Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I purchased a Cockatiel from the local pet store December 24. As soon as I saw Sparky I knew she would be my bird because when I came close to the cage she would stare at me and whistle - the other two in the cage seemed really stressed out. The pet shop owner thanked me for taking the loud one off her hands and when I got home I knew what she meant! Sparky was screaming. I understood that she was stressed because of being removed from her cage with the other two tiels and then going to a new home. After a day or so she really calmed down and rarely screamed. If she did I would cover her cage and ignore her until she stopped. Then I would reward her by sitting at her cage and talking to her or whistling. (She is not tame but we are working on it!). Today as soon as my husband and I got up she started screaming. We covered her and she would not stop. This went on for at least an hour. Eventually I took my other bird out of the room and the dogs, covered her and put on one of those relaxing sound makers (she likes the "woods" setting) and she finally got quiet. About an hour later I removed the cover and shes started again - not as bad. Am I doing something wrong, or something that annoys her? Or could she just be stressed out again? She will not come to me (but we are working on this slowly). I try to put my finger next to her perch while talking to her but she tries to bite me. Any suggestions on the screaming and the biting would be appreciated. I understand she came from a pet store and did not have much human contact but I am a patient person and will keep working with her. Thanks

flock birds normally call in the morning as the flock is waking up and in the evening before sun set, this helps them find their friends/mates in the flock and gets everyone ready for feeding, taking away his flock isn't going to help anything, getting him out for play time while you make breakfest might, he doesn't under stand why his flock is leaving him, or why it's suddenly dark, and I can honestly tell you covering my birds never solved anything.

She is doing much better last night and today. I don't know what made the difference but maybe she was just in a bad mood. I have been reading and it seems to be a 50 50 split on covering them up. Last night and today I did not cover her and she seems better. When screaming I ignore her. She is not tame at all so I cannot take her out of her cage yet. But I am quite certain with a little work and patience she will be able to come in no time (keep your fingers crossed). I also give her a treat when she starts singing.

Yes it is definitely divided on covering screaming birds. On our Quaker we have never had any luck covering him to deter noise. We do if at all possible go into a different room until the screaming is over which seems to help somewhat. But on our eclectus covering has worked wonders. She would start screaming in the evening and not stop (for any length of time) until bedtime, when we covered them. For one week when she started to scream we would cover her and say quiet in a calm voice at the same time. Within five minutes she would stop, we would then uncover her, reward her with a treat and she would be fine for the rest of the evening. Since then she will quiet immediately if we say quiet unless she is really stressed by something and then we have to cover her at which time she calms down. So even in the same household it works for some but not all.

The cockatiels here seem to be at their noisiest either earlier in the morning or in the evening. This seems to be their main flock time. We have found that if we give them a nice snack such as fresh "birdie salad" or even oatmeal etc they will quiet a lot quicker than without. This again may not work with all but may be worth a try for you.

Thank you very much for your advice. She has been a lot better the last couple days. I find I usually leave the room as well and that seems to be working.

Since I am really new to owning a cockatiel, could you tell me how to make a "birdie salad"? I have been giving her apple and carrot so far but I haven't really tried anything else. I would love to know the ingredients of a birdie salad! Thanks!

along with salads you could try things listed on this site http://birdsnways.com/birds/recipes.htm
a note though, try not to use the Jiffy mixes they use, instead use either corn meal, wheat flour or hand feeding forumla.
Birds N Ways

For the birdie salad, it has been listed on several websites and you can vary it as needed for smaller birds etc. The salad is supposed to last for seven days, feeding once a day. For one cockatiel this would probably be like a butter bowl full or maybe a medium sized Glad or tuperware bowl.

It is made in seven layers and is not mixed until the first feeding of it, I usually make it on a Saturday evening let it set over night and feed it Sunday through the next Saturday.

Layer 1 -- greens (collard, mustard, turnip, kale etc) these can be torn up, shredded depending on what you think will interest your bird the most (our cockatiels like shredded our budgies like larger pieces so just try it one way if it doesn't go over well try it another way.

Layer 2 -- green vegetables (zucchini, peppers, cucumber, snap beans, celery etc) these are usually chopped small or even grated.

Layer 3 -- broccoli and carrots combined (you can substitute winter squashes or even sweet potatoes for the carrots since they have many of the same nutrients in them)

Layer 4 -- dried uncooked pasta any kind. Ours seem to like the colorful vegetable rotini pasta but even spaghetti pasta or elbow macaroni works just as well.

Layer 5 -- cooked drained beans. You can either buy one of the soup bean mixtures or maybe alternate what types of beans you use each time.

Layer 6 -- apples, oranges, grapes. Make sure at least one of the fruits is acidic like the oranges or even grapefruit as the citric acid helps the veggies stay fresher.

Layer 7 -- frozen veggies. Usually a mix with corn, peas, green beans, carrots etc works quite well.

