Everything you want to know about cockatiels as pets Cockatiels care guide: A well-known secret to all cockatiel owners is that these birds are just as pleasant to live in as dogs or cats, and they have a unique personality that can be seen in their expressive faces.
My first experience with a cockatiel dates back to my teenage years when I walked down the street in my neighborhood. I was amazed to hear the call of a single bird – like a parrot or a tropical bird, I thought to myself – so I followed my ears to a pigeon-sized gray bird pecking gravel in the gutter. He ran towards me when I approached.
I knew it must be someone’s pet bird, because its orange blush and yellow crest set it apart from all the other wild birds I knew, and its eagerness to see me showed me that it was tamed. His face was bright and intelligent. He looked me in the eye and tilted his head to understand me.
I took him home and put him under a large salad spinner with some seeds and apples, then led a crusade of neighborhood kids to ring the doorbell and inquire until we could find the owner.
Different people gave us different clues, but we were eventually led to people who knew other people who had birds, and eventually, we ended up at the owner of “Kiwi”, the name of their lost cockatiel.
They were thrilled to find their little bird, and they rewarded me with a twenty-euro bill and an armful of TY Beanie Babies. Kiwi was a cute little bird, and I loved how it interacted with its owners, openly and winningly. Maybe one day I’ll have my own little Kiwi to have and hold, I thought.
Cockatiels as pets
Several years later, a friend called me and asked if I would be interested in “adopting” two cockatiels that her neighbor owned, but couldn’t keep due to increasing commitments at work. I was happy to take them and I immediately loved the little hairballs for their expressive face and voice.
I really enjoyed having these cockatiels as pets in our house! They are very attentive to what is happening around them, and in our busy home, they have a lot to say, with sweet little “oh!” when someone opens a door or sneezes.
Everyone loves a pet that is cuddly, and these cockatiels are no exception! They lower their heads to have their neck massaged and, if they are confident and satisfied, we can even wrap our hands around them and “cuddle” them. They even purr, in their own way.
By rubbing their thick mane of feathers around their necks, they emit soft chuckling sounds, showing that they appreciate the attention they receive.
What sounds does Cockatiel make?
Cockatiel cry
The only thing that all cockatiel owners agree on is the shrill cry cockatiel makes when they want attention. It’s a piercing “HEY!” sound. We’ve found that the worst thing is when we come home after being away all day because our cockatiels feel they deserve a “hello” from every family member before they can calm down and shut up. The cockatiels also become grumpy when they are hungry, and their voice takes on a whiny, shrill turn.
Cockatiels who talk like humans
Most male cockatiels can learn to say a few human words quite effectively, like “hello” or “pretty bird,” and once they’ve learned those words, you’ll often hear them trying to contribute to your conversations by inserting the words they know into the hubbub of conversation.
They also like to imitate the sound of a conversation even if they can’t spot the words they know in what you’re saying. They’ll eventually elucidate something like this: “ja jickit chick ja chree chu jra” because they think that’s what they hear you say. In general, cockatiel females do not speak or sing (this is the case with most pet birds), but they find other ways to express themselves.
Cockatiel song
Our cockatiel man is also an accomplished singer and starts running in circles every morning on the roof of his cage while whistling at the top of his lungs “The Popcorn Song” from the 70s. It’s a really pretty voice that cockatiels have, and we’d much rather have him sing than shout at any time.
But it was difficult to teach our cockatiel to sing a new tune, because he incorporates the tune of the first song he learned to the rhythm of the new song we teach him, and most of the time it sounds like his own offbeat theme song.
Whistle
Most male cockatiels learn to use the wolf whistle at a very young age because they like the reaction they get after doing so! Our male cockatiel wolf whistles at the girls in our house every time he sees them for the first time that day because he knows they will melt and give him all the attention he wants!
Cockatiel care
Unpleasant cockatiel sounds
How to train a cockatiel
Cockatiels can easily be tamed to like to sit on fingers and shoulders. As with taming any bird, it’s a matter of trust. Patient, gentle and slow people can quickly gain the trust of a cockatiel, while noisy people who make spontaneous movements will be viewed with suspicion and avoided.
Cockatiels are very observant and notice differences in smells or appearance in people, which informs them that there is someone nearby that they do not know or trust. I have a cockatiel that will never let me pet him if I wear long sleeves because of something strange on the hand coming towards him.
It’s best to buy cockatiels that are already tame because they were hand-fed when they were babies. These cockatiels are the ones who already know they want to get people’s attention, and they will be all the closer to trying to imitate you when you speak or whistle because communicating with you is important to them.
How to train a cockatiel to whistle
To train a cockatiel to speak or whistle, choose a time when your cockatiel is most “obsessed” with you. You’ll see him leaning eagerly toward you, and he’ll watch your mouth as you speak, even going so far as to repeatedly open his beak or click his tongue against his top beak as if trying to imitate you.
