kiiarah
Moving in
- Joined
- 3/30/11
- Messages
- 5
I was just walking back into the living room and my 6 month old cockatiel, Zephyr had flown onto the floor. He does this all the time and I have always just been able to walk up and grab him. Well this morning he was not where I expected him to be and I felt his head under my foot as I stepped down. I didn't step down hard but it did take a second to register what I was feeling. He ran away and acted very shocked. I did manage to pick him up and he sat on my shoulder for a bit while I watched his behavior. He was fluffed and closing his eyes, but no tail drooping and no shaking or anything like that. I don't think my foot touched his body so I don't think he has any broken bones. He didn't shriek, just sort of a scolding squawk. I am also very petite, my entire body weight is only about 90 lbs and I didn't put my full weight on him. When I did put him back in his cage I gave him a millet spray, but he wasn't interested. This is the point at which I called my mom who has had birds and asked if she had any advice. While I was talking to her he did decide to nibble on the millet. I also watched him preen, fluff, flap from one perch to another. He seems to have no trouble climbing the cage walls and even hung upside down from his perch to play with a long dangly toy. I know he would try to hide any injury by not looking sick, but it seems like he wouldn't eagerly eat and wouldn't go so far as hanging off his perch to play. Still, I am concerned because between things like snacks and toys he is fluffed up and shutting at least one eye. To complicate things further this is the usual time of day for him to nap, so I don't know what to attribute the behavior to. When he is active he seems almost completely normal, but he does seem to tire faster than usual. He has been doing a sort of strange thing where he will squint his eyes (almost looks like he is smiling) and look slightly up and around over his shoulder. I am not sure how to describe this but it is something I don't normally see him doing. Right now he is sitting on top of his cage on his microfiber cage cover his his beak tucked in his back feathers. When he hears a sound he will turn his head and open his eyes but does stay fluffed. He has a cage with a top that opens and a perch that props in between the flaps. When I opened this he immediately climbed out the top and spent about 20 minutes chewing on the stem of his millet spray. I just don't know what behavior would indicate a problem and what behavior is a sign he is probably alright, but just shaken up. Normally I would be in the vet's waiting room already, but there is no avian vet where I live and my car won't make it out of town. I love the little guy and I am scared to death that there is something wrong and I wouldn't know how to tell. Please let me know what sort of things I need to watch for that would indicate a serious injury and how long I should expect before he calms down and returns to normal if he is just mildly stressed.
Update: I just went over to check on him and he was resting on one foot (a good sign?). When I put my hand up for him he stepped up right away. He is currently sitting on my shoulder and has stretched his wings. He also pooped and there was no blood or discoloration. It was a very normal consistency as well, not at all runny.
Update: I just went over to check on him and he was resting on one foot (a good sign?). When I put my hand up for him he stepped up right away. He is currently sitting on my shoulder and has stretched his wings. He also pooped and there was no blood or discoloration. It was a very normal consistency as well, not at all runny.
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