Hi Mike,

Thanks for your question. Are you still hand feeding the younger one? If she is crying and begging, she is hungry. Do you have a scale and are you weighing them? Weaning a bird can take some time. It is great that you are offering a mix of seeds and pellets, however, you basically need to teach them what to eat. You are taking over the 'parent' role.

At home, before you feed them, I would put the pellets on a table and let the birds out on the table also. Start tapping at the pellets with your fingers. You can also click your fingernails together to make a little sound. This is to make it sound like a bird is crunching at the food. Act like you are eating the pellets and makes lots of yummy sound. Since cockatiels are ground feeders, they are more inclined to try new food this way. If they don't eat a bunch of the pellets, at least your are exposing it to them and they are learning the texture etc. Do this every time before you hand feed them. You can also put out some soft cooked food like sweet potatoes, carrots etc. You may also want to try different shapes, brands etc.

Once you try this, go ahead and hand feed them if needed. I would expect the young one to still need handing feeding for awhile. I would love for you to get a scale and check their weights daily. Weigh them before you feed them so no food is in the crop and at the same time every day. You don't want them to lose too much weight while weaning.   Please let me know what their weights are. Again, the crying and begging is her telling you "I'm hungry, I'm hungry". For a great discussion about diet and cockatiels in general, check out the National Cockatiel Society's website at www.cockatiels.org. You can search their library.

As for the material in her beak, I would try to get it out. If it doesn't come out, it could interfere with her eating or cause an infection to start. I would use a moistened Q-tip (s) to gently wipe out.

The other thing I would recommend since they are new would be for them to have a vet visit with a vet who sees birds. A new bird should have an exam and just have a good physical exam, confirm their gender for you and possibly some blood work. There are some diseases they can carry that can possibly infect people that your vet may test for. They will also discuss with you proper care, diet etc. This will also allow you to develop a relationship with a vet so you have something lined up in case of an emergency with the birds. Often, when birds are sick, they get sick quickly so it often becomes an emergency.   If you don't know of a vet, please let me know where you live and I can possibly give you a referral. You can also go to www.abvp.com (find a diplomate) or www.aav.org (vet look-up).

Please let me know what other questions you have. I look forwards to hearing from you soon. If I have helped you today, please click on "accept". Thank you,

XX. X

Hi Mike,

Thanks for the update. I'm glad to hear that her weight is up and her tongue has healed.   When exactly does she whine?

What type of food is collecting in her beak? Is she still getting some soft foods?

Thanks, XX. X

Hi again,

You are correct in trying to not re-inforce the whining. BIrds will definitely react to attention and you can promote their screaming, whining etc. There is a great website at www.goodbirdinc.com that discusses positive training techniques that I think will be of help.

As for the water bottle, I don't think that is the problem, but you could certainly try a dish and see how she does. Just make sure she knows that water is in it and knows how to drink from it before removing the bottle Overall, it is just unusual that she is getting food stuck in her beak. I would still encourage you to have a new bird visit with an avian vet and discuss this with them. They can do a good oral exam to make sure there is no physical problem causing it.

It sounds like she is a lucky bird and has a great family. Great job with the pellets, however, cockatiels are a bird that I don't recommend a 100% pelleted diet. I would still allow her to have a small amount of seed and millet, plus healthy vegetables etc.

Again, best of luck with her!

Dr. G