Keep Your Cockatiel Happy

A cockatiel is a bird native to Australia. They are commonly kept as pets and can make great companions. Here are a few tips to keep your little feathered friend happy and healthy.

Steps

Preparing the Cockatiel's Home

1. Get the right size cage. Make sure you have the right size cage for your cockatiel. The cage should be large enough so that your cockatiel can spread its wings, even with any other birds or items that may be in the cage. Remember that the smaller the cage, the more time your cockatiel will need to spend outside of it to get the necessary exercise and mental stimulation.
   • Look for a cage you clean easily. Remember, birds will void every ten to fifteen minutes.
   • Check to see if your hand can fit in the cage without problem.
   • Your cockatiel will need enough room to spread its wings.
2. Install perches. Make sure you put enough perches in the cage so that your cockatiel is free to walk and jump around the cage. If positioned correctly, a cockatiel should be able to fly between perches too. Natural wood and rope perches are ideal.
   • Don't place perches directly over one another as cockatiels cannot fly at steep vertical angles.
   • Try making steps or platforms using your perches to handle vertical positioning.
   • Avoid concrete perches, as they are hard on the bird's feet.
   • Check that the wood is safe for the bird, such as eucalyptus.
   • Dowel perches or plastic perches can cause foot problems due to the lack of foot exercises.
   • Avoid perches and toys made out of Prunus or Oak trees as these may be harmful to to your cockatiel.
3. Put toys in the cage. Variety is important. Cockatiels, like most parrots, love to destroy things. Natural foliage and shredding toys are vital to ensure that your bird can direct its chewing in the right way.
   • Variety is important. Your cockatiel will be happiest if it has many toys to play with.
   • Ask a veterinarian before adding natural foliage as not all trees and shrubs are safe for cockatiels.
   • Cockatiels will grow tired of their toys. Rotate and clean toys every other week.
4. Present bathing options. All birds will need to have some kind of bathing option available. Beyond providing a way for your bird to stay clean, it also provides mental and physical stimulation. Most pet shops will have a sturdy plastic cockatiel bathtub for the cage.
   • Some birds may prefer misting from a spray bottle or even showering with their owner.
   • You can gently mist your bird with tempered water. Aim above the bird, don’t spray it directly.
   • Cockatiels are desert birds. It doesn't need to bathe more than once a week.
   • Change the water every day to avoid bacterial infections.

Caring for Your Cockatiel

1. Feed your cockatiel properly. There are number of different pellet formulations, designed by veterinarians, which are intended to provide a nutrient rich and balanced diet. Beyond the store bought pellet formulas, your cockatiel can enjoy many fruits and vegetables as well. shop.
   • Try offering corn, grapes, millet, or sunflower seeds as a treat.
   • Try to use pellets and vegetables to keep your birds seed intake to a minimum (33% or less, preferably).
   • An all-seed or mostly-seed diet is extremely high in fat, and will shorten a cockatiel's lifespan.
   • Never feed your cockatiel chocolate, caffeine, or alcohol. These are toxic to the bird.
2. Monitor your bird’s health. It can often be very hard to tell if your bird is unwell. If you see anything that is out of character for your bird, contact a veterinarian. Look for the following symptoms:
   • Sudden weight loss
   • Abnormal breathing
   • Discharge from the beak
   • Mucus on any feathers
   • Abnormal behavior
   • Go for a check-up with the veterinarian twice a year.
   • If you have more than one cockatiel, isolate the sick one immediately.
3. Give your cockatiel enough sleep. Cockatiels need ten to twelve hours of sleep per night. They should have a quiet and relatively dark place to get their necessary sleep each night.
   • The ten to twelve hours of sleep is in addition to any naps it may take during the day.
   • You might need a separate sleeping cage if the environment around their daytime cage cannot be quiet for at least 10-12 hours a night.
   • Cover three sides of the cage with a blanket to stop the light and the sound.
   • Don’t forget to let one side uncovered for oxygen circulation.
   • Cockatiels are often prone to "night frights". Place a small light near your birds cage to reduce its stress.
4. Monitor nail and beak length. If your birds beak or nails grow too long, they can pose health issues. In the wild, your bird will keep his nails and beak at a proper length.
   • Long nails may become tangled or caught in toys or on the cage, causing injury.
   • Perching problems can result from long nails, which in turn may cause foot injury.
   • Nails that are long are also sharp. If your bird perches on your hand, it may be uncomfortable or hurt you.
   • Use a grooming perch to allow your bird to trim its own nails as it moves about the cage. Try placing it next to the birds food and water to ensure usage. Grooming perches can be found at most pet stores.
   • To help maintain proper beak length, make sure your bird has plenty of toys to play with. Play, using the beak, will help wear it down and keep it at a healthy length. Lava rocks and cuttle-bones are great things to offer your bird to help with beak maintenance.

