Cockatiels - how to know if your bird is sick?

Ashckroft

New member
Apr 14, 2019
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Hello,

I have a male cockatiel.I noticed that when he is taking rest he puffs up all feather like a fluffy ball.But its not this the problem.When he does that he also shivers a little.I've seen on the internet that this usually goes for temperature regulation.He is most of the time active, eating, normal excrements- medium greenish and medium in consistency.It all look normal to me,but how to distinct if there's problem?

Also his skin on the legs is little dry looks scaly and found a spot with little blood should I be concerned?

Thank you!
 
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Ashckroft

New member
Apr 14, 2019
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I don't know if your bird is very sick or not but I think you should take him to a CAV.
What you mentioned about his feet does sound like something to be worried about.​


I got him. It looks he is fine.I'm taking him to the vet again after some time to make sure again.
 

Scott

Supporting Member
Aug 21, 2010
32,673
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San Diego, California USA, Earth, Milky Way Galaxy
Parrots
Goffins: Gabby, Abby, Squeaky, Peanut, Popcorn / Citron: Alice / Eclectus: Angel /Timneh Grey: ET / Blue Fronted Amazon: Gonzo /

RIP Gandalf and Big Bird, you are missed.
Birds have developed the uncanny ability to act and appear normal until an illness or disease process becomes rather acute. Survival skills, as most species are preyed upon in the wild. By the time you notice an obvious problem, it has likely existed for a while.

Thankfully the standard of avian medicine is advanced, though availability is problematic depending on location. Far more dogs/cats globally, so practices dedicated to birds are fairly rare. If you have the choice, a certified avian vet is best. Many treat "exotics" as adjunct to their practice and lack specialized training and dedicated equipment.
 

EllenD

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Aug 20, 2016
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State College, PA
Parrots
Senegal Parrot named "Kane"; Yellow-Sided Green Cheek Conure named "Bowie"; Blue Quaker Parrot named "Lita Ford"; Cockatiel named "Duff"; 8 American/English Budgie Hybrids; Ringneck Dove named "Dylan"
Scott's post above is what you need to make yourself aware of and remind yourself of, because the #1 reason why pet birds/parrots die of illnesses that are easily treatable is because they ALL possess a natural, innate survival-instinct to hide any and all outward signs and symptoms that they are sick or in pain for as long as they possibly can; typically a sick bird doesn't show ANY signs or symptoms that they are at all sick or that anything at all is wrong with them until at least weeks or months, sometimes many months, have gone by since they first became sick. So by the time we as people FIRST NOTICE something is wrong with our birds/parrots, they have usually been very sick or in physical pain for months...This is a natural Survival-Instinct that ALL BIRDS possess from the time they hatch, including captive-bred and hand-raised pet birds....And the reason they do this is because all birds are "Prey-Animals", and all birds are "Flock-Animals"...So hiding all signs and symptoms that they are sick keeps not only them from becoming "targets" for Predators, but also keeps their entire Flocks from becoming the targets of Predators...

****So for this reason alone, you ALWAYS need to pay close attention to your pet birds/parrots, and the very first time you notice that something is not quite right with one or more of them, the very first time they outwardly display ANY signs//symptoms of illness, you must get them to an Avian Vet immediately, because something as simple as a Bacterial or Fungal/Yeast Infection can kill them if they've been sick with it for weeks to months....This is also the reason that you should ALWAYS take ALL of your pet birds/parrots to either a Certified Avian Vet or an Avian Specialist Vet for a full Wellness-Exam AT LEAST ONCE EVERY YEAR! It's a "Preventative Wellness-Exam" that you must do at least once every year, some people take their birds every 6-months, and it MUST INCLUDE #1) Full Fecal testing, meaning both a Gram-Stain and Microscopy that is done on their Fecal-sample right there in the Vet's office, and then also taking a Fecal-culture/swab and sending it out to the Laboratory that your Avian Vet uses and having them run a Culture on it as well; and then also #2) Full, routine Blood-Work must be done as well at least once a year...Having Blood-Work run on your birds once a year at the least is the ONLY WAY to catch illnesses/diseases early and get treatment started early-on, whether it be something as simple as a Bacterial or Fungal Infection in their Gastrointestinal Tract, or it be a serious Avian Viral Disease such as PBFD or ABV, or it be that your bird is suffering from a Liver or Kidney Disease that is common to pet birds/parrots, such as "Fatty-Liver Disease", which kills many, many pet birds/parrots long before their lifespan should be up, and is 100% due to people feeding their pet parrots a daily-diet of a Seed-Mix that is extremely high in fat and low in protein, such as the ones that contain any Sunflower Seeds, any Nuts/Peanuts, or any Dried Corn kernels/pieces.

