Cockatiel Woes....

My girlfriend had purchased a 7 month old Cockatiel about a month ago and it is the sweetest cockatiel I’ve ever met. About a week into owning her, she fell and landed on her tail feathers which caused a split in the vent. Seeing blood, we rushed her to the vet and she was stitched up and good to go....HOWEVER....

They noticed her droppings weren’t a normal color as they were a darker green. By this point her weight had dropped from 88grams to 74. The doctor put her on 3 antibiotics, and a water mixture. She was constantly tired, grumpy, and only ate the small seed from her bowl. Returning to the vet, her blood test returned with a low red blood cell count...so we recently just finished giving her shots of Winstrol steroids now to increase her red blood cells...

Currently she is drinking a “pancreatic” herbal water mixture and eating quite a bit. Her weight is now 102 grams, and seems to be normal.....except for her Droppings. She doesn’t go often, but when she does HOLY BIRD CRAP it leaks through the paper towel there’s so much urine, but very little fecal matter. Now this is my girlfriends bird but I’m really concerned as I’ve never seen a cockatiel with so many...ailments....

Wow what a scary start to bringing home the new cockatiel! Was she trying to fly, or how did she fall exactly? Poor baby...

Your vet is going to be your most valuable resource at this time. It is important that you continue to monitor her weight, if she's eating and going to the bathroom. With her vent injured, it is likely you'll see some variations in her dropping until she can heal.

The 'ailments' are likely from her injury and should go back to normal as she recovers. It may be quite painful for her to go to the bathroom, so that may be the reason she does not go as often, and when she does, its a big one. Hoping for a smooth recovery for your new baby and keep a very close eye on her to prevent any more falls.

She was on the top of her cage flapping her wings a little bit, then just randomly decided to spazz, jump up, and fall backwards.
Sadly it was enough to break skin....She seems for the most part happy! She has been kind of “horny” I think because she’s at the age where her hormones are kicking in?

I am so so SO sorry!

Kudos to YOU for the veterinary follow-through and steady nerves.

You have my admiration!

Please keep us posted...

Yes, this is all due to the vent injury...Realize that their feces does not have a neutral pH level, and if he has an injured vent it is probably horribly painful for him to go, between the burning from the feces and just the movement of going. And the longer they hold-in their droppings, the larger it's going to be, just like the first one they do each morning. So just be patient with him, he'll be fine but he must completely heal.

What a wonderfully sweet bird, all of this TLC and handling should increase the bond further. Judging by the therapies given, it seems the vet is avian certified?