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My female tiel may be trying to lay an egg. Here are her symptoms, her stools are very large, i mean large, like it looks like a hard worm coming out of her, she is eating more, and drinking more, and just tearing up those cuttle bones. Usually when i go in the room, the male and female always come out of the nest box, but today they both stayed in it, i was a little worried about that so i tapped on the box and neither on still didnt come out, so i opened the top, thinking that maybe one of them was hurt or sick or something, they still would not budge, just hiss at me, so i closed the top and left the room. So my question is this, is she going to lay eggs or what, and are her stools normal for a female that is going to lay eggs. please help me!!

Yes, she may be trying to lay an egg, and she may be able to lay it normally, or she may be egg-bound. If she's egg-bound, she could die within a very few hours. Knowing how to tell what's normal and what requires emergency vet care is a matter of experience and good advice at hand. Who have you turned to for information before setting your birds up with a nest box? If a local breeder, I suggest you phone her right now, and see what she thinks of your hen's situation. If you've learned from books, I suggest you find an emergency avian vet in hopes you won't lose her.

I hope she's okay.

I am the one who set them up for breeding. Why do you people who breed birds act like no one else can do it, everytime i post something i get very negative responses from it. Avian vet this avian vet that, i hand raised macaws before, and tiels are just new to me, i ask for advise, i thought this is what upatsix was about, asking for help and advise when needed, but all you want to tell is vet this and vet that, i know all about vets, i was just wanting to know if this behavior was normal in tiels, if i feel she is in distress i will take her to a vet, and if i sound angry i am not and i apologize for it, but i need advise from you, and not to tell to take her to a vet.

With my tiels when the hen is getting ready to lay her stools get larger. She wont willingly soil the nest, so she holds it for long periods of time and then relieves herself when she comes out of the box. I've seen that in everything from parrots to poultry. We call them broody poo's. They are often very smelly too. You will probably have seen similar with your macaws. With mine, though, the stools are usually normal to slightly watery in consistancy rather than very hard. A sympton that I have often found in egg bound birds is that the vent becomes dirty. The stool sticks to the feathers around the vent, and I guess since she isn't feeling all that well she doesn't bother to clean herself. The sitting in the box and hissing thing sounds pretty normal. With some of my birds I have to actually shove them out of the box to access the eggs....other will leave when I tap on the outside of the box. So I guess that is just an individual thing. If they are both adamant about staying in the box, then it sounds to me like there is indeed an egg on the way. If this is her first clutch the liklihood of her being egg bound is higher than with a seasoned breeder, so it certainly would merit close monitoring. Good luck!

EDIT: going through tons of cuddle is also a sign that she is storing up calcium for her eggs. With my GCC's they devoure tons of it right up til the last egg is laid. When they slow down on calcium consumption I know she's laid as many eggs as she intends to lay.

eblake38 wrote:... So my question is this, is she going to lay eggs or what, and are her stools normal for a female that is going to lay eggs. please help me!!

Bluesbird Exotics wrote:Yes, she may be trying to lay an egg, and she may be able to lay it normally, or she may be egg-bound... I hope she's okay.

When you say I NEED HELP!!! we can only presume you're upset. If you're upset about your bird's situation, an avian vet can help you far more than a chat board. As I said, Yes, she may be trying to lay an egg, and she may be able to lay it normally, or she may be egg-bound. I'm not meaning no one else can successfully breed cockatiels, but only that we can't tell you whether all is well in your hen's situation. I read your post several times to see what you said about timing, and everything else. It's not been so long that I'd presume an emergency, but something has upset you, and I tend to trust instincts. Do you know what has upset you about her situation? How is she behaving in any way that differs from what your research has told you is normal?

