Anyone have Cockatiels?

[Mini Horse Lover]

Hello everyone!

My grandma and grandpa found a cockatiel that someone let go and I took it into my home today. Does anyone have experience with these guys? He is very tame and seems to have been hand raised. He loves being on shoulders and singing along with anyone. (He is sleeping on my shoulder as I type this) He is so adorable!

Any help would be appreciated!

Thanks

 

[Marty]

Oh man, do I ever have a cocketeil! ACE. That's the bird. He's Michaels bird and that is the only reason I tollerate him. He's nuts! He not only talks and sings non-stop......he SCREAMS whenever he wants me. And if I don't go running to play with him and give him treats, he just will not shut up. He loves fruits and all kinds of snack I give him. Spoil him rotten too I do. He also knows a few choice words the boys taught him but we won't go into that but yes you can teach them to talk words or phrases. ACE is also a very dirty bird and makes a terrible mess in his cage and it has to be cleaned very often because it will stink up the whole house. At night if I don't put a cover on his cage he will not shut up and let us sleep. He's friendly and likes to sit on our shoulders and climb all over us and we let him loose to fly around at times. I don't like that because he loves to crap on my piano and chew on my furniture so when he's out loose I have to watch him. But I have to admit he is a very cute little character and I would miss him if he wasn't around to drive me nutty. He does make me laugh at his antics.

My advise to you would be

1. First try and find his owner who may be desperatly looking for him

2. They have a long life span so if you don't want to keep him for years, re-home him asap

 

[Mini Horse Lover]

Well..they found him about a month ago..they put ads all over the place and no one has claimed him..they are going away for awhile so we are his new owners..he is not loud and loves to be petted! He is so sweet! Any advice on care and treats?

 

[twister]

minihorselover, I agree with Marty, they have a long lifespan so if you are not going to keep him get him rehoused and if he is that tame his people are probably looking for him, try putting up posters. We have Teddy who lives at my son's house now as he is Teddy's favourite person and Teddy is 18+ years and still going strong. He can imitate a smoke alarm and sometimes does it in the middle of the night, he can talk and loves fruit and nachos, he has been known to keep screaming if he doesn't get what he wants too

Yvonne

 

[Mini Horse Lover]

Well..what treats are good for them? And I plan on keeping him because I have other birds..but not parakeets and that..I have pigeons

 

[maplegum]

I have one, her name is 'Chip'.

She loves me to pick her fresh green grass, broccoli, bread (especially a slice with seeds in it), carrots, celery. Basically, any fruit and vegies are fine, but stay away from lettuce.

Make sure the bird has some shell grit in its diet and a piece of cuttle fish to grind it's beak.

Good luck, these little birds are lots of fun!

 

[Mini Horse Lover]

Do they need bird baths? Sorry that's a dumb question..and how can you teach them to talk?

 

[Marty]

Ace eats anything and loves fruit, cookies, chips, bread, raisens, watermelons, crackers and just about anything except meat. He has a bathtub but wont ever go in it so Dan holds him under the faucet to take a bath every now and then. Oh, do get a lice thing for his cage. They get lice. You teach him to talk by repetition. Ace knows the theme to the Young and the Restless even though I haven't seen it for years he retained that tune

 

[Miniv]

We have a female named "Angel".......She chirps very loudly to let me know when her seed bowl is low or her water needs changing....which means every other day. She also does a Wolf Whistle!

I buy a vitamin fortified seed blend labeled for Cockatiels. But for snacks she also gets various kinds of raw vegies, no lettuce. (She loves peas!) I also give her raisins, grapes broken in half, pieces of apple, bits of whole wheat bread, tiny pieces of hamburger - steak - and chicken! Cockatiels are distant cousins of the crow, magpie, etc..... like a parrot is, so they eat fruit, vegetables, and meat.

We also own a Conure (small parrot), and he gets the same.....

When the weather gets warm I will stick an extra water bowl in their cages and they flap around in it. I also have a Spray Bottle that "mists" and squirt it at them, but have to avoid their faces. They love to fluff and ruffle their feathers when I do that.

If you end up keeping him, I'm sure you'll have a lot of fun with him.......But prepared -- They live about 30+ years!

 

[maplegum]

30+ YEARS! Are you sure? I always thought their life span was around 15 - 20 years.

Only the male birds will talk. The females will attempt to talk, but it's the males that perfect it. My bird loves her bells. The more bells in her cage, the happier she is.

As far as a bath goes, I just add an extra water bowl to her cage in warmer weather and she'll splash around in that. You can always spray them down with one of those spray water bottles.

Make sure he is kept our of any draughts too.

 

[JourneysEnd]

Do they need bird baths? Sorry that's a dumb question..and how can you teach them to talk?

No, you take the cage outside and mist with a water bottle. It takes a few minutes, but they'll spred their wings and have a ball in the mist.

They're really easy to care for and live for frigging ever. Cuttle bone, good seed mix, millet spray, mine LIVE for pancakes. Cheerios, McDonald biscuits, corn bread, eggs, just about anything good for people, they can have. Depends on what the original owner fed it.

Boys talk more and generally make more noise.

I happened to have a talent in being able to tell gender by looking a their heads. Post a good picture looking straight on and we'll have a gender quessing game.

If it talks now, you tell by spending a lot of time bonding with them and repeating the same thing. They like some words better than others. Mine makes up his own sentences by putting all the words he knows together as in

"helloprettybirdjakeiloveyou"

 

[Miniv]

30+ YEARS! Are you sure? I always thought their life span was around 15 - 20 years.

Make sure he is kept our of any draughts too.

