# Cockatiel update



## frozengirl

*Help - Cockatiel won't eat !*

I just got a cockatiel from the pet store yesterday, but he is not eating nor drinking anything yet, I even left millet clipped by his perch and he hasn't touched it .

I am so worried, I don't remember my budgies being this scared when I got them =(

It's been almost 24 hours im really really worried.

I cannot post on the cockatiel forums yet, they need to approve my account


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## aluz

I'm sorry to hear that and while it's difficult, try not to freak out as that can add to the stress levels. 
Your cockatiel may not be familiar with millet spray.
What you can do is to place the food container close to your cockatiel's favourite perching spot. 
If you haven't done so already and in order to help him in better settling in and feeling comfortable, you can cover the cage on 3 sides (leaving front part uncovered) and having some soothing music on low volume.

I hope your new little friend takes a bite to eat soon, good luck.


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## frozengirl

I saw him eatting millet spray at the pet shop =( and I bought the exact food he eats in his dish and put it in a dish by his new perch. I also did the blanket thing as I had to do that with my budgies when I first got them.

Sigh I feel so bad I took him from his pet store home. I hope he doesn't die.


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## Minigrace

He should be fine. It takes some birds longer to settle in than others. Have you tried the music suggestion? What do his droppings look like?


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## frozengirl

His droppings looks like my budgie droppings but bigger.

Yeah im playing some classical music, and the cockatiel sometimes makes some noise when he hears the budgies in the other room.


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## Therm

Have you tried leaving your new tiel alone for a while?
While you love your new bird and are anxious to make sure he's okay, some alone time might be good for him. 
Maybe spend a couple of hours with the budgies, leave the music, the covers on the three sides, make sure the food is full by the perch and just leave him be and check back later on and see if any food has gone. 

Good luck.


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## frozengirl

Im also very worried he will bite me . He lunges towards me when I attempted to add more food in his cage.. and hisses.

How hard do cockatiels bite? Much harder then budgies?


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## frozengirl

Therm: Yeah i left him alone for the morning, just checked on him and added more millet on his perch to try to entice him more then left him be. So worried. He didnt like my hand in the cage at all I had to wait for him to move off the perch so that i didn`t get bitten.. He is a very nervous bird.. I decided to not clean his cage today because I am extremely worried he will bite me haha. What have i gotten myself into ! Maybe ill wait a few days before attempting to clean inside the cage.

His poor wings are clipped badly it seems and he cannot fly, I feel so bad for him.


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## Therm

I can't say I know the difference between bites. A budgie, when upset and scared, can draw blood and a tiel could easily do the same. 

I would try and leave him as much as possible. When you change his food and water, just be very slow and careful and just speak calmly and softly while you do it. 
There should be no reason to keep adding food. If he's not touching it, just leave him alone. 
I would try and spend time away from him and let him settle without the being there. I know it's hard but as he seems so frightened, it might be for the best. 

When you do spend time in the room with him, ignore him. Just let him get used to you being in the room and paying no attention right now might help more than constantly checking on him. 

I think that you need to just get him comfortable with him being in the room before you try and do anything else. 

As for cleaning the cage, do you not have a tray at the bottom of the cage? You should be able to clean it without upsetting him too much. If he's that upset, I agree leaving the cleaning for now is probably for the best, but you also want to be able to keep an eye on his poops and that's going to get harder the more poops that build up. 

Hopefully within a couple of days you'll be able to clean his cage without him being so afraid. 
If your birds wings were clipped badly, he might have had a traumatic experience, hence why he's acting so afraid right now.


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## JRS

frozengirl said:


> Im also very worried he will bite me


I've read that if you hold your hand in a tight fist, so that your skin is taut, then it's less easy for a bird to grip onto your skin when trying to bite you & that it hurts less. Might help you feel a bit more confident when you have to go into the cage.
inch:


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## frozengirl

If there are droppings, he must be eating something, so that is a good sign. I agree with the advise about talking to him softly and moving slowly when changing food and water. He will settle in but I understand - bringing a new bird home always makes me anxious until they start to eat and act normal.

He ate the millet and drank some water ! So relieved. I get the feeling he was only on a millet diet. I really hope not because I dont want to stress with converting him. Ill let him have millet for a day or two i hope that would be okay then take it out.

What do you guys think, is it okay to let him eat millet for a couple of days. I got a cup of Tropimix in there too , in case he wants some..

The lady at the pet store had been feeding him Tropimix for small parrots, but i get the feeling she had millet in there all the time also and he just went for the millet all the time. Sigh I am very disapointed in them right now. They cannot hand tame or feed birds properly , shouldn`t be selling them. I feed my budgies 50% pellets 25% seed 25% veges every day. I hope cockatiels are easy to convert like my budgies .


