Hi, that's great that you are willing to take in the bird. I'm not a vet, but i think i'm the only person here that keeps birds(im only 15).
Cockatiels are pretty easy to care for. The cage should be no smaller than 19 1/2 inches by 17 1/2 inches by 17 1/2 inches for a single bird or 39 1/2 by 23 1/2 by 23 1/2 inches for a pair. But the bigger the better. Avoid tall cages as they aren't suitable for cockatiels. You want one that is wider and longer than it is tall. Inside the cage you should provide the bird with some toys and perches. Each perch should vary in the size, diameter and texture so the bird can exercise it's feet. There's alot of different toys available, although rarely will actually play with them. They are more into destroying them. Wood toys are great for birds to chew on. Some toys are edible too which is great. Rope toys and/or perches are also ok, but they need to be inspected daily for any freying where a bird can get it's toe nail caught. Some cockatiels like bells too. I'll also add that the bars of the cage should preferable be horizontal because cockatiels love to climb them. But verticle bars are also ok.
Feeding is a much more contraversial topic. Some argue that the bird should be fed pellets only because seeds are addicting. Others believe that seeds should be the primary diet because that is what they would normally eat. Well here's my view on it. Pellets should be the staple diet. They are packed with all necessary nutrients, vitamins and minerals so there won't be any worries that the bird is suffering from malnutrition. Seeds are also important. So I provide seeds in the form of treat sticks. The hard part though is convincing the bird that the pellets are food. The best way to do it is to convert gradually. For the first week, the food should be 25% pellet and 75% seed. Then the second week, go 50-50. Third week, 25% seed and 75% pellet. And finally all pellets. I provide one small seed treat stick for my birds because otherwise they won't eat their pellets and treats shouldn't make up the majority of the diet. Treats should be no more than 10%. Another part of a birds diet is fresh fruits and veggies. Most birds will appreciate a small piece of apple or plum and some romaine lettuce. You can experiment with your bird to see what she likes and dislikes. Just don't ever feed chocolate or avocados as they are toxic. Wheat bread also makes a good treat and birds love it. Some people even cook clean maceroni or spaghetti for their birds. Or you can buy the type of pasta bird food at the petstore to prepare for your bird like "Beak apetite".
Now about training, that depends on where your bird is at socially. What is the birds reaction when you put your hand in the cage? Does it flutter and flap and run around squacking? Does it just back off a little and look at your hand? Does it try and attack your hand? This will help me give you the correct method to tame the bird if it isn't already hand tamed.
Second phrase question. Well once I enter my hand in the cockatiel cage he at first hisses. Then sometimes he would go down to the floor of the cage andrun to the little door on the cage after wards he would wait for my hand, then he gets on, but sometimes he just gets on with no hasstle? I know the vet said to cut his wings, so it would be flightless and so I did, but about the training part I answered what you needed to know. I hope this helps.
That answers my questions Thank you. It sounds to me that the bird is already tame, but either hasn't been handled enough, hasn't been handled in a while or it has gotten a little "wild" since it got out.
You just need to work with her. When ever she comes on your hand, reward her with praise and a treat. Take her out often too. The reason she backs off when your hand enters the cage is because she is a prey creature. There's alot of other animals that would eat a cockatiel so they have to be alert at all times. Certain things we do can sometimes scare the bird because it is similar to that of a preditor stalking the bird. Staring directly at the bird and approaching a bird that isn't used to people with our hands are the main things. When ever she's out of the cage, make sure she gets a lot of treats and other yummies so she learns that outside the cage is good and she will be more willing to come out. Talking to her and spending time around her also does alot more in taming that is thought. Spend a few minutes just talking to the bird while it is in the cage. Say hi to her using her name every time you enter the room so she will see it as a greeting from a flock member. Also, make sure her cage is in a place where she can see you and your family. A bird learns alot just by watching and observing people and it gets them used to being around people.
thank you very much. But one last question. What if Cinnamon ( my cockatiel) doesn't take the treast i give her? What then? And how would I know if before I got her she was maltreated. Maybe it affected her so much she might not trust human hands anymore. And If cinnamon wasn't maltreated how long would I have to train her to whistle or to stay on my shoulder, or to speak a word? Thank you for all your help so far.
Well, there's one treat that birds just can't resist. Yellow millet sprays are the best treats to use for bribing. They just can't help themselves! It has never failed me yet.
Well, there's a few ways you can tell if a bird was neglected or abused in the past mainly by the way it acts. Abused birds will be extremely flighty and will become alarmed at the slightest of things. Usually an abused bird will go bizerk when you put hand in the cage flapping around all over the place and squacking loudly with an alarm type squack. Some birds will become very aggressive and will try and attack anything that comes in or near it's cage, but a bird that does this doesn't necessarily mean it was abused. If it was never handled in it's life, but has been in a family situation and around people, then that usually causes a bird to act aggressive and territorial.
