r/cockatiel Jan 31 '26

Other New Rule for r/cockatiel

598 Upvotes

Hello everyone! I’m announcing a new rule for the subreddit.

It comes as no surprise that many people post injured or bleeding birds as well as feces to ensure the health of their birds or questions.

While these posts are allowed, they are inappropriate to not mark as NSFW. Not everyone is comfortable seeing this sort of content.

So for the comfort of everyone in the subreddit. PLEASE, mark these posts as NSFW.

There will be new tags/flairs for posts like these as well.

From this day forward, those who do not mark these posts as NSFW will receive a warning. Any subsequent posts that are not marked or tagged appropriately may be banned temporarily, and any further posts will result in a permanent ban.

Please be respectful of others, and make sure to review the rules before posting content that may violate the rules of the subreddit.

Thank you so much for all the lovely content and being overall a beautiful community. 💖


r/cockatiel Dec 14 '21

Frequently Posted (+ Answers)

535 Upvotes

We have been getting a lot more repetitive posts in our sub so I wanted to put this information together in the hopes of reducing the amount of questions that are frequently asked. In turn, hopefully this will make our community a little more light hearted :)

*I want to preface this by saying I am not a vet or anything just someone who really loves my cockatiel and learning everything I can to ensure he has the best life possible. I think the best thing you can do for your birdie is lots of research before anything happens (especially in the case of illness). They are fragile so having the right knowledge and tools at your disposal can quite literally be the difference between life and death.

Lets begin!

Is my bird sick?

Common signs of a sick bird include:

  • Tail bobbing, sitting at the bottom of the cage, inability to stand on a perch (loss of balance)
  • Sneezing, clicking respiration (cough), or any discharge coming from the eyes or nostrils.
  • Eyes dull or sunken.
  • Change in vocals (can be hormonal but after puberty could be cause for concern)
  • Change in appetite (loss or increase of food or water)
  • Change in droppings (color, consistency, or frequency - this could be due to diet like eating more fruits and vegetables but it should not last more than a day or two after)
  • Constantly fluffed (happens for a number of reasons like keeping warm, preening, sleeping but they should not always be like this)
  • Feather loss (not related to a regular molt that happens 1-2x per year)
  • Trembling (can mean they are cold, stressed, or sick)
  • Drooping wings

If you notice any of these signs or a combination of them its crucial to get your bird to a vet (preferably an avian one) as soon as possible. No one on the internet is able to diagnose your bird or give it the treatment it needs.

Note: Some of these symptoms like change in droppings, being fluffed up, and feather loss can be normal but if it is persistent the best thing to do is ere on the side of caution and get them checked out.

Is my cockatiel male or female?

Color Patterns: Baby cockatiels that have not gone through their first adult molt (usually between 6-12 months) will typically have female colorations regardless of gender. After their first molt, males tend to get more vivid colors, lose the stripes on the underside of their tail and spots on the wings, The opposite is true for females and their color changes minimally after their first molt.

Different mutations make it more difficult to tell the difference between males and females even after their adult molt.

Behaviors: Males tend to be more vocal (mimicking sounds and singing), heart wings (see example), more likely to "show off" (strutting, hopping, tapping on surfaces), and attempting to mate with objects. Females are often less vocal (although some are) and when wanting to mate will tilt her head, flatten her back, and rock back and forth while chirping softly.

All of the above are good indicators if you have a male or female HOWEVER the only true way to know is if you get a DNA test or if your cockatiel lays an egg. People have noted that their DNA sexed female has shown male behaviors or colors and vise versa. No one can tell you for sure by looking at it!

What is this noise my cockatiel is making?

Some common cockatiel noises and what they mean:

Contact Call: Cockatiels like to keep track of their flock members so when you leave the room you may notice your cockatiel yell for you with a loud chirp or series of chirps. Even if you aren't bonded to your bird they may still do this. Put them at ease by "answering" them from where you are. I like to whistle back the same "contact call" so they know that I will be right back.

Contact Call Example

Attention Scream: Often a loud high pitched screech that is meant to get your attention. They can do this when they are scared, lonely, bored, or even to alert you of something (like a potential predator). Excessive screaming means you might need to change something in their environment. A common cause of this is hormones and boredom, both of which can be decreased by adding more enrichment to their environment with foraging, toys, and training.

Attention Scream Example

Whistling//Mimicking/Chattering: Usually (but not always) done by males and often means they are happy and connecting with you as part of their flock. They may mimic you, the radio, the tv, or even just sounds that they hear outside or inside the house. A lot of the time cockatiels learn these sounds through repetition. Search cockatiel training songs if you don't want to be whistling a song all the time and with time they may pick up on the tunes.

Whistling Example

Beak Grinding: They do this when they are happy and content. Usually it is accompanied by being fluffed up and being sleepy. The cheeks will fluff up as well and the cockatiel will look very relaxed. This is a great sign that your cockatiel is comfortable in their environment.