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## Therm

For now, leave the millet until your tiel is more settled. It's not an ideal diet, but it's better that he's eating something than nothing. Once he gets more comfortable with his new home, you can take away the millet and just leave seed mix and see how it goes. 

I'm glad he's eaten something.


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## RavensGryf

You've already been given some good advice about how to make your new little guy comfortable . He is not settled in his brand new environment yet, and that is the root of the problem. It takes time for some new birds. Some take days to eat. The fact that he is eating a few bites of millet already the next day is showing promise that he will be okay.  

Also about cleaning the cage, just clean the pull out tray and change paper for now. He is getting defensive because he is scared. He doesn't know you or his new home yet, and isn't sure if your hand in the cage is a predator in his mind. Hopefully soon through your demeanor, mannerisms, and tone of voice, he will start to trust. Keep in mind trust comes in small increments and can take time. For now, he might need more alone time. Best of luck .

Did you name you new little fellow yet?


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## frozengirl

Yes I think i will call him Pablo. Pinto and Poncho would like that.

I wish I hadn't lined the inside of the cage before I put him inside, lol.

I always put newspaper above the cage floor because I thought my birds would rather walk on paper instead of wires.

I just didnt realize he was so scary when he looks like hes going to bite haha . He never bit me yet , but he sometimes looks at me very evil and did bite a stick of millet while i was putting it in the cage (aggressively!) it spooked me out lol.

Thanks so much for the kind and quick responses. I get overly anxious when I think something is wrong with my birds. I have anxiety disorders so I guess that doesn't help, so big thanks to you guys for helping me feel better !!!


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## mekat

Cockatiels are way more needy then budgies. IME they are prone to regressing when stressed and even when they aren't stressed they liked to be babied. I have a 4 month old that has been weaned for over 6 weeks and he still begs for formula. 

As for biting I have never had one draw blood or bruise me. Their beaks are really not powerful. Their bite is harder then a budgie but not as bad as lovebird. Make sure you are not reinforcing the behavior by withdrawing immediately or over reacting.


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## frozengirl

mekat : I would love to baby him but I think it's going to be a long road for him to trust me by the way he is acting , and not being hand tamed. Also hes an older bird, 2 years the pet store said. So I am guessing it will take months  Poor guy I'd love to take him out with me .


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## frozengirl

So - the cockatiel i got 2 days ago is now calling out to the budgies in the next room all the time. I feel badly because he wants to be with other birds and is not tame. 

Will this affect the taming process ? Will he never bond with me because he hears my budgies in the other room ?


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## Therm

Flock calling is natural for any bird that you bring home. He can hear the other birds and wants to be with them- it's perfectly natural. 

The further apart the two rooms are- the better, as it will make them hearing one another harder. You can also try playing some music in both rooms as a distraction. 

Right now, your tiel is settling, so I wouldn't worry too much about binding at this time. He really needs to settle in for at least two weeks before you worry about bonding. Don't get too carried away with worrying about the next step. 
Just try and create a stress free, calm home for him and he'll settle much quicker.


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## frozengirl

okay thanks Term ! He makes some beautiful whislting noises I never knew they could do ! It's so sweet.

Sadly I live in a one bedroom apartment (cockatiel in the living room - budgies in my room) but I can bring in the radio to the other room to distract each other great idea ! My boyfriend has an apartment next door but he smokes so I cannot bring them there =(

I also vape non nicotine e-cigs that have a slight smell to them. I hope it doesnt hurt them if i vape away from their cages.

He is so beautiful ! I am in love I hope he can bond to me eventually !

I tried playing a whislting star wars tune but he called out to a flock so I guess I should stick to the "human non whistling music /talking" only  

lol when the kettle boils he goes nuts too.


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## RavensGryf

I know it's sometimes difficult to be patient, but at the very beginning we can't place a timeline on them. You can't even see his 'real' personality yet right now. He is just scared and settling in since it's only been a couple days. That's completely normal . 

The budgies don't have anything to do with the potential to tame. Being already an adult and mostly wild, don't place expectations on him for what you want him to be. That would only be setting yourself up for disappointment. He will get as tame as "he" wants to be in his own time. Typically, a wildish adult male tiel will not get 'as' tame as a hand fed, hand raised baby. They can still be wonderful pets though .


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## Therm

Best to vape out the window or in the hallway. Budgie and tiels can be very sensitive to things like that.


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## RavensGryf

Pablo, Pinto, and Pancho . That's cute!


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## FaeryBee

*I've merged your two threads regarding your cockatiel, Pablo into one.

Please keep all your questions and updates about him in this thread.

Thanks! *


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## StarlingWings

Hi there  

Congratulations on adopting Pablo! 

