Cockatiel acting strange!

[DRH21]

Hello I have a question on what to do about my cockatiel. She has been tilting her head back constantly and it looks like she is staring at the ceiling. She is grinding her beak and it seams like she is not stressed. Also when she tried flying to the couch she was going to land and then suddenly turned around, kept on flying and almost crashed. It is night here so I can't visit the Vet right now. She seemed to be eating and pooping normally thruout the day. So right now she is just resting, but her head is all the way up and its been that way for a few hours now.

It would be nice if someone could explain what can cause this and what I can do right now. Sorry for the bad grammer, I just wanted to type this fast.
Thanks

[DRH21]

UPDATE
I put her in the cage so she can sleep. After a few min she went o the bottom, which I know is not a good sign. She is still grinding her beak and is calm. It seems like her eye sight is bad because I tried putting her on a perch but she did not step off my hand. If this is the case I wonder why this is happening so suddenly like this. I am researching right now, but hopefully someone can give me some advice/info.

[PlaxMacaws]

Hi DRH21... How old is your tiel and how long have you had her? If her head is fixed in a tilted back position and she persists with the beak grinding, it almost sounds as if she has somehow injured her neck. If that's the case, it may be that she didn't step off of your hand because her injury is forcing her to look upward (as you've described). And that could explain why she wasn't able to target her landing point as well. I would get her in to an avian vet as soon as possible. The vet will likely take x-rays and palpate her head and neck area in order to determine what may be causing her strange posture.

Please report back with what the vet determines.

[DRH21]

Hey. Thank You for replying, we've had her for around 10 years or so. I think she might be 11 years old..might be more but I have to check. I researched the problem with the head and she might have a condition called "stargazing". Unfortunately it can be caused by many different things. I will try to go to the vet tomorrow and see what is wrong. I put the outside food bowl and water bowl on the bottom for easy access. Hopefully she is going to be okay. I'll try to give an update in the morning.

Thanks again for replying.

[kendrafitz]

Hi. I don't have any advice besides see a vet. I just wanted to say I'm thinking of you and hope she is better soon. I know how stressed you must be.

[spiritbird]

Thanks for joining us here at PP. I am so sorry your bird is not acting normally. It does sound like a trip to the vet is the best direction to go. We are interested in knowing the outcome so please share this with us.

[PlaxMacaws]

Hey. Thank You for replying, we've had her for around 10 years or so. I think she might be 11 years old..might be more but I have to check. I researched the problem with the head and she might have a condition called "stargazing". Unfortunately it can be caused by many different things. I will try to go to the vet tomorrow and see what is wrong. I put the outside food bowl and water bowl on the bottom for easy access. Hopefully she is going to be okay. I'll try to give an update in the morning.

Thanks again for replying.It appears that you've correctly identified her condition. I personally have no experience with a "stargazing" bird, but I've just reviewed some of the information concerning the disorder. It sounds to be a neurologic complication of which both the cause and the recommended treatment tend to vary. Speculation on causation goes from heavy metal poisoning to nutrient deficiency to contracted viral infection to genetic predisposition. It seems that it can strike randomly and even correct itself after a period (in some cases).

I wish you and your bird well. Please let us know how things go with the vet.

[Cedardave]

We have a stargazing quaker who has been this way since the day we got her.Be cautious with the water on the bottom of the cage.A very shallow bowl is best to avoid drowning if the condition cause loss of consciousness.Try adding some additional calcium to the diet...this sometimes helps.Should your bird experience seizures calcium is a huge benefit on controlling them.We have a blue crowned conure that suffers from seizures...the calcium stops them.Im not sure if there is a cure for stargazing...is your birds head tilted or straight back.If straight back it may be a neck issue.Please keep us updated

[Casper's 2nd best friend]

Get well soon little bird, we are all thinking of you.

[Lady]

Oh my DRH,

I am also interested in what the vet says and can do to help your tiel. I have no experience with this disease and have only read a little about due to your post.

You know our birds can sense our feelings, so do your best to keep your stress down and we will all be hoping for the best results.

Yes, welcome to P.P. Hope you enjoy your time here and we get to know you and your bird better.

[jtbirds]

hello I just wanted to stop by and say welcome to the forums. I certainly hope the bird gets better the information provided is great! Hopefully something gets figured out

[DRH21]

Hello! Thank You for all the replies and nice words. Sorry it took me so long to reply. I wasn't able to bring her to the vet today due to various reasons. The good news though is that she ate well today and drank plenty of water. She has much more control over her head too. Regardless I am aware that I should still get her checked up by a vet, and will try and do so A.S.A.P. Cedardave - Thanks for the tip about the water bowl on the bottom of the cage.

Also, something unusual happened that I wanted to ask the fellow bird owners here. My Cockatiel(the same one) was semi-hostile towards me - she would bite me if I got too close and be friendly at times too.(especially when I had food.) She was bonded to my mother and let her rub her head and be close to her. She was also bonded to my step Dad, who is no longer in the household anymore for a year now though. Suddenly about 2 weeks ago she was tame towards me. She let me pet her head, rub her beak, etc. I've never been bitten by her since and the same goes with my 2 brothers living here too. It was like a switch went off in her head. Now I am wondering if any of you had an experience with a pet bird like that, because I find this strange.

