34 replies to this topic

[D's TK]

Hello fellow bird lovers...or at least, bird tolerators... In addition to all the animals I have cared for thru the ages, birds are one of my favorites! I have two parakeets right now that are quite amusing (for the price of the birdseed and the occasional new toy!). Here is a little of what I know about cockatiels:

They are not typically good talkers. They do, however, like to mimic sounds (whistling, doorbells, etc.) and like to do a lot of chattering and chirping, sometimes to the extreme! Steve, did you say yours is seven years old? If so, I would not count on her talking...they usually need to start that at a younger age...and it is real work! You have to practice with them ALOT. It's easier to teach parakeets to talk than cockatiels, in my experience. I have never had one that I could get to talk and I haven't known anyone who has, either. Also, if you have a mirror in her cage, or any birds cage actually, they are much less likely to learn to talk. Same goes for if you have more than one bird.

Supermom, I feel for you...I know when my parakeets get going with their chattering sometimes I feel like I am going to go bonkers!! And one cockatiel is about three times as loud as a couple of parakeets...eeek! One thing I do, when mine get going pretty loud, is pull their night-time cage cover back down over the front of the cage for a few minutes, and that will usually settle them down. They equate that with "bedtime" and so they instantly quiet down. You might try that and see if it helps. Or, sometimes, if you leave the room, they will stop because they no longer have an "audience." Since most birds are more active in the early morning, sometimes, if I need more quiet than usual, I leave them covered for a bit longer. It's really funny because if I haven't uncovered them by 9:00am (I swear the little buggers can tell time!) they start in with a bit of complaining, low chirping mostly, until I uncover them

Birds really are great pets and they do have very individual and distinct personalities! It's best to get hand-raised birds for pets (from independant bird shops or pet stores...not the mass-produced Petco & PetSmart ilk...they are raised by the parents and then dumped into the big enclosures for purchase) With alot of patience, you could tame one of these birds, but most of the people I have known have not had a good experience with the Petco-type birds. Birds are really smart and can be very loving and affectionate, but they usually require a lot of handling and attention, which, for people who enjoy birds, is not a big deal And even if you have a large cage, it's always a good idea to let them have some time outside of it each day. Birds who are caged all the time and not handled very much tend to start exibiting signs of emotional stress, such as plucking out their own feathers. These kinds of behaviors are alot harder to change than they are to prevent. It's also a good idea to keep a small "arsenal" of bird toys on hand and change them out from the ones in the cage about once per week. Birds need alot of stimulation of the mind and playing with the various toys works their brains....but they get bored easily and then you have for an unhappy birdie I change my perches and toys every few days when I clean the cage, and it's fun to watch them go back in and explore all the "new" stuff

So, that's about my $.02 (although I think I may have exceeded that!) If anyone is interested in birds as pets, please feel free to contact me with any questions and I would be happy to help!

c_055_us0_post_ptdg_lan_bck

[supermom]

Hello fellow bird lovers...or at least, bird tolerators... In addition to all the animals I have cared for thru the ages, birds are one of my favorites! I have two parakeets right now that are quite amusing (for the price of the birdseed and the occasional new toy!). Here is a little of what I know about cockatiels:

They are not typically good talkers. They do, however, like to mimic sounds (whistling, doorbells, etc.) and like to do a lot of chattering and chirping, sometimes to the extreme! Steve, did you say yours is seven years old? If so, I would not count on her talking...they usually need to start that at a younger age...and it is real work! You have to practice with them ALOT. It's easier to teach parakeets to talk than cockatiels, in my experience. I have never had one that I could get to talk and I haven't known anyone who has, either. Also, if you have a mirror in her cage, or any birds cage actually, they are much less likely to learn to talk. Same goes for if you have more than one bird.

