over heels for new people, but if she thinks she can bluff them into believing she's dangerous, she'll usually choose scary over friendly.

I'm guessing Ziggy is fully aware that you are afraid to take her out of her cage. Toos are extremely manipulative. More than likely, she's only bluffing, but you don't need to take unnecessary chances. Have you tried opening the doors and allowing Ziggy to decide when to come out? Without being too hands on, you can encourage her to play fetch or tug of war or to dance with you when she hears music. Most Toos are playful and when they see someone having fun, favorite human or not, they want to join in. Another way to solicit friendship from a Too is to share food with them, finger foods, fresh fruit and vegetables look a lot tastier when they can be stolen. Toys can also make you popular with Toos, most of them can't resist the urge to destroy and rather than wait for you to give them the toy, they will come over to take possession of it. You may find it easier to bond with Ziggy alone, if your husband is in sight, Ziggy gets to choose, if her favorite human isn't present, she will be forced to focus her attention on you.

Good luck with your girl, I think both of you would be happier if you could be more comfortable around each other.

hahaha,thanks. And I'm owned(and very much loved) by a Pineapple Conure names Pauli and y African Senegal names Buddy.and 6 parakeets. ANd...of course my Bearded Dragon named Smeagol. Buddy and Pauli and definitely mine. They will go to my hubby but only for a minute and then they get separation anxiety and want me. I love Ziggy too . I only wish I could get her to understand I do and not bite me LOL

Hello Allee,
Ziggy is an Umbrella too. She does love to dance and if I sound like a frog, she will mimic. Unfortunately, fruit or any type of food is out for her. She ONLY eats Pretty Bird pellets. I feed her and as I said do care for her and make sure she has water and clean cage etc. My husband doesn't care to do themm so I have taken over. He likes the handling part and loving with her LOL
I will definitely try NOT to be afraid of her but I have to tell you, it's hard!LOL
Thanks again,
Liz

I have to sincerely THANK all of you for your help and concern. You're the greatest!!!!!!
We have received more help from any of you than we found from the Vet .

THANK YOU...THANK YOU!!!!!

Liz, thank you for the kind words, that means a lot. We're happy you joined us!

Aww, I'm glad you have Pauli, Buddy, Smeagol and the parakeets, love the names.

Toos are little traitors aren't they? You do all the work and your husband gets all the snuggles.

I feed pellets to my birds too, but they get chop twice a day, and a piece of birdie bread in the afternoon. For bribes/treats, I give them pumpkin seeds, star anise, millet, tree nuts, a cinnamon stick, an organic apple slice, sugar snap peas, etc.

Unfortunately, our Zig is very finicky. She is Daddy's little Princess s,,what does Zigg eat? anything Zig wants lol and it's pellets hahaha.Well, heard from the Vet. The x-Rays show a mass of some kind. Either the liver or cancer!!!!!She said that possible the liver has an infection so we'll continue giving her antibiotics WE take oru zig back in a week to hve her checked. She has preened and cleaned herself up, she is eating and drinking and playing. She's our Zig. Hopefully the medication will help and cure whatever this is.
Let's hope this isn't a mass!
I'll keep you posted

I forgot to ask...do any of you give your birds calcium? if so, what kind(name) is it suggested for too's?Thanks again,
Liz(the worried mom)

Oh no, Liz. I'm so sorry to hear this. Hugs to you and hope for only a minor illness and a complete recovery for Ziggy. We will be waiting and hoping with you.

I've never given my birds calcium. Maybe Ziggy's vet could suggest something if you call the office or hopefully another forum member can answer.

Oh Liz, I'm so sorry to hear about your vet's 'possible' diagnosis. Hoping and praying it's not cancer.

If it's the liver, you can give her Aloe Detox, and hopefully that will take care of it.
http://www.parrotforums.com/general-health-care/36179-aloe-detox-parrots-elevated-liver-values.html

I've never given mine any calcium either. I know you said she's particularly fussy with her food. Does she like any kind of human food? Like chicken wing bones (for example)? Scrambled eggs? If your vet feels she needs calcium, you could scramble eggs and crush the eggshells into the eggs.