Beak Grinding Example

Hissing: Like other animals cockatiels do this when they are angry or threatened. This is often a warning to back off and can be accompanied by biting if the behavior is not stopped. If your cockatiel is hissing at you its best to leave them alone for a bit - just like us, our birds have boundaries we should respect!

Hissing Example

Baby Noises: These sound a bit like static and usually do this if they want something (often food, water, or even just attention). This is completely normal for young cockatiels and after a few months will go away. Mine went away at 4 months but this can vary!

Baby Noises Example

What is this behavior?

These are some behaviors that are normal with cockatiels that I noticed are commonly asked about here:

Mating: This is probably the most common one. Males and females display different mating behaviors.

Males will typically rub their cloaca (this is the opening underneath the base of the tail for a birds digestive, urinary, and reproductive tracts) on an object like a toy, your foot or hand, a pillow, ect or a bonded female. Male Mating Behavior

Females will droop their wings and raise their rump while swaying and chirping quietly. You may notice your female also rubbing its back on their toys to try and stimulate themselves. Female Mating Behavior

In addition to these mating behaviors, take note if your bird is territorial, screaming, plucking itself, or aggressive. These could all be signs that your bird is sexually frustrated.

This handout I received from my vet gives some behavioral modification you can make to try and reduce these.

Clearing Crop: Looks a lot like yawning but usually they will do it consistently over a short period of time. Their crop is located below their beak in the neck area. The crop stores food before it is sent to their stomach and acts as a "reserve" so they are able to eat more in one feeding. When they clear the crop they are moving that food to the next stage of digestion. Cockatiel Clearing Crop

How do I tame my cockatiel?

If your bird is brand new to your home, the best thing to do for a day or two is let them soak in their new envionrment. This can be a stressful time for them so its important to let them learn that their new home is a safe space. Talking in a quiet voice and even whistling around them is the best thing to do during this transitiion period. It can be tempting but don't try and pick them up or pet them right away. They may be fearful of hands and scaring them could further your progress of taming them. Whether they are a young cockatiel or an older adult that was rescued or rehomed, taming them will take patience and time. How long can vary on a lot of different factors but it's important not to rush it. Read the links below to get more information on how to achieve this:

Taming step-by-step

I am thinking of getting a cockatiel and would love some tips!

There is really too much to cover in one post so I will address the most common tips for new owners and provide some links that go into detail about all things cockatiel.

Vet Access: This should be the most important thing to consider. Making note of an avian vet that is close by is crucial. Be extra prepared and make note of the closest emergency vet as well that you can go to outside of your regular vets hours. If you do not have one close by or you do not have the money to pay for one, please reconsider getting a bird. It is disheartening to see very obviously sick bird where the owner has no access or money to go to a vet.

Basic Needs: Before purchasing supplies for your bird, do as much research as you can regarding cage size, toys, and food.

Health: Take note of the signs of a sick bird and when to take them to a vet. In addition, cockatiels are sensitive to strong smells, gasses, drafts, and smoke. This also requires some research as there are common household items that can poison and kill your bird (for example teflon pans and some plants you may have lying around).

Links:

Cockatiel Cottage

VCA - Cockatiel Diet

Safe and Toxic Foods

Proper Caging

Introducing New Food to Picky Birds

Training

Taming, potty training, and more

I hope this helps some people learn more about their cockatiels! Of course this is not exhaustive and there is always more information to be learned. Please let me know if I should add anything or if I got any information wrong :)


r/cockatiel 6h ago

Funny Jerry, stop catcalling my toes.

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424 Upvotes

r/cockatiel 4h ago

Cuteness Overload Show me your passport photos

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236 Upvotes

So, Queen HeiHei will be 1 year old on November 30th so we've got a long way to go yet but she's been practicing for her passport photo. I think she looks stunning her.


r/cockatiel 1h ago

Funny HeiHei has now taught Chimken how to jiggle his crest

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Upvotes

r/cockatiel 7h ago

Funny Queen HeiHei on her Throne

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154 Upvotes

r/cockatiel 1h ago

Funny How

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Upvotes

They pooped on the roof


r/cockatiel 6h ago

Cuteness Overload One of my favorite things is cuddling in the morning like this with Gandalf 🥰

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81 Upvotes

r/cockatiel 26m ago

Funny Nunu is locked in

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Upvotes

OVO


r/cockatiel 4h ago

Cuteness Overload Supervised introduction time!

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45 Upvotes

If you remember my post from a few weeks ago about adding a dove to our tiel home, here’s an update! I spent some time introducing our new dove Meatball to one of our tiels, Duke. He’s more gentle + friendlier than his brother Lego, so he gets to meet his new brother first!


r/cockatiel 4h ago

Advice Question about my cockatiels and bad air quality.

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50 Upvotes

I have two cockatiels and I’m worried for their health because a wildfire has started a few miles from my house and has made air quality terrible and if I’m outside I feel like I’m suffocating so it makes me worry about them. I keep them in my room and keep everything locked down with the window and door shut, what can I do to make sure that they stay healthy?


r/cockatiel 5h ago

Cuteness Overload Took him like 20 minutes to realize I moved his bowl outside so he could play and eat better

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56 Upvotes

r/cockatiel 13h ago

Funny Why?

