Hey everyone,
I am new to the cockatiel world as of last Friday night. I owned a parrotlet that passed away in October and have been birdless since. I am a 5th grade teacher and was hoping to bring my parrotlet into the classroom as a class pet. As a third grader growing up my teacher had a cockatiel for a class pet and it made my school year to have the bird in the room. I want to be able to do the same for my kids.
I bought a cockatiel last week from a breeder in Virginia (I live in WI) and he was shipped via airplane to me last Friday. She chose him for me knowing the situation that I am in. I want a very social, very friendly/sweet, happy, active cockatiel that enjoys the kids and the action of the classroom. She chose the one that apparently would come running to the cage door when she walked into the room because he wanted to come out.
Well I received him last Friday and he is a very sweet bird. He's never even tried to bite, he lets me pet him and scratch his head, although he has no idea how to step up. Sometimes I feel like I'm going to push him over before he actually raises a foot to step up.
Although I can tell he was hand raised and a real sweetheart, he doesn't seem to be adjusting well to his new cage and enviornment. He sits on top of his cage, moving very little, if at all really throughout the day. I'm used to my acrobatic parrotlet who was all over the place. I know he is a young bird, newly weaned, and I know he had playmates in his old cage, and I'm sure a plane ride, and a new environment would be very stressful, so do you think he is just adjusting still? Do I just need to give him more time?
He also doesn't eat a whole lot, other than the spray millet, he's not eating out of his food dishes. I've had to put water dishes by him because he doesn't move around in the cage to go to his water. Is this normal behavior? Should I take out the spray millet during the day so that he has to eat out of the dish? I certainly don't want to starve him!
Last night when I walked into his room he started flapping around in what seemed a nervous way and kind of fell from the top part of the cage to the bottom before settling down. Then he was fine and I was able to take him out of the cage. I think I just startled him walking in, but I'm not sure.
Because of the fact that he seems to still be adjusting I haven't brought him into the classroom yet. I'm afraid that the noise and activity of the 25 students will freak him out even more. However, I feel terrible because I'm not home all day, so he sits in his cage by himself at my house until I get home at night. Do you think it would be a better idea to bring him into the classroom where there's people and let him adjust? Or is it better to leave him home alone and give him more time before I introduce him.
My worst fear is that I'm going to take what was a very sweet, active, social cockatiel, and turn him into a skiddish, shy bird early on by making a mistake.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!
I am new to the cockatiel world as of last Friday night. I owned a parrotlet that passed away in October and have been birdless since. I am a 5th grade teacher and was hoping to bring my parrotlet into the classroom as a class pet. As a third grader growing up my teacher had a cockatiel for a class pet and it made my school year to have the bird in the room. I want to be able to do the same for my kids.
I bought a cockatiel last week from a breeder in Virginia (I live in WI) and he was shipped via airplane to me last Friday. She chose him for me knowing the situation that I am in. I want a very social, very friendly/sweet, happy, active cockatiel that enjoys the kids and the action of the classroom. She chose the one that apparently would come running to the cage door when she walked into the room because he wanted to come out.
Well I received him last Friday and he is a very sweet bird. He's never even tried to bite, he lets me pet him and scratch his head, although he has no idea how to step up. Sometimes I feel like I'm going to push him over before he actually raises a foot to step up.
Although I can tell he was hand raised and a real sweetheart, he doesn't seem to be adjusting well to his new cage and enviornment. He sits on top of his cage, moving very little, if at all really throughout the day. I'm used to my acrobatic parrotlet who was all over the place. I know he is a young bird, newly weaned, and I know he had playmates in his old cage, and I'm sure a plane ride, and a new environment would be very stressful, so do you think he is just adjusting still? Do I just need to give him more time?
He also doesn't eat a whole lot, other than the spray millet, he's not eating out of his food dishes. I've had to put water dishes by him because he doesn't move around in the cage to go to his water. Is this normal behavior? Should I take out the spray millet during the day so that he has to eat out of the dish? I certainly don't want to starve him!
Last night when I walked into his room he started flapping around in what seemed a nervous way and kind of fell from the top part of the cage to the bottom before settling down. Then he was fine and I was able to take him out of the cage. I think I just startled him walking in, but I'm not sure.
Because of the fact that he seems to still be adjusting I haven't brought him into the classroom yet. I'm afraid that the noise and activity of the 25 students will freak him out even more. However, I feel terrible because I'm not home all day, so he sits in his cage by himself at my house until I get home at night. Do you think it would be a better idea to bring him into the classroom where there's people and let him adjust? Or is it better to leave him home alone and give him more time before I introduce him.
My worst fear is that I'm going to take what was a very sweet, active, social cockatiel, and turn him into a skiddish, shy bird early on by making a mistake.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!