# Chain pet stores and cockatiels



## Shockadine (Sep 2, 2014)

I was wondering if anyone else was seeing cockatiels disappear from the big pet stores, or if it is just my area. I haven't seen a cockatiel in a Petsmart anywhere in las vegas in years. Petco occasional has 1. And it's a rare occasion. Petland used to sell them. They sold their last one probably a year ago. Their manager said they weren't getting anymore in, ever, and they haven't. I'm not saying I want to see more cockatiels in places like this, I'm just curious to see if it's just my area, or if anyone else has noticed it in their area too. All of those stores I mentioned still sell budgies and conures. Have cockatiels lost popularity? They aren't particularly pricey birds. Petsmart sells their super over-priced $600 sun conures pretty quickly. I realize they are colorful and all, but no one impulse buys the over-priced $150 cockatiel? 

Again I'm not saying I wish there were poorly cared for, over-priced cockatiels, everywhere, but from a business stand-point, why would all the pet stores stop selling cockatiels? I guess if it's just my area it might just be that they don't sell well here. Do your chain pet stores sell cockatiels?


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## Pippitha (Mar 27, 2011)

Last time i checked a petco here, they had a whole tiny glass case filled with cockatiels that had to walk on the bottom of the case since there were no perches, and they were ripping each others' feathers out. i haven't been there since.

the petco closer to my house only has like 1 or 2. haven't been to petsmart in a few years.

the conures the stores sell are usually tame, is probably why they sell pretty well. the cockatiels do not look very tame.


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## eduardo (Jan 27, 2012)

I think it's because cockatiels are so abundant nowadays. Well, at least in my area. You can get a cockatiel from a hobby breeder for $40 or so. I don't see how chain stores would then sell them for $120-$140 a bird. My local Pet Supplies Plus has had two beautiful cockatiels for sale for months now. They are prices about $120. Poor things.


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## SilverSage (Oct 19, 2014)

Here in Hawaii I have only seen a couple, and I attribute it to the same reason you rarely see lovebirds here-everyone thinks they should breed them, so the area is flooded with low quality lets for $40. It just isn't worth it to the stores.


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## Colorguarder08 (Sep 13, 2014)

The petco in my area hasn't had anything but budgies since 10/31/2010 I know this because I got the last two tiels (One pied one I wanted and named Halloween and one lutino one I didn't want but the person with me really wanted me to have so they bought him and gave him to me) there and asked them why they were so cheap only $20 when normally they would be over $100 and they told me that Petco was no longer going to be selling any birds but budgies. It was about a year before that, that I had last seen a tiel inside PetSmart until April of this year and I bought the one they had because it looked identical to my favorite tiel.


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## Jaguar (Jul 11, 2014)

Petsmart here only sells budgies and finches. A smaller chain store has only budgies, though they briefly ordered in handfed cockatiels 1 at a time and that is how I got Phoenix. Parrots just aren't popular pets where I live.


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## Darkel777 (Jun 7, 2013)

I have seen them recently but the prices are outrageous. Its rare that they carry them even in my area.


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## Colorguarder08 (Sep 13, 2014)

I think the chain stores are going through a parrot reform in a way. Most seem to be temporarily stoping sales and redoing their housing for them. I know that my Petco has completely removed their bird "room" and keep their budgies in a large cage (bigger than the ferret cage) to where as PetSmart has redone thier "cages" their is one cage in particular than I like because it's bigger than most cages people buy and I understand them keeping the acrylic/glass on the outside so people espeically kids can't stick their fingers inside the conures (usually a jenday or sun conure when that cage is being used) cage and get bit.


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## ParrotletsRock (Oct 8, 2013)

One store told me they were stopping the sale. Of tiels because they are the biggest carriers of psiticosis!


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## Darkel777 (Jun 7, 2013)

Its true cockatiels are very good at coping with disease which may be part of the reason why they are so popular. It is not uncommon for them to be carriers of diseases that can be detrimental to other parrot species. But they are only carriers, often there are other factors when exhibiting the illness itself.

I was reading about this the other day, cockatiels develop antibodies against a disease and literally carry it for years without any signs. Then one day, they enter a heavy moult, raise a large clutch of chicks, somehow undergo a lot stress, or with age get a weakened immune system and symptoms start to show.

Luckily those diseases cannot spread to humans.


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## RowdyTiel (Jan 24, 2013)

Our PetSmart stopped selling tiel in, gosh I can't even remember. It's been well over 10 years.

But, recently, right after the budgie Psittacosis Chlamydia fiasco to be exact, they brought in a tiel. > n < And he looks exactly like Maverick, it kills me every time I go in. I've talked to him and watched him, and he has a big personality (always singing to the budgies and you can hear him all over the store, haha), but he's very much afraid of people. 
Honestly though their birds are so overpriced, I think he'll be there for quite awhile.  He's already been there since late May-early June.


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## amberwydell (Oct 13, 2013)

My local pet stores usually have a couple in every week or so... the garden centre that's just up the road from my house has about 4 or 5 in almost every time we go there (although that differs throughout the year). There's only one store I know that's about 40 minutes away from me that almost always sells cockatiels, as well as larger birds. Other than that, I haven't seen any conures in my local pet stores... budgies, finches and love birds are definitely the most popular in my area. They're cheap, colourful and sell quickly!


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