Supermom, I feel for you...I know when my parakeets get going with their chattering sometimes I feel like I am going to go bonkers!! And one cockatiel is about three times as loud as a couple of parakeets...eeek! One thing I do, when mine get going pretty loud, is pull their night-time cage cover back down over the front of the cage for a few minutes, and that will usually settle them down. They equate that with "bedtime" and so they instantly quiet down. You might try that and see if it helps. Or, sometimes, if you leave the room, they will stop because they no longer have an "audience." Since most birds are more active in the early morning, sometimes, if I need more quiet than usual, I leave them covered for a bit longer. It's really funny because if I haven't uncovered them by 9:00am (I swear the little buggers can tell time!) they start in with a bit of complaining, low chirping mostly, until I uncover them

Birds really are great pets and they do have very individual and distinct personalities! It's best to get hand-raised birds for pets (from independant bird shops or pet stores...not the mass-produced Petco & PetSmart ilk...they are raised by the parents and then dumped into the big enclosures for purchase) With alot of patience, you could tame one of these birds, but most of the people I have known have not had a good experience with the Petco-type birds. Birds are really smart and can be very loving and affectionate, but they usually require a lot of handling and attention, which, for people who enjoy birds, is not a big deal And even if you have a large cage, it's always a good idea to let them have some time outside of it each day. Birds who are caged all the time and not handled very much tend to start exibiting signs of emotional stress, such as plucking out their own feathers. These kinds of behaviors are alot harder to change than they are to prevent. It's also a good idea to keep a small "arsenal" of bird toys on hand and change them out from the ones in the cage about once per week. Birds need alot of stimulation of the mind and playing with the various toys works their brains....but they get bored easily and then you have for an unhappy birdie I change my perches and toys every few days when I clean the cage, and it's fun to watch them go back in and explore all the "new" stuff

So, that's about my $.02 (although I think I may have exceeded that!) If anyone is interested in birds as pets, please feel free to contact me with any questions and I would be happy to help!

c_055_us0_post_ptdg_lan_bck

I hadn't considered changing the way the cage looks or changing out the toys in them. I'll have to go hunting for toys and perches. The bird generally gets about an hour outside the cage in the morning and about 7? hours at night. From 3pm to 10Pm. When he figured out he could "fly" to the top of the couch and then "fly" to the top of his cage-he can get water without us taking him there. Before it was every 1/2 hour, we would take him there. So maybe he just needs some new stimulation.

[D's TK]

Supermom,

What I do is keep a small basket on the shelf of the bird cage stand, and in it, all the little toys I have picked up...you don't need tons. I just put the little perches (the kind that just attach to one side of the cage...not all the way across) around in different spots and then attach a toy by each one As long as you change them every few days and move things around a bit, it really is like a "new" house to them. Do you have problems with a water dish in the cage? If so, you might want to consider a water bottle that attaches to the side of the cage (like for hamsters, guinnea pigs, etc.) because birds will learn to drink out of it and it avoids all the mess of a water dish. My older bird, "Baby" who is 3.5 years old, has never has a problem with the water dish and neither has my younger one, "Oscar" who is only about six months old...but he just started (literally, about two days ago) bathing in the water dish! Parakeets, cockatiels, etc. originated from rain forests and they do like to bathe frequently, but in the drinking water dish....ugh! So I am going to get a water bottle for them to drink out of and then Oscar can bathe to his hearts content in the old water dish My older bird has never wanted to bathe, so I just take him out every few days and mist him with a water bottle with tepid water in it, and he enjoys that. Well, I was doing that with both...but now Oscar is taking care of his own hygiene needs! It's funny to watch because he starts at one side of the water dish, dives in like a seal, and emerges on the other side...then turns around and goes back the same way! Usually, they just flutter around in a shallow bit of water to bathe, but this guy seems to be diving for buried treasure! Funniest thing I have seen in awhile

Here's a picture of my little feathered friends for all to see..."Oscar" (blue) and "Baby" enjoying some time on their birdie gym






 birdiegym.jpg   113.5K   25 downloads

[supermom]

Aw your babies are super cute. Did I mention I had parakeets when I was a kid?

Anyway, SweetBaby refuses to bathe!!!! He gets pretty worked up over the spray bottle-and I make sure the water is the same temp as my wrist (just like a baby bottle). He isn't messy with his feed or water. I was actually considering buying a bird bath that hangs from the ceiling.
I have also tried getting him to stand on the shower curtain rod when I shower. He usually flies away and lands in the sink. (yes we always keep the toilet bowl closed-just because of this)! He just doesn't like water.


