New Cockatiel Owner Tips & Tricks | BirdNerdSophie
Bringing a cockatiel home for the first time can be scary and stressful, so it's important to try and set them (and you!) up for success!
Cockatiel Care Guide: • Cockatiel Care Guide |...
Target Training: • Parrot Training Tutori...
Diet Conversion: • How to Get Your Bird t...
Passive Bonding: • Parrot Bonding & Tamin...
Bonding and Taming: • How to Tame Your Cocka...
Cockatiel Cage Set Up: • How to Set Up Your Coc...
Trust: • 10 Tips to Get Your Pa...
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I wish I had found you guys when I first brought Sunny home. Man, all the stress and frustration I would've saved due to all the conflicting information online! I think Sunny is an extremely rare case because she pretty much bonded with me while we were still at the pet store meeting (went right to me, a little after climbed up on my shoulder and hung out and even started preening). Coming home she loved stepping up and coming out to sit with me while I played video games or watched videos. Getting her back in the cage was an issue, but after I found David's video on how to get them back, no issues. We've since bonded even more and have a great relationship and are doing really well with our training. Because Sunny is such a rare case, and I'd like to get a friend for her at some point in the future (likely sometime after her first birthday), having you guy's videos have not ceased in helping me learn in so many ways. Thank you guys so much for all your videos and always being straight about things.
Thank you for your kind words! It sounds like Sunny chose you 🥰
They are amazing little creatures!
They deffo are!
Hey are you ok?
@@MsAnimallover1996 Are you?!
@@MsAnimallover1996 😡
Hi Sophie! I picked up my new cockatiel yesterday evening and am starting out on our first day together. Thanks for all your videos! They are so helpful.
I’m glad you find my content useful 💙😊
Good stuff!
Thanks!
Thanks for this video i will try passive bonding with my new awesome pet ❤
Thanks for watching 💙😊
Watching this while passive bonding lol... My cockatiel is quite scared still, we got him just yesterday, and he's absolutely adorable and has so much personality, but he's still quite skittish! Hopefully we can bond soon, but he's just really restless, always climbing on his cage walls. I think he wants to come out, but as we're still not quite bonded yet, I don't think it's the time yet. Very soon hopefully!
It can take some time for them to settle but that’s okay! The key is to take things at their own pace 💙😊
Hi you have cute birds!
Thanks 😊
Birds are such amazing creatures and I would love to be a bird owner. My friend owns a few cockatiels so I am currently trying to learn as much as I can about them from both my friend and from people like you!✨
They are amazing aren’t they 🥰
@@BirdNerdSophie they really are!
Sophie is amazing
Thank you so much 😊💙🦜
I just got a hand raised cockatiel yesterday. I had a cockatiel in the past and he was social right away; exploring his cage, coming out and hanging out with the family. However, this new baby that I have seems so very scared. I handled him in the store and he seemed very comfortable in my hand, stepping up, getting pets etc. Since getting him home he’s just sitting at the bottom of his new cage, not really exploring, and certainly not wanting anything to do with me. He also hasn’t eaten, drank, or made much noise. He seems traumatized and I feel awful. I’m trying to remind myself that it hasn’t even been 24 hours and I shouldn’t be hard on myself or him. It’s just crazy what a night and day difference these babies can be from one bird to another, even the same species.
Yes don’t be hard on yourself! This is totally normal behaviour as it’s super scary for cockatiels to move homes! I recommend watching my video on trust to help with this!
@@BirdNerdSophie update: he’s finally eating and drinking, as well as coming out and interacting with me and the things in his cage! Definitely going to check out that video still :)
@@ekiwi_dragon glad to hear it 😊
Hello Sophie and David. I got my pair about a month ago. They are more hand friendly now, when away from the cage. When on the cage or in and I need to move them. A short dowel perch works beautifully to get them where they need to be. Target training is also on an upward climb. 😁
Awesome!
That’s great! We had to use a perch for our Olive to step up on for quite some time and that’s totally okay 😊
@@BirdNerdSophie 弯弯曲曲吧？我 不 üwwwwwwwwwww我去取uqugui
So first, An air purifier is as necessary as a cage, they are so dusty and second, Chewy randomly belts out Chip's song so Mr. Chip has a fan. I love my little guy Chewy, I was super lucky and we were pretty much bonded day 1
Haha love that Chip’s song is spreading 😂 and yes air purifiers are a must, plus cleaning them regularly too!
