# Night Behavior



## Kokuhteel (May 4, 2010)

I find that Riley settles down around 9 PM and is eerily quiet until about 7 in the morning. Being new to Cockatiels, and birds in general, I didn't know what to expect at night. I must say that Riley has really surprised me.

How is everyone else's Cockatiel(s) at night?


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## WallyBird (Nov 23, 2009)

Mine sleep pretty well cept they get kinda noisy around sunrise and wake me up haha. But yes I notice both mine are extra calm and sweet at night. that's when they love head scratches the most. Just be aware that every once in awhile your tiel may have a night fright. Their common among tiels in fact mine had one about two weeks ago. Basically something spooks them at night and they flap around their cage until they feel safe. The problem is its dark usually and they cant see the perches and stuff they're running into. Sometimes these frights can be bad and your tiel could bang up his wings and feathers. So if your tiel is prone to night frights a little night light next to the cage is a good idea.


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## xxxSpikexxx (Jul 30, 2007)

Spike is really good and usually stays quite until I uncover him in the morning. Sometimes though he will say Icarus when he hears you walk by his cage to get a drink sometimes  Oh and if you don't have a night light I really recommend getting one, they help lessen night frights


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## Kokuhteel (May 4, 2010)

xxxSpikexxx said:


> Oh and if you don't have a night light I really recommend getting one, they help lessen night frights


No, I don' t have one. 

Do they make night lights specifically for birds or will any do?


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## dude (Mar 29, 2010)

Anything that illuminates the room just enough to see everything is fine. Kids night lights are good! I just turn my fishtank light on...hahaha. That's dudes night light.

Dude has a late bed time. If I stay up till midnight or early hours of morning , so will dude. If I go to bed early 9ish Dude is happy too . And yep he is up when the sunrises wolf whistling and squarking till I get up and open his cage door and give him some attention.


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## Siobhan (Mar 21, 2010)

Freddie's Mommy time is after the Quakers have gone to bed, so he stays up late, too, and even if he's sleepy, he doesn't want to go to bed. He'll peek out from under his cover at me and say "peep!" after I tuck him in. But he stays pretty quiet in the morning until he knows somebody's up and then he starts whistling. Or until Jade starts raising the roof wanting someone to uncover her. LOL


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## Elysahbeth (Mar 29, 2010)

Elysium fights going to bed, normally in the evenings she is with me or on her perch outside the cage. If i try to move her back into her cage she'll cling to me, jump out once ive put her in, flap at the cage door, chirp at me, give me guilt stares, hiss at me. She really dislikes bed time! But once shes in and i cover her shes fine, she goes to sleep and usually doesnt make a sound till the morning. Her bed time varies, sometimes she seems like shes ready for bed so I'll put her in earlier 9/10pm other times shes still happy to play up until midnight, tonight she went down at 11:30 ish and once again she fought it!


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## dude (Mar 29, 2010)

Elysahbeth said:


> Elysium fights going to bed, normally in the evenings she is with me or on her perch outside the cage. If i try to move her back into her cage she'll cling to me, jump out once ive put her in, flap at the cage door, chirp at me, give me guilt stares, hiss at me. She really dislikes bed time! But once shes in and i cover her shes fine, she goes to sleep and usually doesnt make a sound till the morning. Her bed time varies, sometimes she seems like shes ready for bed so I'll put her in earlier 9/10pm other times shes still happy to play up until midnight, tonight she went down at 11:30 ish and once again she fought it!


Hahahahahaha. Sounds like Dude. He does the hissing and running out again and squarking and standing in the cage door so you can't close it. Biting you when you go to collect him for the 2nd attempt 3rd attempt 4th attempt, whatever attempt it is that he knows he is supose to be going back in....etc. Its irritating when you want to go to bed yourself. Sometimes it takes a few good trys to get him back in far enough so you can shut the door fast enough before he makes it out again or into the door way so you can't close it. Then once he is shut in the paces the front of the cage trying to get you to open it again whistle & squarking ! Its crazy bed time! And frustrating! LOL.


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## AlbyPepper (Apr 3, 2010)

Definitely worse than kids sometimes. I put my two to bed anywhere between 7.30 and 9.30. Pepper loves to be in bed and will hiss and bite if you put your hand in the cage after she has settled. Thing is, she is shocking when it comes time to go to bed. Alby hates going to bed. Is happy once he is there, but will still take any opportunity to come back out. They do the cutesy act and drop their heads for pats or run everywhere to avoid my hand, run back up my arm or hang onto the cage doorand even bite sometimes. Once they are covered and settled, I don't hear from them until I let them out in the morning to take them out to their big cage. Sometimes if I stay in bed too long, Alby starts chirping to let me know that he wants out of bed. That can be as late as 9 in the morning.


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## Autumn (Dec 12, 2009)

My two get very calm and cuddly before bedtime. Best time for scritches, like it's been said. Usually I put them to bed at about 9:30, they're up after 8am. Currently I sleep in the same room as the cockatiels and ocassionally there's tiny night chirping! I don't know if they dream something and then have to sing a few tones or a noise wakes them up.


