Routine care and general facts about cockatiels
The popularity of this modest and attractive little bird has only grown since the time when the first European explorers returned from Australia with a few live birds to sell.
Gentle and easy-going, it readily bonds with humans, impatiently awaiting the moment to play with them and often trying to attract their attention with an insistent call.
Living environment
Cage: three considerations govern the choice of a cage: its size, its sturdiness and its ease of cleaning. The most important being the size! Spacious for a single bird, an aviary for several. The main accessories needed in a cockatiel's cage are perches and food utensils. A solitary cockatiel should have its cage placed in a room where it can watch the comings and goings of the family members. As substrate, use commercially bought sand. Clean droppings 1 to 2 times a week, disinfect every month.
A cuttlebone is necessary for its additional dietary value; it also provides an opportunity to exercise the bird's tendency to chew.
Diet
For birds in captivity, seed mixes suit them well; moreover, they often contain, in addition to the seeds, dietary supplements intended to improve the nutritional balance of the mix.
As they are also omnivores, many cockatiels love to share their owner's meal.
Millet sprays are nutritious and cockatiels love to nibble the small seeds off the stem.
A good diet will greatly help to produce fine plumage and maintain good health.
Care:
They need, especially in the warm season, at least 1 bath a day, preferably by misting. After a bath, birds spend a considerable amount of time preening to rearrange their plumage.
Clipping the claws may prove necessary; scissors with rounded blades make trimming the claws easier, as does the bird's docility.
Their eyes should always be bright and lively; a dull eye is often the result of ill health.
Check whether the bird is carrying parasites (lice, scaly face and scaly leg mange).
Also beware of psychological disorders linked in particular to boredom, an inappropriate diet, and various forms of dermatitis. The problem of feather plucking then looms!
Common diseases
Like all birds, the cockatiel hides illness for a long time: by the time the signs become visible, the situation is often already serious.
A cockatiel that keeps its feathers fluffed up, stays motionless at the bottom of the cage, is drowsy or refuses to eat should alert you. In birds, these subtle signs are often already late ones: you must not wait.
Boredom, stress or loneliness can drive the bird to pull out its feathers (feather plucking). Small parasites can appear on the skin, legs or beak. A diet based solely on seeds eventually lacks certain vitamins (especially vitamin A). The beak and claws can also grow too long.
In the female, an egg can become stuck (egg binding): she sits fluffed up at the bottom of the cage and strains without result. This is an emergency.
When to see a vet promptly repeatedly fluffed-up feathers, a dull eye, a less lively bird, pulled-out feathers, parasites or crusts, an overly long beak or claws, abnormal droppings (colour, runny) that persist.
When to see a vet urgently difficult breathing (open beak, tail bobbing with each breath), a bird prostrate at the bottom of the cage refusing to eat, a fluffed-up female straining without managing to lay.
Key points in birds, a visible sign is often already a late one: do not wait. A varied diet and company prevent many problems. This information does not replace a consultation.