Hi Sophie, I have seen a few of your videos and those of David's. Despite my late Grandparents having had in the past (20+ years ago) Lovebirds, Cockatiels and Budgies, and my Aunt also having had Cockatiels and me having been around them, I have always liked Cockatiels and have just become a first-time Cockatiel owner. I have just bought my Cockatiels (Eric and Lily, both named after dogs that I have had in the past) and would like to know as to how to go about getting them to come onto my hand and in time to pet and to show affection to them along with how to bond with them so to form a lifelong relationship and friendship with them. I love your birds Fish and Chip. Thank you. Emma Gordon
Hi Emma, Thanks for watching my videos :) I have a step up video on here -- it involves one of my conures but the process is the same! David has a video called 'How to pet and cuddle your bird' which talks about training them to enjoy scricthes!
So glad you mentioned you're happy to answer questions! This video is so much more genuine than anything I've seen thusfar. I get the feeling you know exactly what you're doing! We got 2 new cockatiels at 8 weeks old, raised by their own parents (so no hands). I've got a couple of questions I hope you can help me with. We're keeping them in their cage (3 cubic meters) and try not to force them into anything, thinking we should allow them to settle. Like you said, passive bonding. How long should we keep doing this, you think? It's been 10 days now and they're still obviously very hesitant about us (shying away when approaching the cage to give food). Will they display certain behavior that can be a cue for us to start interacting with them a bit more? Right now we're just in the same room. When they whistle, we whistle back half of the time and try to talk in 'baby tones' to them. I don't think they're very interested to interact with any toys yet. We've got 2 swings on the ceiling and a piece of hemp rope dangling down with branches tied into it as a sort of balance challenge. I also heard that one shouldn't change their cage in the first few weeks to allow them to settle a bit. Would you agree with that? Or is adding toys a bigger priority? When do you think we're good to start making the cage a bit more exciting for them? (We're hesitant now because we don't want to overstimulate them while they're settling in).
Passive bonding takes as long as it takes but doing it consonantly helps! Once you see them taking more of an interest in you, you can move on to more active work! If they don't flee from you approaching or from you changing out bowls, or they actively choose to come closer - that is a great sign of being able to move to the next step! They might need to be taught how to play with toy (I have a video on that!) but you can add some if there aren't any in there currently! Having them near an easy to access perch helps!
@@BirdNerdSophie Thanks for your answers! I'm feeling a lot more confident that things will turn out alright now. So many warnings on forums like "if you have 2 cockatiels, they'll never become tame", but we couldn't bare getting a single one, that appears to us as borderline animal cruelty. The two of them are bonding very well together, so we'll just be patient until they do the same with us :)
@@BartTheBardOfficial there’s so much nonsense and misinformation out there which is one of the reasons why we started our channels! Glad you are enjoying the content 😊
Hi, I love your guys' videos!! I rescued a cockatiel from the rafters of my work #walmart, I have had her for 2 months and I want to change her cage as this was gifted to us from a lady who specializes in rescued animals. How would you recommend this? And any tips on hand training/step up would be greatly appreciated. We have taken our time to avoid agitating movements towards her. I feel like we are so close 🤞. Thx again your videos have been a blessing.❤
Oh bless them! I have a video on step up training, but also how to tame and bond with your cockatiel! If you want to move her to the new cage, you could put the open doors next to each other to allow her to move in on her own without needing to touch her!
I'm so silly I missed the live🤣🤣😔🤣🙂
Oops! 🙈 Mine will be on the 21st I believe!
@@BirdNerdSophie oh nice 8 days away from my birthday 🎉!!
I've just bought a tiel almost a week ago, I let him settle, I know pretty much what to do I have budgies before him, I now do putting my hand on the cage for up to 10 mins every so often, he's almost chill over it now, he feeds when I'm standing right next to his cage to
Sounds like he’s settling in well!
My main cage is by a big panorama window which cannot be opened but he can see out. His night cage is in another room. My Quaker is out most of the day.😊
That’s very cool!
