[otacon101]

General Cockatiel Advise​

Hey, so I just registered to see how I can basically train my current cockatiel. My cockatiel's name is Cocky (very generic name) and he is about 8-9 months old or so.

Firstly I have no idea what gender my cockatiel is, He is starting to molt a bit and turning more grey oh his wings but is starting to have big spots of white on its belly and neck.

Secondly is is quite skiddish and is afarid of anything I try to give him like a toy, anyway to calm it down.

Thirdly, the cables. He loves cables too much. I mostly spend a lot of my time on my computer desk and I see him climbing near the back of my computer biting my cables. Anyway to stop this because he may ruin my cables soon.

Finally I need to know what music to play to him as he shows 0 interest in any music, I tried Classical, Bird Chirping (most effective at this stage), a bit of Metallica and Western Style Music.

Thanks in advance. Here are some of the pics of my cockatiel :grey tiel:

 

[cakescakes]

Awww he’s just precious! Congrats on your bird.

Firstly, since he’s still 8mo you won’t be able to guess till he’s fully molted, and even then since he has a pearl mutation the only way to know is to also consider behaviour, or get a DNA test. My bird is a heavy pied tiel, so she looks like a boy.

Secondly, being afraid is natural for them. You just have to give them space. Spend time around the cage doing your normal stuff, maybe chat to him a little. As he gets more comfortable with you being around the cage, start putting a hand on the side of the cage, chatting quietly, and staying still till he seems to relax. Leaving the cage open for him and letting him explore is great too, just make sure it’s at his own pace.

Cables are weird, my bird loves them too. I’ve just been correcting her with a ‘no’, moving the cable away and distracting her with something else like you would with a puppy, and that helps.

 

[adelpks]

My Cockatiel Clover enjoys 60s and 70s music the most. Though it's probably a personal thing.
I would be really careful with cables to add I've heard many a story of cockatiels begging electrocuted by chewing through cables.
It may be bad advice for cockatiels so perhaps someone can correct me if it is but I've heard with infant chickens to prevent bullying you can put vicks on their feet ave the other birds don't like the smell so leave them alone. Perhaps you could put vicks on the cables but since he's chewing them I don't know if it's poisonous and it might be so look into it first.
You could also cover them in plastic or fabric then he won't be chewing the cables themselves but the outer layer.

 

[otacon101]

Awww he’s just precious! Congrats on your bird.

Firstly, since he’s still 8mo you won’t be able to guess till he’s fully molted, and even then since he has a pearl mutation the only way to know is to also consider behaviour, or get a DNA test. My bird is a heavy pied tiel, so she looks like a boy.

Secondly, being afraid is natural for them. You just have to give them space. Spend time around the cage doing your normal stuff, maybe chat to him a little. As he gets more comfortable with you being around the cage, start putting a hand on the side of the cage, chatting quietly, and staying still till he seems to relax. Leaving the cage open for him and letting him explore is great too, just make sure it’s at his own pace.

Cables are weird, my bird loves them too. I’ve just been correcting her with a ‘no’, moving the cable away and distracting her with something else like you would with a puppy, and that helps.

My cockatiel seems to act like a boy, very hyperactive and adventurous but likes to calm down and be scratched once in a while. Also whenever I let it out of the cage it starts flying around like a bullet and flapping its wings about. Any other signs I should be aware of?