It doesn't sound as though your bird was abused. And by abused I mean physically by hitting, smacking etc. There is a possibility that she may have been traumatized at one point by a human hand, but it would have been minor and perhapse even by accident if she will still step on a hand. This trauma might not even have been intentional. If she accidently escaped from her last family, they might have made a last minute attempt to grab her, which would have caused her to become a little hand shy. Birds that were not hand fed and were tamed later in life will often react like that. My cockatiel PB was not hand fed, but is now tame and she will sometimes hiss or back away from my hand a little. But I just pause for a minute, allow her to recognize me, then approach her and she will step up. She has never bitten me.
Just keep working with her and treating her kindly and she will learn to trust you. If she really is a she, then there's a possibilty that she won't learn to speak or whistle tunes. It's male cockatiels that are known for that. Very few females will learn to mimick speach or whistles. You can try though, just pick whistle tune and whistle it over and over again a few times a day. Use the whistle when you enter and exit the room as a greeting too. I've had PB for 6 years and she never learned to repeat or whistle.
Staying on your shoulder will probably be something she'll just do. When you have her out, put her on your shoulder and she'll most likely stay there. Birds like shoulders because it's higher up and they feel more secure. Just be warned that after you get her on your shoulder, it can be difficult to get her off.
hey im only 13 but i have 7 cockatiels and i have them in one big, gigantic cage. the basic fruits i feed them are apples, berries, kiwi,mango, cantaloupe, honeydew, pineapple, cherries, cranberries, banana, pear, peaches, pomogranites, tangerine, oranges, starfruit, grapefruit, plums, papaya, grapes, and apricots.The basic vegetables i feed them are radishes, cooked sweet potato, raddichio, endive, mustard and dandelion greens, swiss chard kale, parsley, green beans, tomato, cooked red potato, sweet red and green, and other types of peppers, cauliflower, broccoli both head and leaves, beet and turnip greens, eggplant, kohlrabi, sugersnap or snow peas, squash remember peeled and steameed, carrots, red beats pealed, romain or green/red leaf lettuce, collard greens corn, cucumber, and anything that semmes safe. Foods to avoid are table salt, avacodo, chocolate, fruit pits, alcohol and caffein, persimmons, onions, apple seeds, mushrooms, grit, and high fat junk such as doughnuts, potato chips, ect. So have fun with your new pet and god bless you for saving an abandoned cockatiel. and play with your bird and try to get it a mate just to make it happy.
it's great you took in the cockatiel... doesn't sound like the bird was physically abused but it does sound like it spent a bit of time in the wild before you found her...
you have been given a lot of good information... there are websites and publications that can offer fantastic advice as well... One thing though... don't expect your tiel to talk or whistle... that should never be an expectation... and for cockatiels it is usually only the males that are the chatterboxes... I have 4 males but only 2 talk and whistle... how do you know for sure that the bird is female? There is no outside way of telling the difference unless it is a pearl... male pearls lose their pearling after their first moult... there are only 2 ways to tell if a tiel is female... DNA testing or if she lays eggs... in general female tiels are more cuddly but every bird is different and there are wide generalizations... but respectable sources like breeders will tell you what you can expect in general... go to the library and get cockatiels for dummies, and the barton series of pet books have a few on training birds, and cockatiels specifically... there is also a magazine that gives useful info monthly called BirdTalk... there are cockatiel only websites as well just do a general search for cockatiels... enjoy your new friend
I have used a wash cloth to tame birds. Gently get the bird with a wash cloth out of the cage, talk softly and stroke the head. then put back slowly removing the cloth. When you go in the cage, move slow but casually and deliberate..
This is hapy and sad. I'm happy the tiel has someone who wants to take such good care, but sad because somewhere is a person or family grieving over the loss of their beloved pet. I hoe you tried to find them before deciding the bird was yours. I recently lost a tiel, and I have searched and searched, spent tons of money on ads, placed ads online, posted flyers. I'm sure she's been found by now, and that the person decided to just keep her... and that saddens me, because I'll never know what happened to the tiel I raised from the egg.
Anyway, good luck with the tiel, I hope he has a long healthy life, and a happy one. Just remember though, if you didnt' try and find the family, you probably broke a heart who to this day, wonders where their loved cockatiel is.
