tail pointing down

[mrreza]

whats wrong with her tail pointing down like that? it seems like she is trying to push something out. her tail feathers get wide open and then closed every minute or so. maybe an egg? she has been nesting recently and today her poops were watery(had more water than usuall). but i cant see a bulge or anything any where. i also tried touching around her vent but nothing.update(8 hours later): she has pooped twice and i dont think anything is stuck but still her tail is the same. she flys and perchs and everything seems healthy but still the tails is pointing down

 

[Peachfaced]

Any chance you can get a better view? Usually you can see the area just before the cloaca bulging ever so slightly. You can also help keep an eye out for eggs by weighing her routinely (every morning after her first poop, before you feed her). Has she laid before?

 

[mrreza]

she hasnt laid before. how much weigh would an egg add? she is 1 year and 6 or 8 month old. i cant decide whether this is a bulge or not. but she has almost all the signs on the internet for laying eggs. drinks more water/watery poop(has more water than usuall)/ nesting. im just really worried about why her tail is like that

 

[Peachfaced]

It's hard to see, but there may be an egg there. Seems like the average Tiel egg weighs about 5g. Does she bathe regularly? If she's struggling to lay her first egg (not uncommon), running a shower to up the humidity can help if she's not keen on baths. She does not need to be in the shower, just in the room so that she gets the steam effect. I usually did that once a day for Sherbie when she was having trouble passing an egg, since she rarely partook in baths.

 

[mrreza]

thanks ! she actually took a bath yesterday. i will keep an eye out and try your suggestion . so her tail position isnt an emergency ?

 

[Rebel]

Make sure shes getting calcium. My girl will start eating her mineral block like crazy when shes due to lay an egg. Kaye, spinach,collard greens etc. are great sources of calcium. If you need to you can give her fruit flavored Tums. 1/4 tablet per day. Fruit flavored ONLY. Vet recommended. I would also recommend you have some of this on hand for the future.

https://www.chewy.com/morning-bird-calcium-plus-bird/dp/749190?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=organic&utm_content=Morning%20Bird

 

[Rebel]

thanks ! she actually took a bath yesterday. i will keep an eye out and try your suggestion . so her tail position isnt an emergency ?

I wouldnt say its an emergency just yet. If her tail starts bobbing, shes trying to lay an egg. For now, assuming she has an egg, do what you can to assure she has adequate calcium in her system.

 

[Rebel]

Is she backing her butt into the corner of her cage?

 

[mrreza]

Is she backing her butt into the corner of her cage?

thanks for the information. nope she is not. no bobbing either. just her normal behaviour but with her tail like that. also she has 2 calxium blocks in her cage and i fed her a bit of boiled egg with its shell turned into powder on it to her yesterday. do you think she understands and uses the block as needed or should i get the calcium drop?

 

[Rebel]

thanks for the information. nope she is not. no bobbing either. just her normal behaviour but with her tail like that. also she has 2 calxium blocks in her cage and i fed her a bit of boiled egg with its shell turned into powder on it to her yesterday. do you think she understands and uses the block as needed or should i get the calcium drop?

I believe they know when they need to eat the blocks for calcium. I keep the drops on hand because you can put it into their mouth if need be to give them an instant boost.

 

[mrreza]

thanks

 

[mrreza]

hey everybody! thanks for the help. today she laid her first egg. she was very tired but now just got out of her nest to pay me a visit and she pooped. there was a bit of blood in it. (i dont know whether this is too much info or not: it was very big and watery(not that it was all water. rather it had more water than the avg poop). basically like the ones she has had for the past few days but bigger and with a little bit of blood in it) . other than that she seems fine. is this normal?

 

[Rebel]

From my experiences blood is not normal but I suppose if she struggled to lay the egg she may ruptured something. Someone else may have more information on that. As long as shes no longer pooping blood, im guessing she will be fine. Watery and sometimes huge poops are normal during egg laying. Again, this is my experience. If i were you i would rearrange her cage now to discourage more egg laying. Its not a sure thing but the last thing you want is a chronic egg layer like i have.
You mentioned nest. Dont give her a nest or anything she can make a nest out of. Im assuming your not interested in breeding.

 

[mrreza]

thanks. but if i dont give a nest, do you suggest i remove the egg as well? i read that she will just lay more and it might be better to let her go through a cycle?

 

[Rebel]

Leave the egg in there and let her reject it. Is she your only bird?

 

[mrreza]

alright. yes. however we have had a guest cockatiel for 3 days and he will be here for the next week( he belongs to my cousin who is on a trip) . they had very little interaction so i really dont think that the egg could be fertile

 

[mrreza]

hi guys. a little update. she has laid her second egg. she is healthy . just there is one thing : on the day she laid her first egg(in the morning. before she laid it) she weighed 110 grams. no she is about 99 grams( this is a few hours after she laid the second one) . i know that part of it is the egg inside her. but she has definitely lost a few grams. her chest area is very less chubby than it used to be and also sharper. she drinks and eats a lot from what i see but also sits on the eggs a lot. she comes out and flies and exercises as usual. should i be concerned or is this normal?

 

[Rebel]

This is my opinion and i know many here will disagree. I think people worry to much about weight. Theyre obsessed with it. Your bird is still well within the average weight. I wouldny worry about it at all unless you have reason to. Not eating etc. I know you said your bird looks thinner, and maybe that is the case However , still way within reason.

 

[mrreza]

alright ! thank you