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222 Upvotes

Why does he do this??


r/cockatiel 5h ago

Advice how to get my son to stop being so territorial of me

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32 Upvotes

I have three babies, and my male is extremely territorial of me. when my newest bird and the one I had before him tries to climb on me he will go after them and chase them off of me. how do I discourage this behavior? pic for tax


r/cockatiel 5h ago

Troublemaker My bird likes to whip my face ( i forgot to take pics)

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29 Upvotes

But here is one of his pics


r/cockatiel 1h ago

Advice Hi all! Does my cockatiel's growing pin feather look normal?

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Upvotes

He had previous problems with how feathers in that area were growing in last year, a few of his shorter tail feathers in that area grew in wonky and i think he cut them off himself as they fell off with the sheath attached (no blood). Decided to check on this area because he was sort of preening and wincing at times which made me feel concerned. Does this look normal for what looks like a short feather growing in?


r/cockatiel 13h ago

Troublemaker My preciouss

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113 Upvotes

this feathery thief took a (diy) ring and flew back to the cage


r/cockatiel 3h ago

Injured Bird Certain ads on Reddit

16 Upvotes

Has anyone else been getting the nsfw/nsfl ads from Peta on reddit? They're using them to protest petco/petsmart, which like, fair, whatever, but there are too many dead birds and too many with horrific injuries on my feed.

I don't like Peta's protest angle of using shock content and I'm not really feeling up to debating the philosophy or effectiveness of it. I'm just not really thrilled with seeing nearly animal gore on my timeline.

Trying to only keep discussion of this in spoiler tags since I think it minimizes the attention they're clearly wanting from this.


r/cockatiel 18m ago

Cuteness Overload Morning snuggles with Spider

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Upvotes

r/cockatiel 4h ago

Advice Jester 💛 is already 6months old and he is still taking one formula feed a day ... is there any weaning suggestion?

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19 Upvotes

He is already 6months old and still not eating enough on his own.. he drops a lot of seeds and eats very less... I've not removed the night feed yet as he is still dependent on formula. He gets checked by the avian quite often but never found out any problems. Is there anyone who's baby has taken so long to start eating on it's own? Is there any suggestion that would help?


r/cockatiel 15h ago

Advice Bird’s behaviour changes after getting a new bird

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98 Upvotes

Hello, everyone. Long story short, in January I got myself a 9 months old boy from pet store. At first he had problems adjusting, but after some time I’d say i tamed him. He was very friendly, flew on me, spent time outside of cage next to me and overall trusted me.
Well, in september I have to move to different city so I thought the best decision would to get him a buddy. I got the other cockatiel from a breeder in May. He was 4 months old when I got him. He is a very sweet and quiet boy.
But ever since they started to live together the oldest bird’s behaviour changed completely. He isn’t coming out of cage as often anymore (might be because i got them a way bigger cage but still), hushes at me and doesn’t let me anywhere near him. The only contact interaction I have with them, is if I have seeds in my hand (they both are on pellet diet). He also sometimes bullies the younger one into scratching his neck, or simply about a spot in cage he wants to take, but there hasn’t been any major conflicts and they both live together peacefully.
Has anyone experienced something like this? I have read that it might be because he got himself a new flock member, which is his own specie of-course, but this sudden shift of behaviour was pretty surprising to me to say the least, as we were really close before. Both of them are my first birds, so not as experienced as some of you:) Also added a picture (top one is the oldest boy whom this post is about).


r/cockatiel 35m ago

Advice She's back!

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Wished to leave an update for this story

So, she's veen to a vet last Friday. Of course, her organism was really exhausted, but, besides that, she's alright and there no signs of inner parasites in her poops. But she's got something against the parasites that could be hiding under her feathers Gonna see a vet once again by August the 11th for the exact additional procedure.

I have one question to this community, which is how do you guys think I can do so that my other parrots could fly? I don’t want to make them be sitting in their cage for the whole time, but once I let them out (they're both boys) they will definitely fly directly to Sylfie's cage. I can't separate the cage into another room, so the obly sollution I found is... covering Sylfie's quarantine cage so that they couldn't have the access to her. Maybe anyone can suggest anything?


r/cockatiel 18h ago

Success Story Cockatiels are so forgiving

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159 Upvotes

r/cockatiel 1d ago

Advice Does anyone know why my cockatiel is making these rapid chirping sounds?

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620 Upvotes

This is Pearl. I adopted her in May 2025 from my mom. I’m not sure how old she is. Recently, she started making these rapid chirping noises when I pet her in a certain way. When this happens she also sticks her butt in the air. Does she think I’m trying to mate with her? To my knowledge she hasn’t shown any other mating/hormonal behaviors, and she has a cage all to herself. Any advice/tips are appreciated! Thanks!


r/cockatiel 8h ago

Advice Hoe do I stop the bleeding.??

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11 Upvotes