The only time I find him messy with his feed is the top feeder that is above hie cage. That tends to drop onto the carpet AROUND his cage. gotta love him for it.

The only other time he's messy is when I give him his goldfish crackers. He can pull them apart until its just dust--so I devised a new scheme. I put newspaper on the floor when watching TV and put two three gold fish crackers on it. That works well. Plus he's quiet!

[D's TK]

Aw your babies are super cute. Did I mention I had parakeets when I was a kid?

Anyway, SweetBaby refuses to bathe!!!! He gets pretty worked up over the spray bottle-and I make sure the water is the same temp as my wrist (just like a baby bottle). He isn't messy with his feed or water. I was actually considering buying a bird bath that hangs from the ceiling.
I have also tried getting him to stand on the shower curtain rod when I shower. He usually flies away and lands in the sink. (yes we always keep the toilet bowl closed-just because of this)! He just doesn't like water.
The only time I find him messy with his feed is the top feeder that is above hie cage. That tends to drop onto the carpet AROUND his cage. gotta love him for it.

The only other time he's messy is when I give him his goldfish crackers. He can pull them apart until its just dust--so I devised a new scheme. I put newspaper on the floor when watching TV and put two three gold fish crackers on it. That works well. Plus he's quiet!

They actually make little perches with suction cups on both ends to stick in the shower so that your bird can shower with you...can you believe that? My husband was trying to convince me to get one so the keets could clean up with me....I told him HE could shower with the birds if he wanted to but I prefer to shower alone, thank you! Geez, with a house full of animals and two teenagers, the daily shower is the only time I get to be alone and reflect on my too crazy-n-busy life! I can't give that up! My little blue guy, Oscar, has thrown a fit since day one when he is spritzed with the spray bottle...he makes this horrible squawking sound, like a girl screaming...he sounds like someone is killing him!! I am glad he is taking care of the baths himself now...just because I don't have to hear that blood-curdling screaming! My older fella, Baby (also named because we just could not think of a good name at the time, so we just started saying "Hi Baby" everytime we passed the cage and now he thinks that's who he is ) well, he loves to perch on one finger while I spritz him...he spreads his wings and shakes his tail feathers, dreaming about his roots in the rain forest, I suppose! If you get a bird bath that hangs, just a word of warning, try to get one that is enclosed or he will be flapping water everywhere

That's an ingenious solution with the crackers! Keeps the mess in check and gives mr. birdie-bird something to do! I only have a problem with mine making a mess with their regular food dish, seed hulls getting scattered on the floor and such. I have a dust-buster mounted on the wall right by the cage so that I can just give the area a quick once over every day, in between regular vacuuming of the room. Mine get loud too when we are watching movies (especially the action-adventure type and/or car chases...anything that sounds exciting to them!) If you turn the tv off or mute it, they stop and cock their heads to the side, looking at us as if to say, "hey...where'd the noise go??" Another thing they will do is, if my husband and I are sitting in the room talking, they will start up...just like little kids, trying to get mom and dads attention for themselves! I shush them every once in awhile, but that doesn't really work with birds, unfortunately! I usually have to get up and pull their cage cover down over the front so we can finish a conversation But yeah, ya gotta love them. It is really easy to get attached to them. I am preparing to get a sun conure, probably this fall, and I am going to attempt to teach it to talk. Conures are great talkers, it just takes quite a bit of time. If you are interested in teaching your little guy to talk the best way is to wait until early evening, when he starts settling down for the night, and to take him to a quiet room and just repeat the words or phrase you would like him to say...the catch is to do repeatedly for about 15 minutes (feels like forever!) every night until he starts to mimic you when you say it. And only teach one phrase at a time; as soon as he masters one, move on to another. This is if you can get him to...they just aren't good talkers. They much prefer to imitate sounds and noises that they hear around the house. We had one many years ago that would imitate the microwave "ding" and the doorbell! It was funny as all get out Neither of my parakeets talk, but I didn't try with either of them, although I have taught ones I have had in the past. It's much harder if you have more than one, because they are more interested in communicating with each other So, good luck and if you try and succeed with SweetBaby...keep the forum updated...I find birds fascinating and would love to know the outcome