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## Kokuhteel (May 4, 2010)

dude said:


> Anything that illuminates the room just enough to see everything is fine.


I typically turn on the light above the sink area for Riley.



dude said:


> Dude has a late bed time. If I stay up till midnight or early hours of morning , so will dude. If I go to bed early 9ish Dude is happy too . And yep he is up when the sunrises wolf whistling and squarking till I get up and open his cage door and give him some attention.


Kinda sounds like Riley! 



Siobhan said:


> Freddie's Mommy time is after the Quakers have gone to bed, so he stays up late, too, and even if he's sleepy, he doesn't want to go to bed.


Glad to know mine isn't the only later nighter.


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## Kokuhteel (May 4, 2010)

Elysahbeth said:


> Her bed time varies, sometimes she seems like shes ready for bed so I'll put her in earlier 9/10pm other times shes still happy to play up until midnight, tonight she went down at 11:30 ish and once again she fought it!


I was under the impression that Cockatiels needed a set bedtime and usually had to be asleep by 8 or 9 PMish at the latest.

Guess not.


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## dude (Mar 29, 2010)

You can't make them sleep....lol they`ll sleep when they want to ! Although making a more "natural" sleep area.(covered cage. Lights out) will encourage them to think its night time and time to sleep.

Doesn't always work. Dude still knows when I am up or not and despite being dark he`ll still race around and pull open doors and play with toys or whatever untill i`ve gone to bed aswell and gone to sleep. If there is noise or lights on Dude is up and out wanting to play and get attention. 

I think he doesn't like sleeping early incase he misses something good !


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## Kokuhteel (May 4, 2010)

I've been reading that Cockatiels need 10-12 hours of sleep. Do they?


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## dude (Mar 29, 2010)

I don't know. Probably...lol !

Now I want to know the answer too .......


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## Elysahbeth (Mar 29, 2010)

Yeah its been said 10-12 (even up to 14) hours needed. It also help with controlling breeding. If a cockatiel has access to favourable breeding conditions, one of them being long periods of light, they are more likely to breed. In females this means that theres a chance of calcium depletion and egg binding. 

I havent heard anything about set bed times though, but that might just be so that the cockatiel gets its hours of sleep needed. Where did you read/hear this? 

I think Elysium and Dude must have been related! Shes very much the same way. She knows when im up and if im up it means that she wants to be on me. Shes very clingy and loving. Im not allowed to be in another room without her, and she'll tell me off if i am  When I put her to bed she has to be covered completely, If I leave too much of a gap she'll go to it and race back and forth for me to take her out again.


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## dude (Mar 29, 2010)

Hahahaha. Yeah sounds like my dude. I don't usually cover him but when I do if the cover is on he knows how to lift it up from the inside ! So he can peak outside at me !

Ummmm yeah... I don't think breeding applies to Dude...lol. He`ll be a one and only for his life time.

I think Dude just sleeps when I am at work ...hehehe. Who knows what he gets up to when i`m gone !


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## clayts (May 10, 2010)

My Ozzie seems to like 14 hours sleep - he starts getting cranky about 6pm and that's when I know he wants to go to bed, irrespective of whether it's still daylight outside. He's positively delightful in the morning, and greets with me a wing stretch and a huge poo !


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## melissasroja (May 8, 2010)

So far my 2 tiels seem to get tired around 8pm. The only way Ive been able to tell is they get quiet and very snuggly so I cover them up. They get uncovered around 8am. They dont tend to make any noise during the time they are covered and they have a night light. My 2 budgies on the other hand get VERY loud once covered! They get covered at the same time as the tiels but they sing and talk for a good half hour before finally getting to bed. In the morning they grumble a little before being uncovered but not much at all. I really expected more noise in the night. My Jenday Conure used to chat all night long lol. I swear he never shut up! It actually worked to my advantage when my son was a baby. He would love to sit and listen to Sunny chat during his middle of the night feedings!

Melissa


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## Kokuhteel (May 4, 2010)

Elysahbeth said:


> I havent heard anything about set bed times though, but that might just be so that the cockatiel gets its hours of sleep needed.





Elysahbeth said:


> Where did you read/hear this?


Actually, I didn't read or hear it. I just assumed since they needed 10-12 hours of sleep they shoud be in the cage with a covering over it around 8 or 9 PMish, which is why I initially said, "I was under the impression that...".


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## Kokuhteel (May 4, 2010)

I usually put Riley in his cage around 9 PM, 10 o'clock the latest. Once he's in, I cover the cage. Even though Riley gets put to bed at this time and is quiet once the cage is covered, I doubt he's alseep. I think he stays up awhile and falls asleep whenever. That a bad thing? 

Even though I don't think Riley gets 10-12 hours of sleep, he doesn't seem cranky in the morning and is fairly good-natured throughout the day.

Is his health going to suffer in the long-run without 10-12 hours of sleep each night?


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