[Casper's 2nd best friend]

Casper took a year before deciding he wanted for me to pet him as well as Margaret... so yes. Having realised he is onto a good thing, getting double the attention, he makes sure Margaret and I don't get jealous of each other by asking to change who's shoulder he is on regularly.
Good luck at the vets, I started on this forum so I wouldn't have to worry about Casper so much, which has worked well, but now I also worry about all the other poorly birds. :th_smile:

[DRH21]

Hey all. I finally took her to the vet and they are going to keep her there for a few days to do all the testing and make sure she recovers. Sorry for not updating on this issue for a while.

[spiritbird]

Thanks for updating us. I wish your bird well.

[Lady]

Sounds like a great idea. Hopefully your vet will help you understand more about what happened and what can be done to keep things in order. Please let us know so we can learn also.

[DRH21]

They said that he looks about the same in the morning. They gave him some vitamins last night. Today they are going to do blood work, but he is not eating much so they are going to have to do tube-feed her:( Also they said that she might have a neurological problem.

[spiritbird]

Praying for your little bird to be better. You are doing your best.

[Lady]

Thanks for the update, wishing good news ahead!

[DRH21]

Thanks for the kind words. The Vet called and the blood results are supposed to come tomorrow. So far she doesn't seem to be doing well. I'll give you guys an update tomorrow, hopefully she somehow starts to recover.

[DRH21]

The blood results came in and so far they say she has liver disease.:( She is still not wanting to eat so they are tube feeding her, but she is a bit more active, which is a good sign. They are planning on keeping her there till she starts eating on her own.

[Casper's 2nd best friend]

Fingers crossed it was caught in time and she will respond to treatment.:th_smile:

[PlaxMacaws]

The blood results came in and so far they say she has liver disease.:( She is still not wanting to eat so they are tube feeding her, but she is a bit more active, which is a good sign. They are planning on keeping her there till she starts eating on her own.I'm sorry to hear about your tiel's liver condition. But depending upon its severity, it may not be fatal for her. If you've not already done so, be sure to do some adequate research on diet and nutrition for cockatiels. Here's one page that's on point concerning metabolism, the liver, and relevant nutrients: [Users must be registered and logged in to view attached photos or hyperlinks]

Best of well wishes for your tiel! Please keep us updated.

[Lady]

Oh DRH,

Not the news anyone wants to hear :(. I am hoping she does well and can fight this disease. If you haven't read the article Tony put in his post, do it. It sounds like changing her diet and increasing some good organic items will help her in the chance to win the battle.

[spiritbird]

Thanks for the updates. Good thing she is receiving vet care. Liver disease takes a while to reverse so have patience.

[DRH21]

Thank You all for the input. OK so today she is doing a little worse, the Vet said she is starting to have seizures, and she is not gaining much weight. I read multiple stories on the internet of Aloe Vera Detox liquid making a bird with severe liver disease that did not have much more time to live fully recover after a month or two. Do any of you guys have any experience using Aloe Detox? From what I've read people used it on birds with no hope and they returned back to normal. Do any of you recommend it?

Thanks

EDIT: PlaxMacaws, in the link you provided they recommended the Aloe detox. I'm going to buy a bottle, hopefully it works.

[94lt1]

Keep your chin up.. Rain has liver and heart problems due to her breeding... But with following the vets Instructions and a bunch of green leafy vegetables.. She's happy and active...and according to her checkup Wednesday... Is "seemingly" healthy.. Meaning that had the vet not already known of her condition.. He wouldn't have been able to find it yesterday...

[DRH21]

Well the Vet called a little while ago and told me that she just had a big seizure and died. He's going to do an autopsy on her to see what was wrong on the inside. Thank you all for your support and advice. She had a nice 12 year life. What I regret though is not being able to take her to the vet sooner.

[kendrafitz]

I am so very sorry for yor loss.

[Casper's 2nd best friend]

Oh how sad. :'( You have our deepest sympathy.

[PlaxMacaws]

That's terribly sad news. I'm truly sorry for your loss :(. My condolences to you.

[Lady]

Oh, I too am sorry for your loss. At least she will not have to suffer seizures any more.

[DRH21]

Thanks all for the replies... She was a loyal bird. I know this was really of risky, but her cage in the last place we moved to was a few feet away from a door. She had a million chances to escape and never even tried. What about your guy's birds? What I've heard from people was that many birds will fly out through a tiny opening in the window if they got the chance.

[94lt1]

Sorry to hear this.. Rain has had seizures and I've been worried sick with her.. But i got strict with the amount of greens she takes in and have her checked.. She's doing great... I wish your teil did the same...

Rain and Starburst are both clipped but we walk outside with them all the time.. If something scares them.. They hide down our shirts.. Lol.. But we keep an eye our for predatory birds and animals.. Our backyard is fenced in and well maintained....