New Cockatiel's age

[Abdisson]

Hello tiel fans,
i'm a first time cockatiel owner. I had a budgie before.
The pet shop owner told me she (i assume it's a she) is 3-5 months old but after checking some tips of determining a tiel's age, i got some doubts. Is it possible to tell from these photos if my tiel is younger than 1 year? If it's older can I still tame her?



Thanks in advance

 

[Laurasea]

Beautiful bird!!!! There are tips on bonding threads. And offer her some veggies!!! Bok choy, broccoli, brussel sprouts, carrots, peas, cooked sweet potato. There is a food safe list. No Avacado no onion. Check out household hazards too, no Teflon!!! I cook with cast iron, and stainless steel only. Use bottle water or filtered water. They like to take baths or be listed too. Lots to learn!! Maybe you know a bunch already, but I'm always learning and reading up on other posts. Welcome!

 

[Abdisson]

Beautiful bird!!!! There are tips on bonding threads. And offer her some veggies!!! Bok choy, broccoli, brussel sprouts, carrots, peas, cooked sweet potato. There is a food safe list. No Avacado no onion. Check out household hazards too, no Teflon!!! I cook with cast iron, and stainless steel only. Use bottle water or filtered water. They like to take baths or be listed too. Lots to learn!! Maybe you know a bunch already, but I'm always learning and reading up on other posts. Welcome!

Thanks for the tips We got him 2 days ago so I'm still reading and trying to learn. Gave him some apple yesterday but i think he didn't like it very much Gonna try veggies tomorrow

 

[beetory]

Such a beautiful baby ;w;

I always wanted a Tiel but I doubt it will happen now since my conures had three baby that I'll be keeping. I don't think I can handle more than five birds lol.

Do they have a leg band? I know those usually have the year that the baby hatched on them otherwise I'm not sure how you could tell the age of a bird.

I think as long as you find ways to bond with your baby you should be able to tame them. With my Booger I started by letting him explore the room his cage was in, talking to him a lot, and giving him treats.

 

[itzjbean]

Congrats on the new addition! He/she is a beauty.

Most young/juvenile tiles will look like a female. It's when they molt that their gender becomes more clear. So it could be either at this point...you will likely have to wait until they go through a molt around the 6-9 month range.

After they molt, their new feathers start coming in. Males will begin to lighten in their cheeks, and females will remain more grey in the cheek area. The males will also lose the barring (stripes) under the tail and under wings. See the picture below...

Not sure if you have any toys in the cage but he/she may appreciate some toys to play with, in addition to some different perches of varying types, like soft rope perches, a swing, ladder, pedicure perch, natural branch perches, etc.

As for water, you don't need filtered or bottled water for your bird, depending where you live, normal town/city water is just fine since it's okay for us to drink also. I give my birds straight from the tap water.

Diet is important in birds and so trying to include fresh fruits and veggies is ideal. Cockatiels aren't known to be huge fruit eaters but mine enjoy lots of veggies. Their latest batch of birdie bread contained peas, corn, green beans, peppers and broccoli and mine also really enjoy sprouts (allowing seeds to germinate in water and fed to them with a little developing plant sprout) it's really nutritious and easy to prepare.

 

[Laurasea]

It takes awhile for them to try new foods, but Keep offering it every day. You can clip fresh veggies to the sides of the bars, change out after a few hours. You can do chop that's s bunch of stuff cut up small abd put in a separate food dish. Once she trusts you more and gets used to everyone and all the changes she will be more willing to try been stuff, abd if she sees you eat it that helps to. I set out s bowl of veggies for my parrots and we all eat breakfast to st the breakfast bar. Theyive to be included in everything, and they are more willing to try stuff that way. Hopefully later some cockateel iw ers will chime in later. Take things slow and take time next to her cage talking to her. The more you put in the more you can get a great fun relationship with these personable little birds. You want to keep her in the living area were everyone soe ds time, meet the back of the cage be by a walk or covered so she feels safe, abd like nothing can sneak up on her. My friend got an older bird and she learned a few words and whistles, and loves to play with toys.

 

[Abdisson]

Such a beautiful baby ;w;

I always wanted a Tiel but I doubt it will happen now since my conures had three baby that I'll be keeping. I don't think I can handle more than five birds lol.

Do they have a leg band? I know those usually have the year that the baby hatched on them otherwise I'm not sure how you could tell the age of a bird.

