I Rescued a Cockatiel
13 years ago
General
Well, Adopted, but the condition she was in made it a rescue.
My male has been depressed and lonely since his girl died. They never really "got along" in a breeding manner, but always enjoyed each others burbles and chirps.
Then he started humping us... our feet, our hands, our shoulders! It made it very awkward to bring him out.
So my roommates and I set out of finding him a girlfriend.
That's when I saw the ad on Craigslist for a Female Lutino Cockatiel, who was laying presently and the owner could no longer care for her. I called them, rushed over and paid the rehoming fee, and took the lass home.
The house.
Upon pulling into the driveway, there were Labradors EVERYWHERE, on chains. They said they were "breeders" this was a puppy mill. Whatever, I came for the bird, not the dogs. I enter their home, Jase in tow, and was immediately engulfed in smoke. They were heavy heavy chain smokers, inside their home, it was awful.
The cage.
Was too small, had no mesh on the bottom, where her food bowl was. So she was walking in her own excrement to eat, and was laying her eggs on the bottom of her cage. She had a platform perch and a log, and two toys. She ate a seed based diet. The cage reeked of smoke, it had been there a while.
The bird.
She was beautiful, yellow and white. However, her oil gland was swollen and sore upon inspection. Her feather were smoke stained, her tail wet from the bottom of her cage. Her feet are abnormally large, and she sits upon her joints, not her feet. She is also malnourished, and deprived of calcium, which is bad if she is laying. She was very sweet, though after the move was testy and grumpy. Upon even more examination, I learned she only has half a left wing, where the former owner's chihuahua had bitten it off.
So immediately my roommate drives me to my parents, I keep all my cages there. I grab a bigger, cleaner cage, and bring it home. I placed various sized perches in it, to build up her feet strength. I gave her a destroy toy, placing nesting materials and treats inside, for her amusement, she really enjoys it. And gave her some new bells and ladders. Tomorrow I am going to the store to buy pellets and wean her over to those.
Even if her and my male never make babies, she is a lot better off in my home. Everyone here knows how to raise cockatiels, and it's not just having them in a cage, even though so many families just do that. Hopefully her molt is soon, then we can really see her shine!
My male has been depressed and lonely since his girl died. They never really "got along" in a breeding manner, but always enjoyed each others burbles and chirps.
Then he started humping us... our feet, our hands, our shoulders! It made it very awkward to bring him out.
So my roommates and I set out of finding him a girlfriend.
That's when I saw the ad on Craigslist for a Female Lutino Cockatiel, who was laying presently and the owner could no longer care for her. I called them, rushed over and paid the rehoming fee, and took the lass home.
The house.
Upon pulling into the driveway, there were Labradors EVERYWHERE, on chains. They said they were "breeders" this was a puppy mill. Whatever, I came for the bird, not the dogs. I enter their home, Jase in tow, and was immediately engulfed in smoke. They were heavy heavy chain smokers, inside their home, it was awful.
The cage.
Was too small, had no mesh on the bottom, where her food bowl was. So she was walking in her own excrement to eat, and was laying her eggs on the bottom of her cage. She had a platform perch and a log, and two toys. She ate a seed based diet. The cage reeked of smoke, it had been there a while.
The bird.
She was beautiful, yellow and white. However, her oil gland was swollen and sore upon inspection. Her feather were smoke stained, her tail wet from the bottom of her cage. Her feet are abnormally large, and she sits upon her joints, not her feet. She is also malnourished, and deprived of calcium, which is bad if she is laying. She was very sweet, though after the move was testy and grumpy. Upon even more examination, I learned she only has half a left wing, where the former owner's chihuahua had bitten it off.
So immediately my roommate drives me to my parents, I keep all my cages there. I grab a bigger, cleaner cage, and bring it home. I placed various sized perches in it, to build up her feet strength. I gave her a destroy toy, placing nesting materials and treats inside, for her amusement, she really enjoys it. And gave her some new bells and ladders. Tomorrow I am going to the store to buy pellets and wean her over to those.
Even if her and my male never make babies, she is a lot better off in my home. Everyone here knows how to raise cockatiels, and it's not just having them in a cage, even though so many families just do that. Hopefully her molt is soon, then we can really see her shine!
FA+

I'm glad she is in a better home now, hopefully she and your boy will get along =3