Today I’m going to speak about one of my pets. There are 4 of them in all, as I firmly believe that each person should take care of some pets.
Small digression:
Honestly, I’ve never thought of buying a bird. I’ve never had birds as pets before and I really didn’t know anything about them. 
And you know, sometimes it happens that my little brother asks us to buy a pet and for a few months he was begging us to buy a bird.
We didn’t come to the conclusion to buy it, as my brother was little and I understood that all the care routine would have to be done by myself. Moreover the price for birds were high. And I guess that we might have never bought this bird if we hadn’t been on holiday.
At the place where we stayed there was a small pet shop where my brother saw this beautiful yellow bird with a funny crest.
So, meet the Cockatiel or Nymphicus Hollandicus or Quarrion. There the bird was way cheaper than in our country, so there weren’t any delays with purchasing it.
The bird was 2 months old when we bought it and the seller told us that this was the very age when the bird was very playful, easy to tame, teach and there usually aren't any issues of taking care of it.
We also bought a small cage for him, which was just of the right size for one cockatiel. Of course we couldn’t miss the plastic feeding and drinking bowls as well as food.
A perch was provided with the cage. So, that’s all, this is a story of how we got our cockatiel.
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For the first month after purchasing, we were still on holiday and I can say that at that time the bird was absolutely calm and quiet. He didn’t want to leave his cage and didn’t want to fly as well as sing. From time to time we could hear him murmuring something very quietly. As the vet told us it was a usual reaction of the bird, as the situation was rather stressful for him.
The way back home was also very easy for the bird. It didn’t cry or shake the cage and was very sturdy against the heat outside. (native of Australia after all).
When we were home, I took the bird to the vet and he gave me some pieces of advice of how to take care and tame the cockatiel birds.
These are some of the recommendations:
What you should know before purchasing:
First of all you must be sure that you’ll be able to provide the bird with proper care.
- I change his bedding in the cage daily (I use usual white printer sheets, as newspapers and magazines can be dangerous for the bird as the paint is toxic for the birds’ paws)
- 1-2 times a day I change his water and wash the drinking bowl as sometimes mucus appears, so make sure to wash the bowl properly. And use only clean water, I use bottled water.
- 3-4 times a day I add some food to the cage
- Once a week I wash the cage, with boiling and cold water
You can also buy some other perches if you want to (they recommend at least three), washing bowl, toys like plastic parrots and a mirror. Don’t forget about vitamins, so that you can be sure that your pet will be healthy and beautiful.
Feeding
I feed it with a special food which doesn't cost a lot + vitamins and from time to time I treat the bird with fruit and once a month I give it a hard boiled egg-white.
The bird quickly got used to our house and started leaving his cage more often. Now he can easily sit on our shoulders and fly around the flat. We didn’t even had to lure him out of the cage with his food.
Some time later (about two weeks) he started mimicking sounds and speech. I was dumbfounded when I heard it. I can’t say that I put much effort into teaching him. Only once a week maybe I opened YouTube videos for the birds where the birds were singing and people talking.
I used to repeat some common words for the birds and he started to say them.
One more week later he already could sing his own song and mimic hens cackling, cats meowing, water falling, phone ringing and saying phrases which he heard in the video.
By the way teaching our bird was really very easy and quick. No difficulties there, birds remember everything that he hears, only if he likes it.
Cockatiel Behavior:
I’m shocked each time reading those negative reviews of cockatiels. They say that these birds cry, are inattentive and always throw out the food around them.
My bird cries only when his bowl is empty, or when he gets bored and wants to fly. (Remember that you should let your cockatiel fly 1-2 times a day, 20 minutes min).
At night, it’ll be better to cover the cage with a dark cloth to let the bird sleep and not worry anybody at home.
I agree that food flies out of the cage, but this is natural as the bird moves around it.
I usually vacuum clean the room to keep it tidy.
You know, I’m very happy that I have the Cockatiel bird! He is so charming, kind and wonderful! He likes sitting on my shoulder looking closely to my jewlery He likes singing, mimicking and petting, especially when I pet his feathers and head.
No issues about care. So, if you still doubt whether you should buy this bird, I’ll put it like this: together with this Cockatiel you’ll have loads of fun and positive emotions. It’s such a loving pet!
I definitely recommend this bird species! Thanks for your attention to my review!
