Ask Lafeber

Cockatiel acting different

Hi! My cockatiel is probably 15 yrs old. I’m not 100% sure his age as i got him from a girl going off to college and she could no longer care for him. He is a feather picker since he was a baby. I guess my tiel was picked on, and since that day he’s been chewing his feathers. Anyways the past few days he’s been sitting inside his treat dish, cocking his head weird moving it in an almost S shape. It’s hard to explain as I’ve never seen it before. Besides doing that a few times a day he’s perfectly fine. Still his normal self- eating,sleeping, screeching, dancing and singing.

Hi Kathleen,

Have you ever taken your bird to an Avian Vet? It might be time for a check up. I’m not sure if you mean he is chewing his feathers or plucking them. Plucking is harder on a bird’s system, because the bird pulls the feather out completely and he will be in a constant state of growing feathers. He would likely need nutritional supplements to keep him healthy. When a bird chews his own feathers, it mainly just makes him look scruffy. In either situation, there is often a medical cause. It is very unusual for a bird to pluck as a baby, even if the parents or clutchmates did pick on him. He may have some nutritional issues going on, a skin infection or issue, possibly something genetic. But given his age, something needs to be done to try to stop him from doing this or supplement him so he doesn’t get run down. I’m not sure what he is doing when you describe his odd behavior. It could be something neurological but that is just a guess. I think a trip to the Vet would be the best way to go.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda