Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Cockatiel Behavior but Were Afraid to Ask
Cockatiel behavior is not random, as any cockatiel caretaker can tell you. Their actions have meaning and you can tell when they are afraid, angry, happy, sleepy, hungry, bored, sick, and even aroused. If you are the central caretaker, then it is likely that many of your cockatiel’s behaviors are a direct consequence of your actions. Many cockatiels get very, very in tune with their human friends.
Ahead you will find descriptions of some of the basic cockatiel behaviors.
Signs of Distress
The first thing you should know about cockatiel behavior is when something is distressing your cockatiel. Two basic actions characterize cockatiel distress. First, if your cockatiel is just screaming and flailing about his cage, something is clearly distressing him. When you hear this panicked behavior, you should move quickly to the vicinity of your bird if you are not there, and look around. The most common cause of such panicked behavior is your housecat. If your cat has somehow snuck into your cockatiel’s room, then your cockatiel will tell you this by such behavior.
This behavior is very dangerous and can result in your cockatiel breaking his wing, so you should not ignore this cockatiel behavior.
This can also happen at other times of distress. If you have a particularly jumpy bird or if you place your bird in a new environment and it overwhelms him, he is likely behave this way. In addition, you might scare your bird if you accidentally sneak up on him or approach him too quickly.
Similarly, cockatiels will sometimes fall from their perches in the middle of the night and flail about in the disorienting darkness. If you hear this happening, it is important to rush into where they sleep and turn on the lights to help them re-orient themselves.
A second typical sign of fear is hissing. If your bird hisses at something that approaches her, this is sign that she is afraid and uncomfortable with it. Sometimes your cockatiel may hiss at your hand. This could happen either because your cockatiel does not feel like being picked up that day, or more likely, because you have approached it too quickly. Always slowly move in to pick up your cockatiel.
Your cockatiel also might hiss at anything new in its cage. If you put in a new toy, the cockatiel might move to the other side of the cage and hiss at the new object, unsure what to make of it. Just give your cockatiel a little bit of time to adjust to the new article. It usually will be okay with it after a day or two.
Signs of Illness
Another cockatiel behavior you need to have familiarly tucked into your back pocket are signs of illness. If your cockatiel lacks her usual appetite or if she is unusually quiet, this could be a sign of illness. If your cockatiel feels unusually irritated or if her feet feel cold, this could all be sign of illness. Contact your local avian veterinarian.
Another typical sign of illness is feather picking. If you find that your cockatiel is pulling out feathers from a particular area of the body, you should investigate carefully. Feather picking is a sign that there is something either in that area that is causing your cockatiel distress or that your bird may be feeling out of sorts.
Contentment
If your bird sort of puffs up and grinds hiss beak this is a sign of contentment (and, likely that he is about to take a nap). If her feet are warm or if she stretches her leg bag, they she is comfortable.
If he breaks into song or does a series of imitations of noises she has learned, then she is playful and ready for attention.
A happy bird that has really bonded with you may also approach your hand and start to rub its tail feathers against your palm while it snorts excitedly. This is your cockatiel getting it on with your palm. It is up to you whether to let him do so. If you don’t he may take his behavior to another object, like say an air vent. If you do allow him to do so, he will eventually leave a substance on your hand and likely perch on your shoulder and break into a happy song to thank you. Ah, the love of a cockatiel!