[supermom]

Well, SweetBaby is still not talking, per se.. But he can do an awesome imitation of my hollering my daughters name! Just in whistle sound instead of words. The same for other things, like my sons name, or the guinea pigs name. When he calls me it is just a really loud wolf whistle. He will even do that whistle when the kids are talking to me on the phone and the bird hears them say mommy!! I don't even have to be home. Too funny. He still hasn't taken to bird bathing, so we spray him now and then. He has learned that the snack cabinet has a specific whine when opened so he can immitate the cabinet when he wants a goldfish cracker. He found out that when I'm cooking scrambled eggs--he is allowed to walk in, not fly; so now he goes to the corner (away from feet) and rubs his top and bottom beak together until I lay a plate of eggs on the floor for him. Last night I made eggs for him then topped it off with yogurt and pieces of tomato. Danged bird ate it all. He still hasn't molted yet, but the green around his face has changed to yellow, and the gray wings have gotten white stripes on them. Also, the yellow bars under the tail have noticably faded. So I'm definitely thinking he's a male now. He has become an awesome companion-but he still likes to attack fingers then accept them as a perch. Sometimes I notice it more when it is late evening. Oh, and I found out that he really likes steven segall and bruce willis movies. He goes completely bonkers and screams. Once he flew into the tv screen!! Poor baby; we had to turn off the tv and whisper sweet nothings for 20 minutes before he would let us look at his foot (he was limping).

Well, he doesn't attack the tv anymore.

He's such a cool bird.

[supermom]

Wierdest thing--SweetBaby decided he likes bacon. Whoda thunk? Does anyone know--will it hurt him to eat bacon?

[EAH]

How fortuitous that this post resurfaced!!! I was driving past a garage sale on Wales Dr. in Folsom this past weekend and noticed several cages for sale out front. As I am rescuing a guinea pig I thought it was worth a looksee. Well the gentleman who lives there has a huge aviary in his yard and he breeds and raises Cockatiels. Long story short, I went in looking for a guinea pig cage and came out with a 3 month old male Pied Cockatiel and cage to boot. Now I know NOTHING about birds, but I can tell you it was a rough first 2 days. The poor bird bit the living daylights (drew blood) out of the gentleman when he was removing him from his cage, and was hissing and spitting and not eating or drinking at all the rest of the day. Second day my husband, who owned a Cockatiel when he was younger, opened the cage to pet the bird and the bird flew out of the cage and full force into the wall. Panic ensued and the poor thing was like a pinball, bouncing off one wall into another. We finally caught him (did I mention his wngs are not trimmed?)And put him back in the cage but he was bleeding a tiny bit just between his nostrils. We watched him carefully and he managed to live through the night. Three days later and he is eating now, however only his millet sprays, he won't touch his bird food. I spent over $150 on food, toys, water bottle etc. to make him feel at ease but it appears he would have been just as happy with the millet alone. He spits at us when we get too close to him and doesn't tolerate our hand in the cage, so we leave him alone and simply talk to him. I cover him at night and we carry him into whatever room we are in during the day/evening so he can get used to our voices. I am taking him to The Bird Shop on Auburn blvd. this weekend to get his wings clipped.
Any additional advice?

[Steve Heard]

Don't give up on him. It sounds like the breeder didn't hand feed him, so all he knows is that he's been snatched from the flock and is now in some stranger's place.

Be patient.

Keep talking to him. When he runs out of food, try sliding a piece of millet to him through the bars of the cage and see if he will eat it while you hold it.

At another time, put your hand into the cage, slowly. Leave it there for a moment, and remove. Do that several times per day, and he'll start to get used to you.

Try other foods, such as pasta, bread, lettuce, spinach, peas and corn.