This is the perfect time to repeat to him over and over again what you want him to learn! Your attention is the best reward he can receive, so be sure to reward him with lots of caress and praise when he succeeds!
How to interpret cockatiel behavior
Learn to read the body language of your cockatiel:
- Ridge (Mohawk) at the top: Frightened or excited.
- Thin lean body, tight feathers, big eyes, standing, motionless: frightened.
- Thin lean body, tight feathers, running back and forth or moving head: Excited.
- Shoulders out, head raised, crest raised, swinging back and forth on both legs, whistling (It looks like a breath of air – “huhf” “huhf”): Fear or anger and attempt to intimidate by pretending to be tall.
- Shoulders in the shape of a heart, singing or pacing (usually a man): happy and entertaining.
- Cling to the cage or perch by flapping your wings, but don’t fly anywhere: Practice using your wings.
- Sitting on one leg, body puffy, grinding and crunching with the beak: Asleep and satisfied, and keeping the beak cut off.
- Sitting, eyes closed, body puffy, on one leg, sometimes with the head folded under the rear wing: sleep.
- Ruffling feathers: Sometimes it’s like a “sigh” of relief after a scary event, other times it’s to put the feathers in place and remove dandruff after smoothing.
- Feathers continually tousled, eyes dull, lethargic, sitting on the floor of the cage, inactive, uninteresting to play or eat: Your bird is sick and needs to be kept warm and/or taken to a veterinarian.
Cockatiel care
What is the lifespan of a cockatiel?
Cockatiels usually live longer than budgies, but not as long as parrots. What is the average range of a cockatiel? Breeders and veterinarians say that 12 to 18 years is the typical lifespan for a cockatiel. As it ages, it often becomes more pudding and its plumage is not as smooth and regular. Some cockatiels even suffer from baldness under the wings or on the top of the head, but this is only noticeable if you stroke the feathers backward.
What happens to the feathers of my cockatiel?
Like dogs and cats, all pet birds go through a molting period. Molting is the time when they “lose” their old feathers and grow new ones. You may notice that sometimes there are more feathers at the bottom of the cage than at other times. This is due to the fact that your cockatiel loses its old feathers and grows new ones.
When a cockatiel grows new feathers, each feather begins with a funny white “woodpecker” that grows between the feathers.
This happens all over his body, but it is on his face that it is most noticeable. Don’t worry, it’s completely normal and natural! As the new feather peaks lengthen, the feather peak part stands out like a “shell” around the brand-new feather. When a cockatiel has finished molting, its coat will be thick and fluffy thanks to all these new feathers.
Do cockatiels have dandruff?
Cockatiels are one of the most dandruff pet birds out there, and you’ll often see a puff of dandruff after smoothing them out. Some people are allergic to dandruff, so consider researching this issue before committing to owning a cockatiel.
Names of cockatiel
The most common cockatiel names are “Kiwi”, “Tweety”, “Buddy”, “Lucky”, “Princess”, “Rocky”, “Lucky”, “Sunny”, “Max”, “And peaches”. If you want to be more creative or unusual in your choice of name, observe your bird for a few days before giving it a name to determine its personality type.
You may want to consider naming him after a book or movie character or a fun favorite food or giving him a name that fits his temperament. Many people choose names related to the color of their birds (orange or yellow), and foods or flowers that match them.
Cockatiel Beaded
The female cockatiel we own is a pearl-mutated cockatiel, which means she has white or light yellow spots on her back and head, almost like a speckled chicken.
Technically, pearl cockatiels are mutated, but the only physical problem they seem to have due to their mutation is baldness under the crest of their head and generally thinner feathers on the nape of the neck. Apart from that, the pearl cockatiel is very pretty for its color variation and its “speckled” appearance.
Cockatiel care
Questions and Answers
Question: During the night, our cockatiel falls from its perch, and is disoriented – it beats in circles. My husband speaks softly to her, and finally, he calms down and breathes normally again. Do you know what’s going on with him?
Answer: He probably has dreams or nightmares, or maybe something wakes him up. It’s always a good idea to cover your cockatiel cage with a blanket at night, so dark, light, and sound don’t bother him too much.
Question: Is it normal that the feathers of my cockatiel tail fall out and are always on the side rather than behind?
Answer: Yes, it is quite normal for this to happen to a caged bird, especially if its cage is not huge and its tail bumps against toys or bars all the time.
Question: Can we prevent cockatiels from entering their cage?
Answer: If you have a safe place where they can live and you don’t care about the mess, then yes.
Question: My cockatiel feathers do not lose their envelope. Is there anything I can do to help?
Answer: Be patient. It may sound funny, but there’s nothing wrong with it.
Cockatiels as Pets
SOURCE: BirdNerdSophie
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