input asap please

[Kakariki]

Pajarita.. I am sorry it took me so long to get back. I really have, and do, appreciate your responses to my questions. I DO appreciate straightforwardness as well. It is my problem the way I react sometimes, going inside. Yes, I was scared ...
I know my posts were very very long , but what do you think about the fact of the ongoing airborn pollutants possibly causing this?
as for the regurgitation... I did not now that was a concern, thought it was a way that birds showed....the inclination to bond, or court, or whatever a human. I did not realize it should be only timely. How long before I should worry about it? He also ''feeds ' his favourite toy in the evening.

[Wolf]

Airbourne pollutants might be the cause of some or all of the symptoms your bird is experiencing and the bird definitely needs to be removed from them. Some of them could become fatal and remember that a bird only has one lung and takes two breathes to exhale the air it breathes in, not to mention that their respiratory system is about 20 times more sensitive than ours.
While a birds regurgitation is not normally a thing to be overly concerned about in and of itself, it can have the same effects as acid reflux in humans if it is done frequently enough or for a long period of time. It can also be a symptom of an underlying medical issue having nothing to do with the reproductive cycle. However when it is related to the birds reproductive cycle the regurgitation is not the problem the ongoing and out of season continuation of the reproductive cycle is a major concern. If the birds continue producing the sexual hormones and do not cease the breeding cycle then the birds gonads, sexual organs continue to grow. These organs depending on the size of the bird are normally about the size of a pea when at rest and when triggered by the hormones they grow up to over 100 times larger than this and continue to grow causing extreme pain. As this pain intensifies it also increases aggressive behavior so much that the bird may reach a point where it can no longer tolerate being touched and can be a cause of plucking and self mutilation in an attempt to ease the pain that is caused by the pressure these swollen organs are placing on themselves and the surrounding organs.
This is the reason that we stress a diet low in protein and the proper lighting schedule for the bird.

[Pajarita]

Pajarita.. I am sorry it took me so long to get back. I really have, and do, appreciate your responses to my questions. I DO appreciate straightforwardness as well. It is my problem the way I react sometimes, going inside. Yes, I was scared ...
I know my posts were very very long , but what do you think about the fact of the ongoing airborn pollutants possibly causing this?
as for the regurgitation... I did not now that was a concern, thought it was a way that birds showed....the inclination to bond, or court, or whatever a human. I did not realize it should be only timely. How long before I should worry about it? He also ''feeds ' his favourite toy in the evening.

Oh, no, no, no, my dear, please do not apologize! We have no right to expect a reply or an update... it's only that we love everybody's birds, not only our own, and worry about them as much as we would if they were in our homes so, of course, we want to know what is happening with them. And I don't blame you one bit for been scared and super worried, I would have been, too!

Now, drywall dust is not good but, in reality, it's not as if there were toxic fumes or anything like that. It is dust and, as such, not good for anybody, not only birds, but this happened a year ago and, if there had been any consequences to it, they would have been of a respiratory nature. I always recommend people with parrots to run an air purifier (one for a larger room than you need, according to the label) as well as a humidifier in the room where they are kept because, as Wolf stated, their respiratory system is 100 times more effective than ours (but they have two lungs and not one) but, because it's so much better, it's also much more delicate and clean, humid air is essential to them.

As to regurgitation... well, yes, the 'Aw, he loves you!' comment is, unfortunately, ubiquitous in birdsites, isn't it? But (and again, Wolf is correct), in reality, it's more a symptom of too many sexual hormones than of actual love. It's more like an intact dog that is always and forever humping your leg - it's not love, it's sexual frustration.