Hi just found you’re channel as purchasing a hand reared cockatiel in 2 weeks , will be 11 weeks old . We already have a wonderful budgie. They will be living in separate rooms , the cockatiel is for my daughter who is 13 , it will be in her bedroom, we have bought a large air filter for the dust , and under strict instructions that her room must be dusted . We have done a lot of research my daughter and myself , but still worrying about the commitment, I work 27 hours a week my husband works from home so can break up the day for the bird obviously daughter is at school , I just don’t think we could cope with two cockatiels . The cage we have is 66 wide 45 deep 94 cm high , but like my budgie he is out 3-4 hours a day . I really wa t this to work my daughter seems very dedicated even when offered a new phone or iPad bird one over , she is quite lonely at the moment so hoping they will become great friends , it is just a big commitment, but my budgie gives back so much , but feel a cockatiel is the nexted step up , anyway great channel , I have trained horses with clicker training so looking forward to having a go
They certainly are a huge commitment but if you can make the adjustments to your lifestyle then they are wonderful 😊
any tips on getting birdie comfortable with scritches? he just wants me to feed him from my finger apparently!!
This video will help! kzhead.info/sun/dq1_gttpqJOlqmw/bejne.htmlsi=BiLfzr9fZriIUIUN
Hi - Jesper is 3 months old and we've bonded. He goes on my shoulder from a perch just fine but I can't seem to train him when to get off. I just darts all over my shoulder and back. Any help would be appreciated!
I’d recommend watching my step up and recall videos 😊
I just got my cockatiels yesterday they r really scared but they r friendly with my other parrot they r over 2 year and they r not tamed i hope i can tame them soon ❤
Have you seen my bonding and taming guide for cockatiels? 😊
@@BirdNerdSophie Yep and I tried to sit next to them but not directly in contact with them and like watch my phone . Now they r alot comfortable with me but still don't trust me enough to step up but i will try my best !
I have a rescue Cockatiel, she is such a nervous little one. She doesn't move from her perch or come out of her cage unless I play videos of other cockatiels or birds. She now has her own laptop with cockatiel companion videos playing during the day. She seems so miserable without it. I'm not sure if playing these videos is the right thing to do or if it's getting in the way of training. I do eventually want to adopt a friend for her but firstly I wanted her to be less scared of me and step up in the event of needing to handle her if any health problems arise, meds, etc. We seem to not be able to get past the fear no matter how much millet I offer her😔
I’d recommend checking out the videos in the description too! Does she have millet in her bowl too? If so she may not want to work for it as she gets it for free! Also don’t offer the whole sprig as that can be scary! I personally find that a lot of cockatiels get stressed hearing other birds that they can’t get access to but you know your bird best!
@@BirdNerdSophie thank you so much for responding. I will definitely check out your other videos❤
Hi Sophie, i have 2 cocktails, a pair. I cant understand their behavior. i feel as if female is not very afraid and would like to interact but the male comes and bites her sort of push her away. Am i picking the right singnal or may there is something im missing. i also feel they are almost ready to breed, as the house i have provided them, the male often goes into it and i seriously dont know what he does in there but i feel they are getting ready to breed. Please guide me.
I recommend checking out this video to see if any of the behaviours in this video match up! kzhead.info/sun/ZJWiY7uqiaZuZ5E/bejne.html
Your videos are really amazing and educational, thank you for the tips and tricks🤎
Thank you so much for your kind words 💙😊
Hello Sophie! I don’t really know what to do with my two birds, and i don’t know who to ask for help so i hope you have the answers. I had them four days ago, they’re 5 months old and are raised to be around human and were hand fed. But when i got them they immediately quieted down understandably. What i don’t understand though is that one of them got used to my hand pretty quickly, to the point that she was okay with me holding her beak, body, picking her up and everything no problem! The other one though makes a hissing sound whenever my hand goes near him, and always bites when i try to pick him up. Now i myself get a little scared when they bite, is it a warning for me to not touch them? If so how do i start bonding with him specifically. He doesn’t let me pet him or go anywhere near his head. And whenever i try to pick him up he scoots all the way back. They also sleep a lot.. always puffing up and closing their eyes. Is that normal? How should I approach the situation? I’ve been doing research on cockatiels for years now, but now that i have them, i’m scared that i’ll mess up or that I’m doing something wrong and they’ll end up being scared of humans overall. Another thing i should mention is that they are on a seed diet. But they don’t eat sunflower seeds at all. I tried to not give them food this morning and let them be hungry so that i can feed them out of my hand and start training them to do simple things like stepping up, but they didn’t give a crap about the sunflower seeds. So i had to give them the very tiny tiny seeds they came with cuz thats what they eat. If you have any advice please do help haha, i already love these two but they don’t love me yet lol.
