am I in harm and need to be separated?

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megin
Posts: 23
Joined: Wed Feb 05, 2014 3:21 am

am I in harm and need to be separated?

Post by megin »

I have a breeding pair. The female is Goin bald on top of her head. She's been going in her box a lot and the cock goes into sometimes..she's also missing her longest tail feathers and I can't find them anywhere.

I have just recently got a male cockatoo and out of all cages he always goes to there's and harass them. Female hides in the box n male sqwark and pecks back through the cage.

Female is white male is yellow with white tail. I'm thinking the lonely male cockatoo thinks she is a cockatoo and wants her. He has tried to break into the breeding box too.

So out of all that info my question is. ... why has my hen gone bald and lost her tail? ? Is this apart of breeding or is my cock attacking her trying to show dominance as there is another male wanting her?? Should I separate them??
ellieelectrons
Posts: 2708
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 1:17 am
Location: Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia

Re: am I in harm and need to be separated?

Post by ellieelectrons »

Firstly, I think you should remove the cockatoo so that he can't get anywhere near them... so that they can't even see him. You don't want your birds to feel fearful.

Secondly, do you think the male is plucking the female or doing it to herself or that she is losing them for health reasons? Do your birds have plenty of foraging activities to occupy their day? Has your female been vet checked - that can be useful for ruling in or out health problems?

Regarding whether you should separate them, you may have to do that and it depends whether you want to try some things before doing it. Eg. if the cockatoo is completely banished from their presence does that alleviate the plucking behaviour? If you increase foraging, does that alleviate the behaviour?

If you fear for either bird's life, then I would separate them immediately.

Ellie.
InTheAir
Posts: 2040
Joined: Sat Jan 12, 2013 4:24 pm

Re: am I in harm and need to be separated?

Post by InTheAir »

Hi,

Definitely keep your cockatoo away from the ringnecks! That does not sound like a good situation for them at all.

I really recommend that you put the breeding idea on hold while you do some more research on husbandry.

Here are a few things to consider that may be contributing to the male plucking the female:
How big is the cage?
What do you feed them every day? And what do they actually eat?
Are they closely housed next to other birds?
Do they get disturbed by people a lot? How do they react to people coming near them?
What enrichment do they have in their cage?

Regards,

Claire
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