Birds are not like mammals, they don't have estrous the way that mammals do and that's why most people erroneously believe that birds breed all year round. They can - but only in captivity and when they are not kept in tune with nature's seasons. Basically, we MAKE them produce sexual hormones all year round by not keeping them as nature intended. As Wolf said, because of the way nature evolved their reproductive system, days of a certain length (it depends on the species and the exact number of hours is called the point of refractoriness) and rich diet trigger the onset of sexual hormone production which 'turn on' the sexual organs, enlarging them by the increase and accumulation of them as the days and weeks go by until the body 'registers' the number of daylight hours that 'turns off' production, at which point the birds go into the 'resting' season (which, for us, is winter). During the resting season, the gonads or sexual organs are dormant. Now, when we keep the birds at a light schedule that works for us (artificial lights before sunrise and after sunset) and feed them a rich diet all year round, we are creating breeding season conditions that last all year round. This makes their gonads continue to grow as there is no trigger to turn them off with all the undesirable consequences: pain, sexual frustration, aggression, etc. which lead to screaming, biting, plucking and even self-mutilation. And that's why we are so adamant about advocating a strict solar schedule and a diet that does not provide high protein all day long: because in order for the bird to be healthy and happy, it is imperative that his body is working as it was meant to.

When it comes to regurgitation, in my personal experience, it's only birds that are overly hormonal that regurgitate to toys or people. Birds that have an endocrine system attuned to the season -so they only produce a normal amount of sexual hormones during breeding season- do not regurgitate UNLESS they have a receptive mate (they don't even do it unless the mate is willing to be fed in its beak).

[Kakariki]

If Skippy's diet was high protein before I brought him home, which I am thinking it was, and now I AM feeding gloop in the mornings, How long would it take for his hormones to balance out? I also cover his cage at night, and the good thing is he Asks to go to bed just before it becomes fully dark outside.


Since I joined the forum and have learned about whole grains, organic of course, and light schedules and have put them into practice as well as I have been able. The budgies and cockatiel do not like the gloop but all the others eat it to varying degrees. Crayola absolutely pigs out on it.

I also have had a air purifier in the room where the birds are, as well as an air exchanger on the furnace which has a hepafilter. It was a whole new installation 2 autumns ago.

[Wolf]

It depends on the amount of hormones in his system as well as how long it takes for his gonads to return to normal size.

The budgies and cockatiel are smaller birds with less strength in their beaks so you may have to chop the vegetables in their gloop up into smaller pieces. If that is not the problem sprinkle some of their seed mix on it for a little longer. We don't all begin to like the same foods at the same rate.

[Pajarita]

Yep, how long it takes depends on how long the bird has been growing those gonads - the larger the gonads and the more hormones in their bloodstream, the longer it takes. But this is the perfect time of the year to start birds on a solar schedule because we just went through the equinox! But, remember, grays are short day breeders so it will take longer for him than the other species you have and the tiels and budgies are highly opportunistic breeders so a lower protein diet is essential for them to adjust to the seasons.

My budgies and tiels ADORE their gloop! You should see them pacing and pacing waiting for theirs in the morning... It's pretty much the only way I can get any veggies into them (they only leave the green beans, they eat everything else). So, keep on trying. Are you putting it on a paper plate (make sure it's white) at the bottom of their cage? They are partial ground foragers and are always attracted to food laying 'on the ground'...

[Wolf]

Just out of curiosity, why white? I bought two totally black plates that I use for feeding my budgies and they have no issues with it. I went with the black because where I live there is no light colored soil it is either red or blackish and I don't know what color the soil near the river banks in Australia are. I was trying to get as close to that as I could.

[liz]

Mine don't care what it I on. I feed them on the floor with a big tray so they can all eat at once.

[Wolf]

Mine don't care what it I on. I feed them on the floor with a big tray so they can all eat at once.

Assuming that you are speaking of feeding you cockatiels I would use more than one dish for their foo so that it would be easier for them to all get an eating place.

[liz]

The one dish idea was abandoned long ago. I feed them on a large tray that I bought from the meat department at a WinDixie that was closing and scatter the food to the edges of it. They all fit around it at the same time like a flock of pigeons. None go hungry.
Gimpy is not ready to mingle with the others so I feed him in his cage. He does not want to come out even though the door is open.

I use a chick waterer with a pint jar for their water and change it every morning.