Actually, I think you're right.......it's my conure that's supposed live longer. OH!

And you're also right to mention the drafts. We've had to be careful where to put their cages. Cold air drafts can kill these guys faster than just about anything........(I keep a space heater by their cages, just incase. Larry thinks I'm a worry-wart....but - hey!)

 

[sfmini]

Mine just died a few weeks ago. Sure is quiet without her, not that she was that noisy but she would always announce when someone drove up the driveway with loud tweets. She didn't like people food, but did love her Cockatiel pelleted food, and was a big water drinker, more than my African Gray.

One thing, cockatiels are prone to night terrors, so make sure your bird's cage is protected from sudden lights like headlights through the window, or sudden loud noises in the dark. I got in the habit of leaving home with my headlights off until I got past the house. She never had trouble, but I would have hated for her to hurt or kill herself from something I did.

They are fun birds, I will have another one some day, but for now, I haven't even been able to make myself clean out her cage and put it away, and my African Gray keeps making her tweets and peering over where her cage used to be.

 

[NMMack]

I have 11 tiels, and they are my very Favorite Bird - "JJ" is my Best Friend in the World - they are Amazing, Sensitive, and very Intelligent Birds! It sounds like you have a Wonderful New Friend! With good care, he will be with you for many, many years!

Here is a link to a Cockatiel Forum where you can meet other Tiel folks and learn and ask questions on how to take good care of your new Friend!

http://chats.upatsix.com/chats.php?board=cockatiel

It is called "Tiel Town" and there are some Wonderful Bird Folks there!

I live in Minnesota too, so if you need any help, send me a PM and I will try to help you as best I can, you are in for a Wonderful time learning with your new Friend, Congratulations on getting a Tiel!!

Nancy

 

[mininik]

I've had several Cockatiels and currently have one cinnamon pearl pied male who showed up one night during a winter storm about a year and a half ago skinny and sick. I nursed him through it, he spent the summer and most of fall outside hanging out in his cage and come winter I brought him in and got a female Parakeet to keep him company who he has bonded with. (Pairing up birds doesn't always go well, so I had two cages ready just in case!)

I would never hold a bird under running water, or recommend it. Mist baths are much safer. I also would not recommend keeping any pesticides just hanging in the cage as unless the birds are living in an aviary or coming in contact with wild birds there should be no need. Mite protectors and pest strips give off dangerous fumes that can do more harm than good if they are not needed.

DO NOT feed grit. Keep a cuttlebone or mineral block in the cage. DO NOT feed an all seed diet. Pelleted diets (I prefer those that are naturally colored) are much better for your bird. An all seed diet can cause liver disease, kidney disease, diabetes, etc. Feeding your bird junk food can also cause these and other serious health issues which can lead to an early death.

For more information I recommend: http://www.cockatielcottage.net

 

[Mini Horse Lover]

Thanks everyone!

I can attach a picture..he is gray and yellow..very brightly colored..that help?

 

[maplegum]

I've had several Cockatiels and currently have one cinnamon pearl pied male who showed up one night during a winter storm about a year and a half ago skinny and sick. I nursed him through it, he spent the summer and most of fall outside hanging out in his cage and come winter I brought him in and got a female Parakeet to keep him company who he has bonded with. (Pairing up birds doesn't always go well, so I had two cages ready just in case!)

I would never hold a bird under running water, or recommend it. Mist baths are much safer. I also would not recommend keeping any pesticides just hanging in the cage as unless the birds are living in an aviary or coming in contact with wild birds there should be no need. Mite protectors and pest strips give off dangerous fumes that can do more harm than good if they are not needed.

DO NOT feed grit. Keep a cuttlebone or mineral block in the cage. DO NOT feed an all seed diet. Pelleted diets (I prefer those that are naturally colored) are much better for your bird. An all seed diet can cause liver disease, kidney disease, diabetes, etc. Feeding your bird junk food can also cause these and other serious health issues which can lead to an early death.

For more information I recommend: http://www.cockatielcottage.net

Why no shell grit? I've been feeding to my bird for years, she loves it! Actually, I guess she plays in it more than she eats it though.

 

[mininik]

Since Cockatiels do not injest the hulls of the seeds they eat they do not need grit to break it down in their system. There have been confirmed reports of lead poisoning and impaction as well as other digestive problems caused by grit. Unless your avian veterinarian has prescribed grit for a digestive problem you should not offer it.

 

[Marty]

I would never hold a bird under running water, or recommend it.

Oh my gosh we are so stupid we've been doing that for years. OH!

Ace loves it and it's not like we are forcing him under the faucet or anything, but I had no idea it was bad for him. I'll tell Dan we better not do that anymore. Then we fill the sink up and Dan lets him play around in it.

We had the bathtub that attaches to the cage but Ace would never go in it but that silly bird just loves the sink so that's why we do that.

 

[Miniv]

I would never hold a bird under running water, or recommend it.

Oh my gosh we are so stupid we've been doing that for years. OH!

Ace loves it and it's not like we are forcing him under the faucet or anything, but I had no idea it was bad for him. I'll tell Dan we better not do that anymore. Then we fill the sink up and Dan lets him play around in it.

We had the bathtub that attaches to the cage but Ace would never go in it but that silly bird just loves the sink so that's why we do that.

Same here, Marty....... but it was with our conure, Ducky. One day I had him on my shoulder while doing dishes and the water was running.......He crawled down my arm and started playing with the water, making crazy chirping noises. I had to quickly adjust the temperature of the water and lowered the faucet to just a trickle. It usually is just during the summer months that he does this. I didn't know it was bad for him either!