What the- Poop-eating bird?

[Lady Kakata]

I have put the grate in the bottom of my cage to stop Bonnie going around the bottom and making nests (it's actually worked! I'm of course disappointed that I've stopped them foraging but I put a plate on the bottom and spread a thin layer of seed on it to simulate foraging on a forest floor. Plate is not overhung with branches so no poop gets in it)

Problem? I clean the grate every day becaues, as you can imagine, it gets pooped on. But I've noticed that Bonnie goes down to the bottom and picks the dried poop off the grate bars. Not fresh stuff, dried, and I don't know why. She has veg, seed, mineral blocks, iodine blocks and cuttlefish. Does she need some nutrient I'm not giving her? Advice welcome!

[Chicklette]

Maybe lacking in a vitamin. I read that dogs, yuck, will eat their own poop if they are lacking a vitamin, that is what my vet told me.

[Lady Kakata]

Yeah, dogs do that, especially puppies. But I wonder, what is it that Bonnie needs? She has an iodine block, mineral and cuttlefish block, veg and seed (and a herb bell as a treat)

What could it be that I'm nto giving her or that she needs more of?

[Chicklette]

It sounds to me like she needs way more variety, I know your trying and worried but we need to get more nutritious and more variety into her system.

Here is a list of things birds need to thrive;

Fruits and Veggies
Peanuts (almonds best choice)
Whole grain noodles (mixed in with veggies) (pasta salad)
Whole grain rice (maybe with veggies or almonds mixed in)
Birdie bread.
ect

You need to start cooking for your bird.
Do a search in the diet section and they have TONS of recipes and good nutritious foods parrots need to stay healthy. I cook for my birds all the time, freeze things and just pull them out once in a while. Keeps them interested in food by offering them a variety of foods.

So maybe if you are not feeding him enough variety this is the reason.

[Lady Kakata]

Hmmm, well, I've ordered some items from Northern Parrots including pellets so I'll try her with a few things that are in that order and see if she improves

[Chicklette]

Just make sure she is getting lots of fresh fruits and veggies and you should see an improvement especially with her feather condition. Boomer was all ratty pathetic looking when I got him. He always gets fruits and veggies, good nutritious foods and he looks 100 times better, he was so frail, not he's getting a pot belly

[Lady Kakata]

Bonnie has had veg for over a year now, todays selection being baby brussel sprouts, green beans and brocolli. She gets a mist every morning, except recently when the weather has turned very cold. She gets precisely the same things that Angel gets, Angels feather condition is immaculate (she's my beautiful sweetheart) and Bonnie's feather condition has improved with her misting.

Out of both cockatiels, Bonnie is the only one with a poop-pickin' problem, hence I wondered what was Bonnie's specific problem. She hasn't layed any eggs since I put in the grate, barring one that I found cracked on the bars (my guess is she laid it while on a perch)