Cockatiel Time!

[liz]

I don't grab one of my kids unless it is in a dangerouse situation. I open the door and let them come out. Mine are in a big parrot cage and they have room to fly. If I need to get one out that doesn't want to step up, I keep my hand under it while it is flapping. When it realizes that I did not just grab it, it will land on my hand.

When they are out I let them fly around and burn off some energy. Once they do they are willing to step up to be cuddled.

In the wild a preditor would grab them from above or behind. They still have a natural fear of this. They don't want my hand to come down on them but when I approuch them from the front they are not affraid.

We also do a lot of nose to beak talking and they love it.

[LemonLover]

mine likes to fly at my face then get on my sholder and preen and liz does my cage look good for them. its a 16" long and 40" high and 10" wide. does it sound ok? im getting one from my mom and dad thats HUGE like a 60" tall and 20" long and 20" wide, so would that be good too? i plan on having at most 3. 2 females and 1 male. in a year im going to be a resonible breeder. if anyone might want one on this i might be able to send just to tell you. but liz doees is it ok?

[liz]

mine likes to fly at my face then get on my sholder and preen and liz does my cage look good for them. its a 16" long and 40" high and 10" wide. does it sound ok? im getting one from my mom and dad thats HUGE like a 60" tall and 20" long and 20" wide, so would that be good too? i plan on having at most 3. 2 females and 1 male. in a year im going to be a resonible breeder. if anyone might want one on this i might be able to send just to tell you. but liz doees is it ok?

The bigger the cage the better. You do know that tiels bond for life. Of course if something happens to the mate they will bond with another.

What I am saying is 1 femal 1 male. The male will not mate with 2 females.

[LemonLover]

ok i didnt know. thanks liz. I learn many things from you. i have chikens too and i know they do so do they mate for life like other types of birds do? i know what you said but is they mate for life thing for cockatiels?

[liz]

No - chickens will mate with any rooster at any time of the year.

[LemonLover]

XD ik tht im asking about the cockatiels if they mate for life.

[liz]

Cockatiels mate for life. Most birds do. Of course their are some exceptions.

I have bird houses all over my front porch. A couple of little wrens started a family in one. Ater the eggs hatched something happened to the male and he never returned. The poor little wren was exhausted trying to feed all the babies herself.

Then one day I notice a female cardinal at the nest box. (I guess she either lost her eggs or just didn't have a mate yet.) She could not get in the box but she brought food to the doorway to feed the babies. The mother wren really needed help and accepted it from the cardinal. I watched them come to the nest. One would feed the babies and then the other would. Sometimes they showed up at the same time and the second just waited for the first one to feed them.

Most babybirds need two parents is the reason they mate for life. Because baby chicks can run within 24 hours, chickens just take their babies with them when they search for food.

[parrotlover]

Thank you guys!

[LemonLover]

lol we both got help thanks so much.

[parrotlover]

Hey guys I got a tupaware full of aspen bedding (a type of SAFE mulch for anumals) and I put dried bread pieces in there too and she loves it! I put it at the bottom of her cage and she loves to bite on the pieces and eat the bread! I have to five you an update on the cage! I hardly had to pay anything for toys and perches! I only bought 2 perches and one toy and she is happy with that! I'm going to make er more toises too of course. Also I have this plant that is stringy that she likes to chew on. Could I put a plant inthere or should I not?