She has just started this today, cause i didnt think she was going to try and lay this time of year, so yesterday i took the cage and cleaned it from top to bottom, and i did put the nestbox back because i thought they enjoyed just laying in there, maybe to keep warmer in there or something, but they never hesitated coming out of the box until today, so thats why i was asking about their behavior, she was rocking her head back and forth like a hen on eggs, but she would no budge, and when she did come out about 15 minutes later thats when i observed her taking a poo, and it was about 1and one half to 2 inches in length and firm in texture, thats why i was asking if it was normal for a tiel to do this when she is trying to egg lay, cause i knew if it was not, then i needed to seek vet attention, i am not upset about the situation, i was just wanting to know if this activity is normal in tiels when trying to lay eggs. and i do thank you for your information

You're most welcome. When poop is that firm, it's an indication she's not drinking enough water. Here's a discussion of dehydration that might give you some useful ideas (though it's not my favorite site): http://www.justanswer.com/questions/8u4 ... dehydrated

I hope all is well.

When my "girls" are getting ready to lay they will do a giant poop. They will alos drink alot , eat calcium and eat lots of greens too. Plus they are either really cuddly or grouchy.

Well so far she has not laid anything, and she is acting just fine, her vent is a little dirty with poo, but there isnt any out of the way behavior going on, she still is pooing a great deal though, she is walking fine, and acting just like always, i guess time will tell.

Thanks for posting this good news

I would be worried about a dirty vent. I am the LAST one to just recommened vet treatment unless necessary. But a dirty vent is DEFINITELY a sign that all is not well.

what I notice with my hen is that when the egg is about to be laid, the hen's underside looks all swollen and literally "egg shaped"
For me that has been a good indication that an egg is on it's way.
The hissing and swaying is all normal, just them protecting their nest.
My male tiel would fly onto my head to get me out of the aviary

must admit had a little bit of a chuckle at your "stop telling me to see an avian vet" comment cause I have noticed that on this bird site people do mention avian vets a lot but on this Ozzie site I post on sometimes, it doesn't get mentioned so often, probably cuz there are just not that many avian vets in Oz or........you Americans just care more for your birds or....................a vet visit doesn't cost an astronomical amount in America

It does cost a lot here to see the vet, but in defense of the long timers from UAS we have seen too many horror stories of egg bound and sick birds that die a few hours to a few days later because people refused to see a vet. When we see something like "HELP" or "HE/SHE'S BLEEDING ALL OVER" etc, we know there is nothing we can do. In all emergencies, it is best to see a vet and then ask questions, in non emergency situations, all caps convey the wrong message

In this case, a post titled, Is This Normal? would have been taken better by some.

And finally, yes, this behavior is normal for a hen on eggs or about to lay one. You can gently shoo her off the nest to check eggs, and she won't abandon them. Tiels are better about being disturbed than other birds it seems.

If she continues to have the dirty vent though, that may be a sign of trouble, and yes if it continues, you may need a vet to rule out a soft egg that she can't expel or an infection.

Christie's so right, vet care does cost a lot -- and cockatiels do not. Many people seem to think it's illogical to pay more for a vet visit than they paid for the bird. I completely disagree. An avian vet will charge the same for examining a $10,000 hyacinth macaw and an $80 cockatiel. The lab analyzing blood from both birds will charge exactly the same. I daresay the difference in purchase price is something everyone considers when deciding whether to buy a 'tiel or a hyacinth. The cost of responsible vet care should be given the same consideration.

A person who selects a 'tiel because it's the only bird she can afford, without estimating vet care costs, is making a mistake IMO. That's the thinking behind my frequent advice to take a bird who seems sick to an avian vet. It's the responsible thing to do, especially since birds are prey animals who instinctively hide any illness as long as they can. When we spot signs of illness, too often our bird is VERY sick.

Birds are expensive pets. So are horses. I would never accept the gift of a horse thinking it's free. Vet care is inevitably needed by almost all our pets, and it's rarely inexpensive. It's sad that it's that way, but that's how it sorts out to me. Sorry if I've offended anyone.

just want to say that all is well with my tiel, she has cleaned her rump and is acting just fine, walking great, her stools are still large, cause she is staying in the nest box alot, but they are not hard like before, they are very moist, but as of today there isnt any eggs, could she just be acting and maybe getting ready or preparing herself with this behavior for future egg laying, tell me what you think