Thank you for reaching out to Lafeber.
Cockatiels are notorious for double clutching. My suggestion is to replace her eggs with fake ones because if you take them away and do not replace them, she will continue laying. Female cockatiels have what is called a “brooding patch” and it will vary from clutch to clutch. So, if she’s programed to lay four eggs this time around and if you take her eggs away, she will continue to lay until she has four eggs to incubate. Also keep in mind the eggs you’re removing are most likely fertile. But since the babies are going in and out of the nesting box, it’s best to remove and replace them because the babies will most likely break or addle them. If you allow this pair to have babies in the future, I suggest removing the box as soon as the babies fledge. There is no reason for them to continue having access to it because at this age they are feathered out enough to keep warm, especially since they will still cuddle together when sleeping. If they continue going in and out of the box, the parents may start pulling their feathers out. It’s understandable the mother is not as willing to feed the babies as much as dad because when a pair of cockatiels double clutch, the male will usually take over the majority of the feeding responsibilities, because mom is laying eggs again and she needs to preserve her nutrition for that.
I don’t know what you’re feeding them, but cockatiels are ground foragers, so I suggest laying some paper towels on the bottom of their cage and sprinkle their food on it to encourage the babies to start eating on their own. At this point if dad starts to pull out their feathers, you will need to separate them, and they are not old enough to wean yet. They may start eating a bit on their own but at 6 weeks they cannot eat enough on their own to sustain themselves. Baby cockatiels do not fully wean until they are about 8 weeks. If you notice the babies follow dad around and bob their heads and cry or sit alone and bob their heads and cry, it’s a good sign dad has stopped feeding them enough. As you may have also noticed, mom sits on the eggs at night, and dad sits on them during the day, so his focus may eventually be helping to take care of the eggs instead of the fledged babies. I’m not a fan of millet but since you need to accelerate them learning to become self-sufficient, you may want to hang a few pieces on the side of their cage. You can also place some soft veggies in a shallow dish and place it on the bottom of the cage also. You can always wean them from it later. Birds are very good at mimicking so if they are watching mom and dad eating food from the bottom, the babies will most likely start doing it also.
The timing of this can be a little tricky but do the best you can. If you get into a situation where you need more hands-on assistance, you can call our customer service number and let them know you need to talk to me, and I will happily call you back if you leave them contact information.
