Expert: Chrys Meatyard - 9/7/2006

Question
My female cockatiel, unknown age, for sure over 2 yrs, is breathing heavily. There is tail bobbing present. They are slow deep breaths. Except for that, she is acting normal. Normal poop, normal activity level, normal eating habits, no discharges, etc. She is probably a little underweight, but always has been. She has laid infertile eggs lately, but they came out whole and fine on a reg schedule. I feed her pellets, a fortified seed mix, and fresh veggies.
 Any clue on what it could be? I

A side question that may or may not be related: she also molted about a month ago and turned a lighter color by a couple shades. She went from a dark grey color to a silver color now, which has me stumped, unless it is because she is on a different diet than her previous owners gave her.
             Thanks in advance for the help  

Answer
Hi, Daneille.  Thanks for posting!

You need to get your tiel to an avian veterinarian ASAP.  DO NOT hesitate.  Not a dog/cat vet, but a bird vet (exotic animal vet).  If you live in an area with seasonal changes, this is the time of year when birds of all types are susceptible to respiratory problems due to temperature fluctuations with the pending change of seasons.  She obviously has some type of respiratory problem (the tail bobbing and heavy breathing) and she needs medical attention ASAP or you might lose her, depending on the severity of the problem.  Your statement that she is underweight concerns me.  Loss of weight is one of the first signs of illness.

Diet could affect coloration, but not by a couple of shades like you describe in your post, unless there's some type of serious health problem(s) present or the diet had been so poor previously that her true coloration hadn't come out in the past (or vice versa).  Perhaps this color difference is because the feathers are still "new" and will get darker with age.  Sometimes new feathers look lighter because they haven't been subjected to the environment yet.  Are you sure this tiel is at least 2 years old and not younger?  Also, there are various shades of grey in grey tiels.  Some greys are nearly black, some dark grey, some light grey, some silver looking like you describe.  However, once a tiel is over 1 year of age, their coloration (phenotype) doesn't usually change drastically (unless their are health problems).

Chrys