African gray laid an egg now biting

Chachi99 · Dec 2, 2019

Hi there i have an African gray that will be 20 yrs old this month. She recently laid an egg about 2 wks ago and since she hasn’t been herself. She usually allows me to hold her and cuddle but now she tries to bite me. She’s not talking as much either. She stays in a little corner and will hesitate when i reach for her. We’ve been putting cuttle bone in her food since the egg was laid but she’s not eating as much as she usually does. Also when she laid the egg it broke immediately. I think my mom had taken out the egg the next day. I’m wondering if that was too soon and that’s why she’s being a bit mean? Any recommendations would be appreciated. I’m hesitant to take her to the vet bc idk if she gets car sick or anxious when i take her to the vet or to get her wings clipped, she passes out and/or throws up. The less stress i can out her through obviously the better. Thank you!

noodles123 · Dec 2, 2019

You should always leave the egg in the cage until they lose interest on their own (never remove them early or the cycle can repeat)
Cuddles etc probably led to the egg being laid---head and neck petting only (ever).
Make sure you don't provide any access to shadowy spaces (ever) or even mushy food (food thing applies during times of hormones, but the rest always apply).
She could possibly be egg-bound...I would get her to the vet to make sure.
I'm pretty sure they usually lay more than 1 egg...Decrease appetite and off behavior could mean egg-binding--especially because the egg was so fragile to begin with---she could have fragments of a second egg in her body, or an egg that she can't push out.

I am not trying to freak you out, but I think even cockatoos lay 2-3.

Chachi99 · Dec 2, 2019

Hi noodles123 thank you so much for your reply and suggestions. Every time she’s laid an egg it’s only been 1 but I’m wondering the same and keeping my fingers crossed this isn’t the case. I completely agree in regards to the egg i think it was tossed too soon and I’m wondering if i should consider buying a fake egg in addition to a vet visit.

noodles123 · Dec 2, 2019

Chachi99 said:
Hi noodles123 thank you so much for your reply and suggestions. Every time she’s laid an egg it’s only been 1 but I’m wondering the same and keeping my fingers crossed this isn’t the case. I completely agree in regards to the egg i think it was tossed too soon and I’m wondering if i should consider buying a fake egg in addition to a vet visit.

1 may be normal for her then. Cant say for sure on the fake egg. At this point, I probably wouldn't reintroduce anything, but I really don't know...

Have you guys looked at changing environmental factors that are prompting her to be so hormonal? (Sleep, petting, shadowy areas etc?)

Chachi99 · Mar 27, 2020

Its been quite awhile but thought I'd follow up since her case was a lil different. We ended up seeing a specialized avian group that had capability of performing more testing on her. They initially thought it was hormonal but still recommended an X-ray. The X-ray showed an egg in her lower abdominal area. They then did a barium swallow to see if the egg was indeed in her GI tract or just the area. Luckily they found it not in the tract but within her intestinal area. She had surgery and the egg was nestled near her intestines. The egg was a warped shape. Surgery was a success and she returned home a couple days later. She is now as spunky as ever. Thank you all for your replies, appreciated!

African gray laid an egg now biting

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