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Post by harpy on Feb 16, 2013 16:19:25 GMT 10
ALRIGHTY, if everything goes well I should have a new little cockatiel in the next month  WHOOHOO Anything I should do? Any diseases I should look out for when picking my new pet? What are the symptoms? What questions should I ask the person I'm buying from? What toys do cockatiels like? What food should I start him/her on? Do they eat fruit as well as seed? What's healthy for it? What will kill it? An easy way to sex a young cockatiel or is DNA the only way? I'm not to fussed on what sex I get. I'm only gonna have the one and I'll be its "mate" It'll be part of the family flock (including my partners snake xD allocated times for when which animal is out of its cage/tank dont fret!) Also I heard something about non-stick pans letting out fumes and poisoning the birds? I never heard of this before and never had a problem with my previous birds? Anything else is greatly appreciated |
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Post by avinet on Feb 16, 2013 21:25:27 GMT 10
Any diseases I should look out for when picking my new pet?
What are the symptoms?
The big disease for cockatiels is Psittacosis - a primitive bacteria-like organism that can kill a bird through liver damage. Cockatiels along with Neophemas are particularly prone to it. The main symptom you will see is a discharge from one or both eyes. So any sign of a weepy eye is a strict no-no. If you do end up with a cockatiel that develops psittacosis it is treatable but only with antibiotics available from an avian vet. Apart from psittacosis there is nothing special that cockatiels are prone to.
Look for an alert bright eyed bird active and interested in its surroundings, it should also step up quite happily onto your finger and let you give it a little tickle on th eback of the neck. If there are several in a cage look at the one that confidently comes up to the front of the cage to greet you.
What questions should I ask the person I'm buying from?
What is the diet the bird is getting; does it eat a variety of fresh food; will they give you a health guarantee - when we had our shop all pet birds had a 2 week written health guarantee provided and all shops and breeders should be prepared to do the same.
What toys do cockatiels like?
smaller parrot toys but especially ones with a shiny metal component such as a bell at the bottom of a hanging toy. They tend not to be chewers so toys do tend to last a long time. Actually I have found that cockatiels are not especially into toys - some we have had never played with toys.
What food should I start him/her on? Do they eat fruit as well as seed?
What's healthy for it? What will kill it?
Start out for the first few days with pretty much what the seller was feeding it and then you can if needed start changing it to the diet you want to give it. It is going to be a bit stressed coming into a new environment so no point in giving additional stress with a change in diet at the same time. Not big fruit eaters but most will eat a range of vegetables, especially leafy greens such as endive, choy sum, celery leaves, silver beet and kale.
Pellets are the healthiest basis for the diet of a cockatiel - Roudybush Mini pellets are the best choice but Vetafarm maintenace pellets are OK and more readily available. There are plenty of lists around the Internet about poisonous foods for parrots - the biggest to avoid is avocardo, but also avoid onions, sugary things, caffeine, salty foods, and too much dairy. If in doubt ask around first.
An easy way to sex a young cockatiel or is DNA the only way? I'm not to fussed on what sex
Young cockatiels can be a problem to sex. Sometimes it is possible to know the sex of a baby from it's colour and the colour of it's parents. This can apply to sex-linked genes such as lutino, cinnamon and pearl. However you would need to be buying a bird from a breeder or shop that knows their genetics - sadly a rare person. Apart from that a young male will usually start calling and whistling around 3 to 4 months, and can then be positively sexed. Unfortunately some are slower than others and it might be 4 or 5 months for them. DNA sexing can be used as soon as the chick hatches - the blood on the inside of the egg shell can even be used to DNA sex a baby.
As adults, males can talk (although many don't) and all males will whistle but females just shout - no talking. Females as adults though make up for not talking by generally being more affectionate. Adult males tend to love you and quickly leave you, and are likely to go through a rebellious "teenage" stage between 6 and 12 months but most will grow out of it and turn into civilized birds as adults - bit like teenage boys really.
Also I heard something about non-stick pans letting out fumes and poisoning the birds? I never heard of this before and never had a problem with my previous birds?
Teflon coated cookware can release a gas poisonous to birds if overheated. The gas is harmless to humans and other mammals. A pan has to get pretty hot to start giving off a gas - typically left on the stove and forgotten about until it is just about to start a fire. Nevertheless we don't use teflon pans in our house. if you do use teflon and a pan overheats get the bird outside into fresh air URGENTLY
Anything else is greatly appreciated
Cage - bar spacing not too wide - a standard budgie cage bar spacing is best. The cage doesn't have to be huge - a cockatiel is not the most active in a cage so a big cage won't be taken advantage of. A cage with a base 60cm x 45cm is fine. Also a high cage is wasted space - most are not big climbers around a cage.
cheers,
Mike
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Post by harpy on Feb 18, 2013 10:22:49 GMT 10
Awesome thanks mike!! There are some chicks for sale near where I live so im gonna try to get one of those  now i know what im looking for. |
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Post by owszat on Apr 4, 2013 20:53:36 GMT 10
Great info Mike...thank you
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