Hey! Four days is no time at all - birds can take weeks to settle and bond, so I’d recommend not having any expectations! Just because birds have been around humans and hand fed, doesn’t mean they see all humans as the same! They still need to get to know you and see how awesome you are! I’d recommend watching my trust video, tips for new cockatiel owners, and bringing home a new bird videos for more info 😊
Hello, I've just seen this video of yours and I am planning on getting one for myself but I work 12 hours four to three days every week. Since these type of birds needs attention would my days of work affect them?
Hey! If you work long hours I would recommend getting two birds so they have company when you aren’t home! They’re super social birds and do need their flock around them! 😊
@@BirdNerdSophie That's nice to know I have another question when I'm working will they be fine staying in a cage while I'm at work? As I said I work 12 hours for four to three days I leave to work around 5 in the morning and come back around 6 at night.
@@Hidden.Letter if they have a very large cage then yes they can be! You could consider hiring a pet sitter to pop on during the day to check on them and give them company!
make a video about all things.. like NIGHT FRIGHT.... Eye infections... shivering.. Crash landing and hurting themselves.. im worried sick with my cockatiel as a new owner.....
I have - it’s called cockatiel care guide 😊
Are carotts good for cockatiel. And why does min| just sit back in the corner and like huf or hiss at me
Yes they are! I’d recommend watching my trust video for that!
I'm new to birds so sorry if this question gets asked a lot. How many hours a day do you approximately keep them in the cage?
It’s much better to have quality time out of the cage where they can train, play, cuddle and forage instead of being out all day doing nothing! B they do need at least several hours out each day!
@@BirdNerdSophie thank you, I wasn't sure if the cage had to be open all day except for sleeping 🥰 I hope I can have cockatiels or lovebirds in the future
Hello,I need help. My friend passed away and I got his bird . This bird is about 6 years old and only sits by his mirrors. I am trying to train him with no success. I have a Connor also since birth and he’s a very social bird . My question is should I get rid of the cockatiels mirrors .I feel bad that this bird just sits on that one perch all day and does nothing but look at him self . Please help , thanks you
Hey, I’m sorry to hear this 💙 yes I would remove the mirrors and replace with more appropriate toys! You can also start some target training through the bars too!
When I got my cockatiel she wad afraid for 2 days. She wouldn't come out to me. After that she came to me on my shoulder. She is 15 years old now.
That’s awesome!
I’ve had my cockatiel for a bit over a year now, he comes our everyday and spends time with me and he whistles and dances but for some reason he prefers my dad? I cant whistle so my dad whistles to him which I kinda figured is why he likes my dad more. But he lives in my room and my dad will visit him once or twice a week for a minute or so but he still likes him more. Is there a way I can change this?
Birds can get like this with novel people who aren’t there all the time doing the day to day stuff! Either your Dad can spend more time helping out with the bird chores, or you’ll have to do even more training help help balance out the preference 😊
@@BirdNerdSophie ok! Thanks!!
I love cockatiel veri veri big
Big birds 😁
Hi, where can I find proper information on kakariki birds.. can you help with my questions please 🙏 🙂
There isn’t a specific source that o recommend, but I may be able to answer your questions!
i just got my cockatiel whats ment to be 9-10 weeks old and he seems to be to big for that age and his red spots on his cheeks are really dull.. is this a sign hes older then what she has said he was?
It’s possible but it’s has very hard to tell the age of a bird!
I got a cockatiel today. I will be sleeping in the next room, snoring. I'm a little worried if this will impact the cockatiel's sleep in a any way. But I'm kind of feeling nervous right now in general, maybe I'm overthinking. Can parrots sleep well with some snoring?