***Forgetting the yearly Wellness-Exams and testing that all pet birds/parrots should have done, Your Cockatiel is exhibiting one of the most-common outward signs/symptoms that a bird is sick: He is staying Fluffed-Up during the daytime when they shouldn't be staying Fluffed-Up, and he is Shivering at the same time...This is one of the major signs of illness that indicates that the bird usually has some type of Infection that is causing a Fever...Also, YOU NEED TO IMMEDIATELY IDENTIFY WHERE THE DROP OF BLOOD YOU FOUND ON HIS FOOT IS COMING FROM!!!

Any time you see ANY blood on your bird you must quickly identify where it came from, because Cockatiels can only lose about 3-4 Teaspoons of blood before they die from the blood-loss....The spot of blood you found on his foot/leg may be from something that is non-emergent, or it may be coming from something extremely serious and life-threatening, such as a broken Blood-Feather that you cannot see on the outside of his body, but rather underneath his wing (very common place for them to break a Blood-Feather open), or it could be from a broken Toenail, which just like a broken Blood-Feather will sometimes not stop bleeding until you apply a clotting-substance, such as Cornstarch...You just never know where blood is coming from on your bird, and you have to immediately figure it out so that if it is something bleeding that needs immediate medical attention, you can give it to him, because smaller parrots like Cockatiels, Budgies, Green Cheek Conures, Parrotlets, etc. can die from blood-loss within a matter of minutes...

****The blood you found on his foot/leg is probably not related to the reason why he's staying Fluffed-Up and Shivering during the daytime...It's not at all uncommon for pet birds to have very dry skin on their feet and legs that often even looks like they have "scales", and this is not a medical emergency or a sign that they are sick...Hopefully the drop of blood you found was from something like a piece of dry skin being ripped-off of his foot/let, or from him preening himself, etc. But you do need to look his body completely over, EVERYWHERE, INCLUDING UNDER BOTH OF HIS WINGS, and find out where it came from...However, the big issue is why your Cockatiel has been Fluffed-Up and Shivering, both of which are signs/symptoms that he is sick with something like a Bacterial or Fungal Infection (or both), or from an Avian Viral Disease, or any other number of medical/health concerns...Birds do not just get "the Flu" or get "a Cold" like people do, so when they start showing outward signs and symptoms that they are sick, it's not a situation where they are just going to start getting better on their own without medical treatment like people do when they become sick with the Flu virus or a "Cold" virus...Birds do not contract these types of Viral-illnesses that will just go away on their own, so that's why you need to always take your Cockatiel to an Avian Vet at the first sign/symptom that he may be sick...And you need to take a fresh Fecal-sample with you to the Vet and request that they run Fecal-testing on it to rule-out either a Bacterial Infection, a Fungal/Yeast Infection, BOTH, or some other type of GI-Tract issue, such as not enough beneficial-bacteria being present in his GI-Tract, a Protozoan Infection such as Giardia, Worms, etc.

***And just as an FYI to you for future-reference, there are some common signs/symptoms of illness that birds will often display that if you see them, you need to get him to an Avian Vet right away, along with a fresh Fecal-sample that he made within the past 24-hours and that you put in a baggie or container and then put in the fridge to take to the Avian Vet with you. These signs/symptoms include:

-The bird eating less than normal or not eating at all
-Droppings that are loose or runny
-The bird being lethargic and not playing or moving around like they normally do
-The bird sleeping more than usual, and/or sleeping during the daytime in addition to at nighttime
-The bird staying fluffed-up during the daytime
-The bird shivering/shaking
-The bird going to the bottom of their cage and staying down there (they do this because they either don't feel well enough to stand on a perch, or they are too weak to perch, and need to stand on a totally flat-surface that they cannot fall off of)
-ANY Vomiting at all (There is a distinct difference between a bird Vomiting and a bird Regurgitating; When a bird Regurgitates, usually due to hormonal-behavior, they typically first start "head-bobbing" right before they bring-up the regurgitation, and what they bring-up when they Regurgitate are very small bits of food that are completely SOLID and all-white in color; when a bird Vomits, they don't first do any "head-bobbing", but rather typically shake their heads quickly and violently right before they vomit; what they bring-up when they Vomit is a liquid with chunks of undigested food in it; the amount they bring-up when they Vomit is much, much more than the tiny little bits of solid, white-colored food they bring-up when they Regurgitate...The difference is very easy to recognize, and the presence of ANY LIQUID coming-up is the major tip-off that your bird has Vomited...
 

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