Keeping Your Cockatiel Stimulated

1. Encourage exercise. Cockatiels need exercise regularly. Even if it has clipped wings, presuming your bird is healthy, it should be capable of some flight. A walk or a flight in a room will keep your bird happy and stimulated.
   • Make sure the bird is safe. Close windows and doors, turn off fans, put cats or other pets away.
   • Try to challenge it when outside the cage by putting down treats in different areas and allowing the cockatiel to walk or fly to them.
   • Think about hygiene. Your bird will likely void whenever it wants, so keep it away from kitchen counters or furniture.
2. Pet your bird. Petting your bird is a great way to provide interaction and bond with your bird. While your bird is out of its cage, try to gently pet the cockatiel by lightly scratching its head and neck.
   • Some cockatiels will be more accepting of your petting than others.
   • Birds will invite you to scratch their head by tipping their head down.
   • Don’t forget to wash your hands before and after touching your bird.
   • Don’t insist if your bird doesn’t want to be touched.
   • Be gentle. Birds can easily be injured.
3. Interact with your bird. Cockatiels are intelligent creatures and need mental stimulation. Providing this stimulation and interaction is a great way to keep your bird happy and to form a deeper bond with it. You can also train it to do tricks:
   • Talk to your bird often, even reading it stories.
   • Start using instructions like "Up!" and "Down!" to coincide with its hopping on and off your finger.
   • Repetition is the key to getting him to perform an action according to your words.
   • If you aren't available to interact with your bird, leave music or a radio on. Your bird may even imitate the song or any talking it hears.
   • Position the bird on a tennis ball and help practice balance. The bird will eventually go on the ball on its own.
   • Never yell at or hit your cockatiel.
   • When training a bird, focus on positive reinforcement at all times.
4. Try playing games with your cockatiel. Playing games can be a great way to help your cockatiel keep stimulated and learning new things. It may also help to your bird to bond with you. Try some of the following games out with your cockatiel:
   • Try dancing with your cockatiel. Move your head up and down, or side to side, to the beat of a song. Cockatiel's have a sense of rhythm and will often move their head with you and the music.
   • Play music for your cockatiel. Playing an instrument, whistling, or singing can be entertaining for you bird. With enough exposure to certain songs, it may even learn to sing them back to you.
   • Play hide and seek with your bird. Take your bird into a room and gently set it down. Go around the corner to a new room and call out to your bird. Peak your head around the corner so you bird can see you and say “come find me!” before ducking back around the corner. When it find you, give your bird a head scratch and let it know how well it did.
5. Consider getting another cockatiel. Cockatiels are social birds and love to have company. If you are often away from your cockatiel, you may want to introduce another bird as a companion.
   • Get a second cage for your new cockatiel.
   • Place the cages apart for ninety days, checking the new bird for any signs of illness. You don't want both of your birds to get sick.
   • If after ninety days the new cockatiel is in good health, you can move their cages near one another.
   • At first, schedule separate times for each bird for when they are allowed out of their cage.
   • Eventually allow both out at the same time. Keep a careful eye on both birds as they may act aggressively towards one another. Any hissing, screaming, biting, or attacking should result in them going back in the cages.
   • Eventually they may bond, even visiting each other in their respective cage.
   • Never fore interaction and never force your birds to share a cage.

Warnings

• Birds have sensitive lungs which are easily damaged.
• Be careful of fumes in your bird's immediate environment.
• Teflon from an overheated pan is a significant hazard.
• Caustic cleaning agents, cigarette smoke, as well as strong perfumes, can all be damaging to your cockatiel.

Related Articles

• Live With a Moluccan Cockatoo
• Care for a Moluccan or Umbrella Cockatoo
• Take Care of a Cockatiel
• Keep a Cockatiel Healthy

Sources and Citations

See also

• Tell if a Cockatiel Is Male or Female
• Train a Cockatiel to Talk
• Take Care of a Cockatiel
• Tame a Cockatiel
• Buy a Pet Cockatiel
• Clip a Cockatiel's Flier Feathers
• Understand Cockatiel Gestures
• Get Your Cockatiel to Stop Laying Eggs

What links here

• Understand Cockatiel Gestures