They will be fine! We don’t want birds only sleeping in silence otherwise they’ll never get any sleep!
@@BirdNerdSophie Thanks.
My home is really warm and im scared that it is to hot i dont know what to do
Tower fans often work well to help keep the heat down!
What minimum size cage do i need to get my cockatiel?
Go for the biggest you can afford - check out my cockatiel cage set up video for the recommended cage size!
@@BirdNerdSophie thank you but 25x25x26 is good?
@@sabaghviniashvili9249 I would say go for bigger if you can!
@@BirdNerdSophie alr thanks sm
We have a cockatiel hes 4 and belonged to another couple before us. He was coming out of his cage to fly around at least once a week. Hes not coming out now for about 2 weeks😳 He does sing in his cage snd play with bells , also swings his tail back and forth Will turn completely upside down too and spread his wings?? Help
It’s very difficult to unpick what might be going on! He would definitely need to be out for a good period of time daily! I’d be looking at the cage set up - you can check out mine for inspiration! And remove the bells as they’re a safety and hormones risk 😊
@@BirdNerdSophie he did whistle a song and hes never done that before so I guess hes happy, I guess he is still getting used to us. I have 2 small dogs 6 pounds each, one doesn’t even care about the bird the other runs to his cage all the time like a shark 🦈 How do I break her from this? She a silky yorkie and 12 years old
I'd recommend having some kind of barrier in front of the cage so she can't get to it@@my2dogs
@@BirdNerdSophie So for now I put some cardboard boxes around the cage, Ill come up with something better along the line
@@BirdNerdSophie His cage door is open but he doesn’t always come out, however if I was to shut it he gets upset 😭 Everyone likes options🩵
😊👍👍👍🐦🐦😘😘🍀☕🌞
💙🥰
How can I get my cockatiel to fly back to me when he’s out?
Have you seen my video on how to train your bird to fly to you?
No I haven’t seen it. I didn’t know you had one but I will look for it. I’ve only had my little guy Pete for 2 months. He is 4 months now and he’s incredible. Thank you for all your wonderful advice and David’s.
Do you find that males behave differently from females? I've only ever had a female cockatiel and was thinking of getting a male.
Males sing and posture around more! 😊
I'm about to buy my little Cockatiel in 1 month and i have so many questions. 1st of all , how will i be able to know if my bird is sick?. 2nd. I'll leave from home at 9 in the morning and I'll return 5 in the evening. All the other time ill be with him, the hours are enough? Or its too irresponsible for mr? 3d Q. Will i be able to know if my bird doesn't like the food i buy, because when he will not eat, i will assume that he is sick. I need help😢😢😢😢
I have lots of videos on my channel about how to tell of your bird is sick or how to get them to eat healthy! 9-5 is quite a long time for a bird to be on its own, especially if this is 5 days a week - they are a flock species and need companionship during the day to feel safe and happy. I would consider getting a second bird if you can!
thank you for your response ❤️ ummm if they fight? wouldn't that be dangerous?
@@8ballpotter989 I recommend watching my bonding two birds video - w heave four pairs here with no issues!
Mam. How friendly are they with dogs
Birds and dogs should never be mixed!
Im planning to adopt 1 ( baby)so wanted to be utterly sure if this is workable.
Good morning I just have a ? Have you gotten sick due to having birds?
Hey! No I haven’t but they have ruined my hearing 😂
I have heard they can carry Diseases and you can get sick from it but I was just wondering.
@@babykisss3677 every animal (and human!) poses a risk to one another! Unless a bird has a disease that is transferable to humans which is very rare, there is no real risk!
I was wondering bc I was thinking about getting my son one today for his birthday. But do they test them before they sell them at petco and pestmart?
@@babykisss3677 no they’re don’t, and they don’t have a great reputation for animal welfare! I’d also strongly advise against getting one as a present as they are a 20-30 year commitment and are a very complex pet!
Wish you had a lorikeet not many videos about them
They are fab, I worked with a flock of almost 80 in the past 😊
Chip looks so sassy in the thumbnail pick
He’s always sassy 😂
my bird has learned the rumble of the washing machine and so far this is my main problem 🫠
Oh no! 🙈🦜