I think as long as you find ways to bond with your baby you should be able to tame them. With my Booger I started by letting him explore the room his cage was in, talking to him a lot, and giving him treats.

Unfortunately s/he didn't have any leg bands. Even the pet shop worker didn't give me a clear answer as to its age. That's why i was having second thoughts So you mean it's OK to let the tiel out of the case before he's tamed?

Congrats on the new addition! He/she is a beauty.

Most young/juvenile tiles will look like a female. It's when they molt that their gender becomes more clear. So it could be either at this point...you will likely have to wait until they go through a molt around the 6-9 month range.

After they molt, their new feathers start coming in. Males will begin to lighten in their cheeks, and females will remain more grey in the cheek area. The males will also lose the barring (stripes) under the tail and under wings. See the picture below...

Not sure if you have any toys in the cage but he/she may appreciate some toys to play with, in addition to some different perches of varying types, like soft rope perches, a swing, ladder, pedicure perch, natural branch perches, etc.

As for water, you don't need filtered or bottled water for your bird, depending where you live, normal town/city water is just fine since it's okay for us to drink also. I give my birds straight from the tap water.

Diet is important in birds and so trying to include fresh fruits and veggies is ideal. Cockatiels aren't known to be huge fruit eaters but mine enjoy lots of veggies. Their latest batch of birdie bread contained peas, corn, green beans, peppers and broccoli and mine also really enjoy sprouts (allowing seeds to germinate in water and fed to them with a little developing plant sprout) it's really nutritious and easy to prepare.

For now s/he doesn't have any toys and there aren't many options where I live. Even online shops have limited inventory. I also read somewhere that toys might distract the tiel and make taming more difficult. What do you think? I also bought some new perches (old ones are way too thick) and ordered some more from my cousin to make from trees

 

[Laurasea]

You can make your own toys!! Cut up plain cardboard into squares or fun shapes , toliet paper rolls, and paper towel rolls are fun to play with, you can take a plain paper bag and cut into strips and fringe for them to play with. My little birds love to play with small balls, most human baby plastic toys are safe. Toys will give her confidence and make her happy, all these things make friendship easier. Yes sometimes it's easier to work with them out if the cage, let her climb out on her own, if no open windows, doors, ceiling fans, it other pets like dogs that could attack her. You can try offering her favorite seed by hand. Check trees to make sure they are a bird safe type, some trees and leaves are posion to birds.

 

[itzjbean]

I'm not sure where you heard the info about not giving toys as it distracts them from training but it is simply not true. You can still absolutely accomplish training while they have toys. Toys promote play, which is fun, which makes for happy, playful birds. Don't put any toys in and your bird will become depressed from having nothing to do while inside the cage.

My cages are filled with toys...and they love playing with them as it keeps them entertained while I'm away at work. Shredding toys, swinging toys, wood to chew, etc. You can easily make them yourself too with some cardboard, twine and some creativity.

If you use tree branches for inside the cage, make sure to bake them at 250 degrees for 45 minutes to kill and bugs or parasites and also make sure the tree you get it from is not toxic to birds. There are a few that are poisonous.

 

[beetory]

I think it's okay to let them out! Well it worked for me at least but if you are make sure it's in a room where people won't open the door/window and have the potential of them flying out in a panic.

Of course don't force them out of the cage. What I did was I left the doors of his cage propped open and it took him a few days and a lot of staring but eventually he came out and went on top of it and just watched me go about my day. Then when I would go over I would offer him my hand slowly and at first he was really nervous and would run away or try to nip it so I would back away. Once he figured out I wasn't going to hurt him he let me touch his head and eventually we moved on to him stepping up. He wasn't tame at all, I got him at a flea market of all places lol. So it takes patience and a lot of work but once they see you're a friend everything else will come easily.

All birds are different but I'm sure you'll find a way once you see what their personality is like! But yes! Toys, treats, foods they seem to enjoy, a lot of interaction even if it's with bars between you. Maybe have like a "thing" when you approach their cage, like a funny sound or whistle that they'll associate with you.

 

[AmyMyBlueFront]

My little Beebs was 4.5 months when he picked me to go home with. He looked quite like your little one does now....and he still had his baby clothes on but I could see little splotches of yellow on his face,more than what a female would have so I assumed he was indeed a he,which he is

He was pretty friendly at the breeder,climbing up my arm to my shoulder and making little birdie chirps,so when we got home and I fixed up his house,I took him out of his little "come home with me"box and let him hang with me on my shoulder and haven't looked back since lol.

