Hi everyone! I’m looking for some advice and, especially, experiences from people who have dealt with a similar situation.
I have two cockatiels, female and male. They are 4 years old. They’re siblings, and they’ve never mated, but they both show hormonal and nesting behaviors. Female has laid quite a few eggs over time, and male seems very focused on nesting spots.
They currently have separate cages, but in the same room, where they can see (partially as there is a light sheet over the female top cage) and hear each other. They have 14 hours of sleep/dark. When I try to keep them in separate rooms, they get extremely vocal and seem distressed because they can still hear each other. So I rather avoid that.
They spend most of their time outside their cage with me (I work from home). But when I go out, they become desperate. They don't seem to be a "pair" because the male is very attached to me and wants me to stay with him wherever he goes. He also has a shoe that he is attached to and does not like to be away from it. There are several layers to the problem, one of which is their extreme dependence on me = intense chirp when I'm not present.
They don't play; I'm trying to train them to be interested in toys, but so far without success. The female laid eggs every year, until I allowed her to "incubate" the egg to see if she would stop laying them; the male then joined in to take turns. It didn't help, she kept laying eggs and calling for him. I believe the male chirp a lot because the female calls him to look for a nest, he becomes visibly agitated by that specific type of chirping she does.
As I mentioned, there are many layers to this, I have wanted to post before a bunch of times asking for help regarding their intense vocalizations, sometimes even when they're on my shoulder.I thought the training was going well, until they started vocalizing excessively again, which led me to believe is hormonal. Therefore, my focus in this post is on this situation.
Since they were babies, I've always avoided anything that looks like a nest, but even so, the female laid eggs. As I said, they roam freely and they like to walk on the floor. Unfortunately, I can't seal all the gaps in the house (under furniture, etc.). When they are walking, I direct them away from the gaps. They like to scratch (like eat their food from the floor like chicken, I'm using a Translator so I don't know the naming) and walk around, sometimes ignoring the gaps. But in my bedroom and office they've already learned that there are holes, and in the bedroom they get desperate wanting to get to them, even when I “close” the gap. I once left them in the kitchen (in their cage) when I went out to see if the chirping would decrease, but it didn't work, I live on the third floor and I could hear them from the street. If they want to stay with me, they'll have to stay in the office, which is where I work, and where there are gaps under one furniture. Any noise I make suddenly outside the room, is enough to make them chirp desperately.
I noticed that they don't eat when I leave the house. They wait for me to come back to eat. When I arrive, they eat desperately. Which worries me as they are animals that eat constantly, so staying long time without eating is bad. Part of the training I was doing was to stay in the room while they ate and gradually distance myself, so they realize they can eat on their own. It seemed to be working, but I believe that due to the hormonal changes, they have now stalled.
So there are several layers that I know I need to work with them, but honestly, I feel lost. I've already left them in their cage in the room while I'm home so they can get used to being alone and eating, but they don't. The chirping doesn't stop either, You can tell it's a desperate cry. Even though they're right next to each other, it seems like they don't see each other as companions. From what I've read in forums, when it comes to leaving a bird alone and it becomes distressed, the best course of action is to get another bird. But what about when there are two birds like that?
They eat seeds (millet, etc, I remove sunflower seeds) and extruded food (pellets?). I tried switching their food more than once, but with the incessant chirping I thought they were starving, and sometimes the chirping was so loud I couldn't stand it anymore and thought I was doing something wrong. I read here in another post that the seed may be a cause of their hormonal condition?
I have very sensitive hearing, which doesn't help. They were given to me and I've become attached to them, even though I have this difficulty, I want the best for them. I had never had birds before, so everything was new to me, including the fact that they chirped loudly. I want to work this out with them, not get rid of them.
I wonder if you can help with tips, suggestions, anything. Their agitation breaks my heart, It seems like they're suffering when I leave the room or the house.
I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences, especially how things progressed after making changes to their environment. I apologize for the long text, and hope someone can help us
I have two cockatiels, female and male. They are 4 years old. They’re siblings, and they’ve never mated, but they both show hormonal and nesting behaviors. Female has laid quite a few eggs over time, and male seems very focused on nesting spots.