You've been given great advice. Right now, it's important for you to take a few steps back. He's scared and nervous, and you don't want to give him the wrong impression of yourself by being so overbearing right from the start. Soon, he will settle down. Putting on music for him, covering his cage, etc. are all good steps to take, so well done with that! :clap: 

Also, vaping is indeed a hazard to birds, so doing it outside or in a room away from them with the door closed is the best option. 

Keep us posted on how Pablo is doing! :i.opl:


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## frozengirl

Well when pablo takes a drink , he snorts all the time like he submerged his entire beak in water. He doesn't even know how to drink properly?

He also sits on the perch more often with his head facing his back, like my budgies do when they sleep, but he does this when he is awake... Is that bad for his neck? geez lol.

I didn't think cockatiels were so helpless..


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## FaeryBee

*Perhaps it would be a good idea for you to take Pablo in for an Avian Vet visit to ensure he is in good health.

It would also be a good idea for you to join Talk Cockatiels as well as that species is the primary focus for that forum.

Best wishes!*


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## frozengirl

I tried to join talk cockatiels two days ago but i cannot post on their forums, I guess they don't add new members often.


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## frozengirl

This evening things seemed a lot better. He played with a toy finally, enjoyed a spray shower in his cage (He opened his wings and went towards the spray!) , and ate some budgie zupreem pellets (The stores in my area don't sell pellets - So I'll have to order him some online) !! Still wont touch the veges I clipped on his cage.. I attempted to make a pellet seed mash with chopped veges but he didn't give in. Still hisses when i change his water but he appears happier at least, doesn't drown himself when getting a drink and isn't always looking behind him no more. He made some happy chirps today and some screetches , so hopefully he is starting to relax in his new home.

Im really surprised he liked his spray shower, my budgie Poncho doesn't care about his shower, and Pinto dislikes them. They both don't waddle in water unless its a hot summer day so I gotta give them spray showers sometimes too.


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## FaeryBee

*


frozengirl said:



I tried to join talk cockatiels two days ago but i cannot post on their forums, I guess they don't add new members often.

Click to expand...

Send me the User ID you are trying to use with Talk Cockatiels and I will see if I can get help for you.

I'm glad to hear little Pablo is doing a bit better now. :thumbsup:*


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## frozengirl

They added me finally but thanks ! :yellow pied:

I mentioned my budgie diet to them and asked if it was ok for cockatiels, and they said no bird should eat grapes , I didn't know that! OOps i have been feeding Pinto and Poncho (budgies) grapes sometimes.


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## StarlingWings

Hmm, I've never heard that. Safe fruits, which include grapes, should always be fed in moderation because of high sugar content. However, I don't think it's accurate to say "no bird should ever eat grapes" :dunno:


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## JRS

Could the grape danger be the possible seeds, similar to apple seeds?


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## FaeryBee

*This thread on Talk Cockatiels lists grapes as a safe food.
I'd stick with seedless grapes for your birds. 

All fruits are high in sugar which is why they should be fed in moderation.

http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=536

The list of safe foods for budgies is in the link below:

http://talkbudgies.com/diet-nutrition/338818-safe-foods-budgies.html

*


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## RavensGryf

The advice on this thread in regard to grapes is more accurate than what they told you on the other site . My parrots have had grapes occasionally.


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## frozengirl

phew, I have been feeding pinto and poncho seedless grapes twice a week, now I don't feel so bad. I always cut out the insides of the grapes , as sometimes they say seedless but there's still a seed growing inside.

It was someone who posted on the talk cockatiel forums. He/she mentioned grapes are bad for all pets. Not sure why.


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## FaeryBee

*


frozengirl said:



phew, I have been feeding pinto and poncho seedless grapes twice a week, now I don't feel so bad. I always cut out the insides of the grapes , as sometimes they say seedless but there's still a seed growing inside.

It was someone who posted on the talk cockatiel forums. He/she mentioned grapes are bad for all pets. Not sure why.

Click to expand...

Unfortunately, not all posters on forums are as well versed in matters as they like to portray. 
The individual was incorrect and you don't need to worry about giving your birds a grape occasionally. *


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## frozengirl

Hm it was an administrator on the talk cockatiel forums. Now I am confused haha



roxy culver said:


> One word of caution, cut out the grapes. Grapes are actually super dangerous for animals and NOT recommended.


I asked her why they are dangerous, maybe its something recent that happened or something.

My cockatiel has not been flying from perch to perch at all inside his cage. it is a fairly large cage, 26" x 32" x 54". Instead he climbs the cage walls from perch to perch. Is it because his wings are clipped, and when will his wings grow back ? I know he can fly because I let him outside of his cage once and he flew around a little.. I don't understand why he won't fly inside of his cage. It's more then big enough.


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## frozengirl

So here is Pablo drowning himself every time he drinks. I thought he would have been used to his water dish by now but I guess not.






Also he never flies in his cage I dont know why ;*(


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