Put this in a covered bowl. Let set over night and offer in the mornings. This salad stays fresh lots longer than cooked veggies or just plain fresh veggies. You will still need to remove it after a couple hours or it can draw bugs or bacteria.

We also love to make birdie muffins. We make them once a month and make enough to freeze and thaw out. We use Jiffy cornbread mix, usually some baby food such as sweet potato, or mixed veggie, a little grated carrot, some powdered pellets, and some dried fruit and nuts chopped small. If the fruit or nuts are left in too large of pieces then some birds will pick them out and not eat the rest. Using baby food or pureed veggies amd powdered pellets helps mix the ingredients throughout the muffin so they get veggies or fruit in every bite instead of just where there are larger chunks at. We bake them according to the package directions in mini muffin pans which work great for budgies and cockatiels and you can always give extras to larger birds who will happily hold a hole mini muffin chewing it up. Even if they crumble it they usually eat enough to give them some extra nutrients and a nice treat.

Thank you very much - great information! I will definitely being trying the salad and muffins!
If I could bother you with another question!
Like I said she has been doing so much better - she is really quiet now and seems content again - as she has calmed down I attempted to have my hand in her cage again. She did not try to bite me this time but instead starting running around the cage crawling up and down. I did not chase her but just kept my hand steady. I know she has never really been handled (because she came from the pet store and I know was not handled much) so I know this is going to take time. I was wondering if it is better to take her in a small room that is safe and just open her cage door. I read that sometimes they can feel threatened by a human putting their hand in their territory. Does it help to let them out of their territory in order to establish common ground or am I asking for trouble? I am glad she is not trying to bite anymore and I don't want to push her. Any suggestions on a run-away-bird?

There is some contention on letting it out of its cage before it is tame enough to calm down. My first question might be is the cockatiels wings clipped? It will be easier to catch if it gets loose and the wings are clipped although this can also cause stress on the bird by getting them clipped if they are not already.

I actually like to work with a bird in a small room. We will take a single bird in its cage into an area like a small bedroom, storage room etc. Make sure all windows are covered, mirrors covered, toilet lid shut etc depending on what room you use. Open the door and do not force the bird to come out. Leave the door open, sit beside the cage, bring a book or something because it will take a while and be patient. To start with just sit in the same room with the door open. Find a favorite treat maybe a millet spray etc and either hold it or place it on an open space right beside you. I suggest sitting it down because it could take a while and especially the first couple times if your arm becomes tired and you move once it is out it can really cause a fright. Then talk in a calm voice or sing in a quiet voice (it doesn't matter how good your singing is they seem to like musical noises!). Try this for maybe an hour the first day. The bird may or may not come out the first couple times but by the second to third time (if not before) it should begin to show more curiousity. Even after the bird comes out to explore or check out the treat do not move towards it but continue talking softly. Once the bird is coming out regularly with no fight you could try holding the treat or placing it on your lap so it has to come to you to get it. Do not reach for it or grab at it, instead let it explore you. Once it becomes used to you, you could try to gently and slowly reach your hand towards it offering it as a perch while holding the treat in your other hand just out of reach so it will have to climb onto the perch hand to reach the treat.

This will take a great deal of patience and many tries also when it does eventually climb onto your hand be ready for it to steady itself with its beak on your skin, be ready for a couple exploratory nips. Try not to react because in a birds thinking an "OUCH" scream can be either scary or funny and they may try it again to get the same reaction. Especially if wanting to be left alone. If you give no reaction then the nips should not continue.

To catch one that will not go in its cage, have a plain colored towel with no loose strings. Try to first lure it into its cage with the treat or fresh food etc. If it absolutely won't go in and is not tame enough yet for you to pick it up, you can put the towel over its head (or even toss it over its head), then pick up and place it in its cage. This is much less traumatic than a chase all over the room to get in the cage.

I think I am going to try to let her out of her cage in a small room. I will take all necessary precautions as you suggested. The towel sounds like a good idea. As far as I know her wings are not clipped. She came from a pet store and I don't really care for the lady that owns it. She did not give me a whole lot of information when I purchased her. I realize now I probably should have gone to a breeder. I will let you know how it all goes next week!

Also, today, I acquired 2 peachfaced love birds. I had to get them out of where they were. What do I put in the bottom of the cage (shredded paper, sandpaper) do you have any suggestions? They are beautiful birds and they aren't too bad with being handled although I am giving them time to get used to our house. They are in a separate room from our cockatiel to ensure their health. I also wash my hands well after being with either the lovebirds and cockatiel. My husband will be spending the most time with the lovebirds and I will keep working on my cockatiel!

I use news paper in my cages, using anything else makes it difficult to view their droppings, if they have access to the news paper use only black and white, as some companies use different ingredients to make their colored texts/images on the paper.

Thank you - I am using newspaper - it is just black and white.