Thank you for waiting. The biggest part of the problem is that doves and parrot family birds should not be housed together. It is unusual for doves to be the aggressors.What sometimes happens is that the more active birds, such as budgies and cockatiels harass the doves, until they can't take it any more, and fight back. Such fighting may have occurred when no one was watching, resulting in the dove's wing injury and the death of the cockatiel. It's also very possible that the cockatiel simply died, and the other birds then plucked out the eyes.

Another reason not to house these two types of birds together is that the food requirements for these birds are not the same. Doves should rely more on grains, such as those fed to poultry. Budgies and cockatiels do best on a complete pelleted diet.

That being said, people do keep mixed aviaries successfully. There must be lots of greenery, perches of all different types and sizes, and ways to give individual birds privacy. If you want to try to reintroduce the dove, I would do it only when you can keep an eye on the situation. Get rid of the sunflower seeds. They should be a treat only. They aren't really good for most birds - they are like candy to them, and that will be all they eat given the opportunity. That may be the trigger for the fights. Put out bowls of grains for the doves. Diet is the single most important factor in keeping our birds healthy. Many people still feed a diet consisiting mostly of seeds, but recent research has shown that an all-seed diet is not good for cockatiels and budgies. Pellets, supplemented with various fresh and healthy “people foods,” along with just a few seeds make up a healthier diet. Birds that are fed mostly seeds tend to develop fatty liver disease, tumors, and other health conditions. however, if your birds are used to eating mostly seeds, you’ll have to convert them to pellets gradually. The following website is where you can get reliable information on feeding and care:

http://www.4animalcare.org/birds

It may help to put out many more food dishes. In summary, I would eliminate the bowl of sunflower seeds, try to arrange the cage for more privacy, and watch the birds closely for any signs of trouble. If these steps don't help, it may become necessary to find a new home for the doves or provide them a separate cage.

If you have more questions, let me know by clicking on REPLY. I hope the situation will work out well for you.

Anna

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Thank you.

You're welcome. Good luck with helping the birds get along.

Anna