I recommend taking him to the vet for a check up and wing clipping.

[EAH]

Thanks for the advice Steve. I really want this to work out. The dogs, being terriers aren't quite sure what to make of the poor thing.

[caspertheghost]

EAH- offtopic- but you decided on a cavy? Are you rescuing at the pound? That's great... but just remember cavies should be in at least pairs, never just by themself, as they are very social animals. I have one sow that should have them anyday now... sure likes to keep me waiting...Lol.

On topic though... my one friend had 2 cockatiels she has to rehome... she wanted me to take them, but my dad doesn't want us to have birds since he prefers them out in the wild... but my friend might be taking them... she has a pair of cockatiels already, so yea.

[supermom]

How fortuitous that this post resurfaced!!! I was driving past a garage sale on Wales Dr. in Folsom this past weekend and noticed several cages for sale out front. As I am rescuing a guinea pig I thought it was worth a looksee. Well the gentleman who lives there has a huge aviary in his yard and he breeds and raises Cockatiels. Long story short, I went in looking for a guinea pig cage and came out with a 3 month old male Pied Cockatiel and cage to boot. Now I know NOTHING about birds, but I can tell you it was a rough first 2 days. The poor bird bit the living daylights (drew blood) out of the gentleman when he was removing him from his cage, and was hissing and spitting and not eating or drinking at all the rest of the day. Second day my husband, who owned a Cockatiel when he was younger, opened the cage to pet the bird and the bird flew out of the cage and full force into the wall. Panic ensued and the poor thing was like a pinball, bouncing off one wall into another. We finally caught him (did I mention his wngs are not trimmed?)And put him back in the cage but he was bleeding a tiny bit just between his nostrils. We watched him carefully and he managed to live through the night. Three days later and he is eating now, however only his millet sprays, he won't touch his bird food. I spent over $150 on food, toys, water bottle etc. to make him feel at ease but it appears he would have been just as happy with the millet alone. He spits at us when we get too close to him and doesn't tolerate our hand in the cage, so we leave him alone and simply talk to him. I cover him at night and we carry him into whatever room we are in during the day/evening so he can get used to our voices. I am taking him to The Bird Shop on Auburn blvd. this weekend to get his wings clipped.
Any additional advice?

Oh--the poor baby!!! When SweetBaby gets really upset we put him on the top of his cage where there is an outside tray and put his favorite --Orange goldfish crackers with him. When he is really upset he will talk to his food as he eats it (like a grumbling old man). You might want to try some pellet food instead of seeds--the previous owner may have fed him a strictly pellet food diet. Millet is good for them but should not be his only diet--if he just wont eat try some of the stuff Stevethedad suggested.

Ps. the bird finally gave up attacking the tv--but now it's the microwave. Anyone know what the heck that's all about?

[hopeanelli]

I am trying to decide about getting a cockatiel for my 10 year old and myself. I had a parakeet and a amazon parrot growing up and loved them both then had kids and dogs and cats and have come back to wanting a bird again. Never had a cockatiel, the dog is old and will be fine, the cats are outdoor only cats so I am sure I have covered the safety of a bird from other animals now is the dilema of time and bird. The house is quiet from 8:30 to 2:45 daily but then the kids get home and it's noisey and active. I am home by 4pm. Don't even know where to begin Pet Store purchase or Private Owner? Any advice? I think the birdee would be fine for those hours as long as we came home and let it out and interacted with it for the rest of the night.

Any and all advice welcomed....

[supermom]

My advice buy a young bird and make sure it has been hand fed at an early age. Takes the fear out of it being handling. Also--as long as you have kids (or other forgetful people) you should make sure the bird's wings are clipped.

[hopeanelli]

My advice buy a young bird and make sure it has been hand fed at an early age. Takes the fear out of it being handling. Also--as long as you have kids (or other forgetful people) you should make sure the bird's wings are clipped.

Do you know anyone in the Folsom area that has little ones and if not any suggestions where to look? I think the pet store isn't a great idea I got my amazon from a private person and he was great he was 5 months old and hand fed when I got him so that was easy transition