I'm in college to be a vet...so I guess I "know my stuff." This post is a bit late, but maybe someone else who is new to Birdship will stumble upon this. But, I must say, I don't know what I would do if I lost my Chicken(a cockatiel). They really can become your best friends. Chicken probably wouldn't make it in the wild...as he is afraid of trees, insects, loud things, and other birds. He is probably unaware that he Is a bird. Silly guy. Anyway, looks like Sugarbird covered the cage and food well. I would recommend buying a book or two on cockatiels, just for more info. Here are some tidbits about getting started with this guy. Cockatiels are SMART. The more you allow them mental stimulation, the smarter they will become. This means put his cage in front or near a window (make sure it's not drafty and isn't too hot); allow your bird to watch TV (animal planet is always a good one); keep your 'tiel out of the cage for atleast 2 hours a day and PLAY with him! Toys...you will go through them fast, but toys are an important part of stimulation. Pick colorful toys (as birds can see in color, and some experts say they prefer the color red), pick toys that aren't intimidating (I bought a large wooden toy for my 'tiel and he nearly killed himself trying to get away he was so scared), any toy that has a bell on it is a sure bet. Pick perches of different sizes (if you don't have various perches of various sizes, you will have a bird with sores on its feet). Cuttlebones are a must (my bird prefers the ones that are berry flavored). Newspaper is a fantastic liner for the cage (just make sure your bird can't chew it...some say it contains toxic Zinc...I wouldn't know...my bird is alive and isn't allowed to eat his pooey paper). Which leads me to change the paper daily! (We all slack sometimes, but after a day or two...you better change it!) Bathe your birdie. Mine will take a shower with me (just don't use your products on the bird, please...a friend did this to her ferret and he is no longer with us). Invest in a good cover for your little one. I study all night, so I keep a thicker blanket on him when im going to be up turning on and off lights. Which leads me to this:your cockatiel should sleep 12 hours a day. I clean my birds cage weekly with a disinfectant, but spot clean as needed until then. (Just remove birdie whenever you decide to play chemist for the day and break out the chemicals). Good luck with everything!
Hi, Excellent responses. I would add just a few things to what I've seen. The first is to take the bird to an avian vet to be sure that he/she is not harboring any diseases that might be a concern if you have other birds.
Newsprint in the United States is safe as the inks are soy based and do not contain any harmful substances. This pertains to black and white newspaper only. The "slick" magazine type papers can contain toxic materials as a part of the inks.
Apples, Strawberries and many other fruits should be organic fruits. Apples and Strawberries particularly in the United States, Canda and Mexico and grapes from Chile always test high for pesticides IN the fruit.
This is different than the pesticides that can be washed off the fruits. Pesticides that are systemic and are in the fruit would be things like insecticides and fungicides.
Feed Organic fruits and veggies to your birds.
The other advice given was great. Take your time in modifying a birds diet. Be consistent and don't give up.
I dont recall reading this, but tiels are very prone to what are called night frights. They wake up suddenly and thrash about inside their cages. they can damge feathers and break blood feathers. Give your pet a good , quiet place to sleep and don't panic if you should see some blood in the cage one morning. It is something to be concerned about and forewarned is forearmed. Do a search using cockatiel night fright as the search terms
In response to birdcomesfirst: Even if chewing on the newspaper at the bottom of the cage is safe, I ask you this, "If you found that letting your kid eat dirty diapers was safe, would you allow them to eat it?"
I was just responding to the safety of newsprint if a bird should chew on it. Itis safe. I completely agree that if your bird has access to it, it sjhould be changed often enough that your bird would not be stepping in its feces.
A few things, i dont see the distinction that you are trying to make. If it is regular paper or newspaper at the bottom of the cage, what difference does it make? As long as the cage is kept clean, newspaper is a safe substrate for the bottom. Also, if you have an apropriate cage, there is a grating of some sort that separates your bird from the paper at the bottom of the cage anyway.
Newspaper is safe, a bird shouldn't be eating it anyway but I was responding to the question as it was posted.
I am also curious as to where you can get flavored cuttlebones. I know about the flavored mineral blocks. I have never seen a flavored cuttlebone which is part of the cuttlefish. I think that would be great. If you can steer me toward them, I would be grateful!
I think I read it in one of my books when I purchased my first bird. It said that newspaper contained Zinc, which can be toxic to birds. My cage has a grate on it, but sometimes those pesky birds can still get to it. The book when on and on talking about getting paper without any lettering on it. I personally couldn't find newspaper that had no lettering on it (obviously), so I just raised the grate for caution. I'm not sure if the Zinc bit is true (can't always believe what you read); however, caution is always good. I purchase the cuttlebones at Petsmart. It may not be the cuttlebone itself that is flavored, but they have sort of a part around it that is prurple and berry flavored. My bird loves it.
Just a note: There is no zinc in the paper and ther is no zinc in the inks. The only negative side to the inks is that if a bird plays with the paper, the bird may get some of the blacknes on the feathers. It is the same as when we get our fingers blackened when we read the paper. In any case, it is totally safe. My father was in the printing and lithography business for more than fifty years:-) Thanks, Bill
Well, that's good to know. I have a grate on my cage, so he can't get to it anyway. I won't get as freaked out now when I see him reaching to chew on that paper.
