New to cockatiels - Advice Please

[hallsie]

Hi Guys,

I have been breeding Galahs and other larger parrots for a while now and my 10 yr old wanted to be more involved, someone I know was letting go of 2x pairs of cockatiels so I picked them up but dont know alot about them.

Have given them their own aviary, 2x nest boxes in opposite ends of the cage. The birds all happily get along and were in the same aviary with the old owner so I am not expecting any issues.

I wanted to know about breeding, the old owner reckons "if they have a box, they will breed" giving me the impression that they will churn out young year round, is this right?

Also, I would like some information on what type of cockatiels they are so I can see what the young will look like, Ive looked at some genetic pages for them and note that if parent is Type A and Type B then the female chicks will be a type C and the males a Type D. If anyone is able to provide me with some info it would be greatly appreciated.

imgur.com/a/P9yRB

THANKS

[zena]

I don't know a lot about Cockatiels (I have never owned them) but from the mutations I know, they are all Whiteface, and maybe Bird 2 is Cinnamon (?)

[Laraine]

Cockatiels are easy breeders. Mine are breeding at the moment but they don't usually breed in winter. They are easy birds to look after, just give them a small parrot mix and fruit and vegies.

[hallsie]

Hi guys,

Thanks for your reply. Out of interest Laraine, what do you line your boxes with?

I would love to hear from anyone else who may now what mutations I have

Again, Many Thanks

[Laraine]

I buy the woodshavings from the pet shop for the bottom of all my breeding boxes.

[avinet]

Feb 11, 2014 9:36:35 GMT 10 hallsie said:

Hi guys,

Thanks for your reply. Out of interest Laraine, what do you line your boxes with?

I would love to hear from anyone else who may now what mutations I have

Again, Many Thanks

I have been away on holiday for the last 2 weeks so apologies for not replying sooner.  All your birds are White-face cockatiels, the males are both White-face normal Greys and the females are both White-face Cinnamons.  Babies from both these pairs will likely all be White-face Greys like their fathers.  However it is possible the males are also carrying the cinnamon gene and if that is so then half the babies will be grey and half cinnamon - you won't know this until you have a few babies.

Cockatiels can breed all year round in Queensland but in colder states they are most likely to breed autumn and spring.  They can have 2 or 3 clutches a year given good food and environment but never let them have more than 3 clutches.  Also make sure if they are breeding that they get sufficient calcium through cuttlebone, and possibly a calcium supplement for birds (from pet shops).  As Laraine said, wood shavings are best to put into a nest box - a layer 5 cm thick is normally sufficient.

cheers,

Mike