They currently have separate cages, but in the same room, where they can see (partially as there is a light sheet over the female top cage) and hear each other. They have 14 hours of sleep/dark. When I try to keep them in separate rooms, they get extremely vocal and seem distressed because they can still hear each other. So I rather avoid that.
They spend most of their time outside their cage with me (I work from home). But when I go out, they become desperate. They don't seem to be a "pair" because the male is very attached to me and wants me to stay with him wherever he goes. He also has a shoe that he is attached to and does not like to be away from it. There are several layers to the problem, one of which is their extreme dependence on me = intense chirp when I'm not present.
They don't play; I'm trying to train them to be interested in toys, but so far without success. The female laid eggs every year, until I allowed her to "incubate" the egg to see if she would stop laying them; the male then joined in to take turns. It didn't help, she kept laying eggs and calling for him. I believe the male chirp a lot because the female calls him to look for a nest, he becomes visibly agitated by that specific type of chirping she does.
As I mentioned, there are many layers to this, I have wanted to post before a bunch of times asking for help regarding their intense vocalizations, sometimes even when they're on my shoulder.I thought the training was going well, until they started vocalizing excessively again, which led me to believe is hormonal. Therefore, my focus in this post is on this situation.
Since they were babies, I've always avoided anything that looks like a nest, but even so, the female laid eggs. As I said, they roam freely and they like to walk on the floor. Unfortunately, I can't seal all the gaps in the house (under furniture, etc.). When they are walking, I direct them away from the gaps. They like to scratch (like eat their food from the floor like chicken, I'm using a Translator so I don't know the naming) and walk around, sometimes ignoring the gaps. But in my bedroom and office they've already learned that there are holes, and in the bedroom they get desperate wanting to get to them, even when I “close” the gap. I once left them in the kitchen (in their cage) when I went out to see if the chirping would decrease, but it didn't work, I live on the third floor and I could hear them from the street. If they want to stay with me, they'll have to stay in the office, which is where I work, and where there are gaps under one furniture. Any noise I make suddenly outside the room, is enough to make them chirp desperately.
I noticed that they don't eat when I leave the house. They wait for me to come back to eat. When I arrive, they eat desperately. Which worries me as they are animals that eat constantly, so staying long time without eating is bad. Part of the training I was doing was to stay in the room while they ate and gradually distance myself, so they realize they can eat on their own. It seemed to be working, but I believe that due to the hormonal changes, they have now stalled.
So there are several layers that I know I need to work with them, but honestly, I feel lost. I've already left them in their cage in the room while I'm home so they can get used to being alone and eating, but they don't. The chirping doesn't stop either, You can tell it's a desperate cry. Even though they're right next to each other, it seems like they don't see each other as companions. From what I've read in forums, when it comes to leaving a bird alone and it becomes distressed, the best course of action is to get another bird. But what about when there are two birds like that?
They eat seeds (millet, etc, I remove sunflower seeds) and extruded food (pellets?). I tried switching their food more than once, but with the incessant chirping I thought they were starving, and sometimes the chirping was so loud I couldn't stand it anymore and thought I was doing something wrong. I read here in another post that the seed may be a cause of their hormonal condition?
I have very sensitive hearing, which doesn't help. They were given to me and I've become attached to them, even though I have this difficulty, I want the best for them. I had never had birds before, so everything was new to me, including the fact that they chirped loudly. I want to work this out with them, not get rid of them.
I wonder if you can help with tips, suggestions, anything. Their agitation breaks my heart, It seems like they're suffering when I leave the room or the house.
I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences, especially how things progressed after making changes to their environment. I apologize for the long text, and hope someone can help us
Cockatiels, as you've discovered, are one of the species that can be rather more notorious for infertile egg-laying than many others. Doesn't matter whether they've mated or not, whether they have a nesting site or not, I once had a 'tiel hen who would lay them on the bare floor of her cage, and she most certainly did not have a male around to pique her interest in laying, she just did it anyway 
