# new really frightened cockatiel, help!



## Sillabub (Jul 1, 2011)

i always wanted a dog or a minipig but my parents wouldnt let me get one of those so my thoughts went to birds and after checking out some forums and so on i realized cockatiels seemed like a good way to go so after about 2 weeks of waiting i now 3 days back got my little scared baby chippy, the problem though is that he doesnt eat or drink he just sits there on his stick shaking in fear ive tried sitting with him singing/talking and reading books to him also playing music when i do so he seems to soften up abit blinks alot chumbs and yesterday after much effort and about 2 hours of soft talking to him he gasped (i got so happy) hes also so cute cause when i whissle to him he replies with the tiniest peep ive ever heard, ive read on other sweedish forums and ive been told that its common that they are this frightened and that i should give him atleast a weeks peace before trying to make him hand tame. im getting really nervous about this not-eating-not-drinking-part though ive put his water/food pots on his stick also attached some appleslices to the bars but he wont eat what shall i do?:/ im getting so worried of his health now


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## mikec2003 (May 28, 2011)

It's possible he's not eating in front of you, but is eating when you're not in the room.

take his food dish and blow into it. If stuff goes flying out, those are empty seed husks, and that means he is, in fact, eating. It's hard to tell an empty seed from a full seed when a bird eats it, they are very good seed openers.

and not eating apples isn't too hard to imagine, I've been told that cockatiels aren't big fruit eaters. perhaps at first, offer him broccoli or carrots.


anyways, good luck, just don't rush things with the training and bonding, and all should be well


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Hang up some millet spray and some leafy greens in the cage. It's very common for a bird to be too frightened to eat in a new home and some will go without food for three days (although I've never heard of one going longer than this). Eating food that's hanging up is less scary than sticking one's head down in an unfamiliar food cup. The bird can watch for danger while it nibbles the hanging food but has to let its guard down for a moment to put its head in the cup. The fresh greens will help provide moisture.

Cover the cage on three sides until you're sure the bird has eaten. This will make the bird feel safer since it only has to watch for danger in one direction. Birds are prey animals in the wild and are especially on the lookout for danger when they're in an unfamiliar place.


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## Sillabub (Jul 1, 2011)

he has now eaten i feel so much calmer now ^^ ' i heard a high peeep scream ran to the cage and there he sat in the food container happily eating  although he seem to have something around the nose opening i cant tell exactly what it is since i dont wanna move too close to the cage and make him even more scared could possibly be a feather that got stuck when he cleaned himself or something weird i dont know, im just conserned of all these possible dangers im just already too much in love with this bird to want anything bad to happen to him


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## This'll Do (Jun 24, 2011)

Welcome! Glad to hear your new friend is eating.
If the thing stuck to his nare (nose opening) looks like a feather, it likely is. That happens to them frequently and they'll walk around like it doesn't bother them. It would sure drive me nuts.
You want weirdness, wait until you see him stick a toenail in his nare and wiggle it around while making little sneezy noises!
It's good to be concerned because that means you're paying attention. Try to stay calm (easier said than done sometimes!) and let him settle in at his own pace. With birds it's all about patience. 
And listen to tielfan-- I'm a newbie here too and noticed very quickly that her advice is always spot-on.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Thank you! Although if you stick around for a while you'll notice that I'm not always right, so don't listen to me if several other knowledgeable people are saying something different.


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## This'll Do (Jun 24, 2011)

tielfan: I'll keep that in mind, LOL. That's what forums are for, right? Lots of different viewpoints.
I sure wish I'd had access to this kind of resource years ago when I had birds. Lots of knowledge here. I've seen answers here show up in minutes that, back in the day, I had to glean from books, vet consults, and trial and error. Things that I know are correct, but took me years to learn. It's great for the new owners.


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## clawnz (May 28, 2009)

Welcome to the forum.
Tielfan has very good advice, so don't take any notice when she says she is not always right.
It is that calm approach that makes the bird feel safe.
The idea of covering three sides of the cage does work, it makes them feel a lot safer.

You never said where you new one was a tame one or not? And how old is it?
Again it is right, Tiels do not take to fruit that much, but there are lots of veges they will tuck into.
For my money I love sprouting. Or giving them sweetcorn. I also use fresh greens like silverbeet, grass in seed, dandilions, milk thirstle, chick weed. These are just a few you can try if they are available in sweden.
Good luck with your new baby.


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## Sillabub (Jul 1, 2011)

im not exactly sure about his age but they said 6-8 weeks in the pet shop  and no hes not tame but he seem very friendly non the less always saying hello to me when i enter the room ^^ now hes making quite alot of progress now when i woke up i sat in the chair 1,5 meter from him he jumped into the food crate (never seen him move when im watching) and then he actually dared to put his head down and eat having me that close and a cat on the floor watching :3 and yeah the feather is gone today. how will i know when hes ready to start training to make hand tame?


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## Sillabub (Jul 1, 2011)

have started the getting-hand-tame-training today got him to be relaxed sitting 2 decimeters from my hand and still relaxing after about 20 minutes of training the first and only time i tried gets me a pretty neat impression hes such a cutie <3 hopefully he wants to sit on my hand pretty soon


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