BB loves everyone and will go to just about any one,just as long as that person isn't wearing any kind of hat!



Jim

 

[EllenD]

Oh my, yes, he/she needs lots and lots of toys and foraging activities! They have the intelligence of a 3-4 year old human toddler, so if you don't provide them with lots and lots of toys, foraging activities, wooden toys to chew on, things to shred, etc., he/she will most-likely become extremely bored (she actually already looks very bored, just sitting on a perch with nothing to do but stare at the wall), and this is when plucking/self-mutilation starts. And yes, you absolutely MUST let him/her out of the cage every single day, for at least 3-4 hours a day, more is better! These parrots are social, intelligent birds that not only need to be mentally and psychologically stimulated all day long, but they also need lots of exercise and to not feel like they are prisoners locked inside of a cage.

Even though he/she is not yet hand-tame, that should not at all prevent you from interacting with him/her, talking to him/her, and letting him/her sit outside of the cage, either on top of the cage, or better yet, on a special perch, T-Stand, play-gym, etc. that is just his/her special area to be. I don't know if his/her wings are clipped or not, but if your goal is to work with him/her every single day and hand-tame him/her, then my personal opinion is it's a really good idea to have ONLY his/her outermost 4-5 primary flight-feathers on each wing clipped. This will not hurt him/her at all, and it's completely temporary, and if done this way where only the 4-5 outermost primaries are clipped, the wings will grow back fully within a month and a half to two months, so this is just long enough for you to get her very comfortable with stepping-up for you, and for you to earn her trust. Some people disagree with clipping a bird's wings at all, ever, but in my experience with hand-taming many non-tame Budgies, doing a very short-term, temporary clip as I describe above is the best way to easily start hand-taming. This needs to be your decision it's a personal decision that only you can make for your bird.

And as for the age, he/she is definitely young, as mentioned under 6 months old. As the feathers change during the first big molt, which is coming soon, then you'll be able to visually tell the gender. But I would start working with he/she every single day immediately, get lots and lots of different types of toys and foraging activities for him/her, or make them if they're not available, as bird toys are very easy to make, so that she can live a long, happy, stimulated life. Without lots and lots to do, parrot become so easily bored, stressed, and totally unhappy. They cannot just sit inside of a cage all day long sitting on a perch with nothing to do, it's not healthy and the bird will be miserable and start self-harming.

 

[Abdisson]

thanks everyone for the tips. I've bought her some toys waiting for the package to arrive.
I have been letting her out for the last 2 days. Her wings aren't clipped. She flies around, tosses into walls/curtains () and lands. Then she walks around. My 9 month old son has his toys scattered around I'm sure she'll like to play with them when she feels more comfortable.
I have also bought a new cage as the current cage's bars are all verticle it's hard for her to climb around. Here's her new cage:


Should I do anything specific to while moving her to the new cage?

 

[MonicaMc]

Birds can be tamed at any age, but younger is usually easier.

I'm personally not a fan of open top cages... have heard of more horror stories than I cared to hear about... and believe me, one was enough! It's a shame though that you don't have more availability of bird items where you live and I can understand that.


You may want to consider looking into many DIY toys for him/her!



Being out in a new area can be kind of scary and cockatiels do startle easily... how is she doing now?

 

[Abdisson]

Birds can be tamed at any age, but younger is usually easier.

I'm personally not a fan of open top cages... have heard of more horror stories than I cared to hear about... and believe me, one was enough! It's a shame though that you don't have more availability of bird items where you live and I can understand that.


You may want to consider looking into many DIY toys for him/her!



Being out in a new area can be kind of scary and cockatiels do startle easily... how is she doing now?

Hi,
So far I haven't opened the top of the cage, i see no need. She has quite a few perches in the cage, and outside the cage she loves perching on my son's basketball stand and toy with the net

After about 4 weeks of getting her, i can say she's tame now. She loves getting scratches and playing with my daughter's bracelet She also tries to imitate my whistle. I whistle her "if you're happy and you know it" and she's trying to whistle it too. She needs more time to perfect it

My only trouble so far is getting her to eat veggies.

 

[MonicaMc]

Almost sounds like a little male there!

Male or female, she sounds like an absolute doll!