karunk Posted June 19, 2012 Share Posted June 19, 2012 All, I have had Chikki (my CAG) for 3.5 years now. While he is doing great, i felt he would need some company during the day as my wife has started to work now. I am thinking of a Cockatiel (not in the same cage). I wanted to go for a Cockatiel as my wife can play with him a bit more freely than she does with Chikki.. I just wanted some inputs from previous multi-bird owners on the dos-and donts. Any pointers to already existing inputs are also welcome. Regards,Arun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted June 19, 2012 Share Posted June 19, 2012 Welcome back Arun, haven't heard from you for quite a while but yes a cockatiel would be an excellent second bird for your family, once they get used to you they will go to pretty much anyone, a very quiet bird that is curious but a delight to have around. I never used to think much of them until I had one show up in my yard one summer and we couldn't find her owner so I kept her. She does not get along with the other 2 birds I have but they all tolerate each other as long as there is a little distance between them and they are easy to take care of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karunk Posted June 19, 2012 Author Share Posted June 19, 2012 Thanks for the inputs Judy.. I was doing my Post Graduation and so was a bit busy with that, hardly browsed during the last year. Thankfully have more time at my disposal now. BTW - can you give me a bit more insight into how you got your three birds to co-exist. Chikki is very attached to me, and he has a personality. He chooses his friends, and sometimes he can be aggressive to me - much like other CAGs. And he is free to fly in the house. I am just worried that Chikki might attack his new companion. Did you face something like that. How did you manage such encounters? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted June 19, 2012 Share Posted June 19, 2012 Funny thing is none of my birds really go after the others, after they had some time to settle in and know that the others are staying and part of the flock they do pretty good, each one keeps a distance from the other and I never put them in a situation where they are close enough to one another to do any harm. Yours will do the same after a settling in period and they can be out at the same time and not bother each other, once in a while my tiel will fly to her cage or to me and she will fly right by Josey's head but she never reaches out to try to get her, in fact she will sort of duck out of harm's way. I know some birds can be more aggressive than others but many of us have more than one bird and most are out at the same time, they don't have to be best buddies to get along, mine tolerate each other and that is the best I can expect but I have had no problems. As far as Chikki being very attached to you just remember that he was there first so always keep him first in everything, first spoken to, first fed, first let out of cage and so on so he knows he is top bird. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karunk Posted June 19, 2012 Author Share Posted June 19, 2012 Thats an important feedback judy.. appreciate the inputs.. I will ensure I give most importance to Chikki, so that he doesnt feel jealous or anything!! I hope he tolerates his companion!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted June 19, 2012 Share Posted June 19, 2012 Who knows they may actually get along together but don't count on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray P Posted June 19, 2012 Share Posted June 19, 2012 Hi Karunk and welcome back. I have three birds and they all come from a different continent. We have a congo african grey, a blue front amazon and two cockatiels. A cockatiel is a great fid and just as much fun and interesting as my grey and amazon. They call back and forth to each other all the time and my male tiel talks almost as good as my zon and grey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kins2321@yahoo.com Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Everyone has excellent input. I too, have three birds of different species. African Grey, Amazon and sunconure. I also have open door policy, and they all get along just fine.( Definitely have some bickering, but no attacking each other.) Amazon and Sunconure are bonded.( don't ask me!) Sophie the grey rules, but the other birds hold their own against her when she is teasing. Kiki the Amazon, HATES when Sophie repeats her and yells at Sophie. Sophie doesn't molt, but Kiki does become a crazy woman at times! Even Sophie knows to give her space. LOL! They all work it out. Nancy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffNOK Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 I am sure if you get a tiel you will find a great friend. I'm not sure it is ever a guarantee that your grey will get along with another bird though. If you want a second bird for yourself, that's great. If you are getting the bird for companionship with your grey, that might not necessarily work out how you want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karunk Posted June 21, 2012 Author Share Posted June 21, 2012 Thanks for your inputs guys.. I am finding it hard to find the Cockatiel mutation I want if I was picky about it being hand reared. How important is it for cockatiels to be hand reared?. I see a lot more options if I was flexible with going for an aviary bred cockatiel. Is it difficult to tame an aviary bred baby cockatiel? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray P Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 IMO. If you and your both work a hand raised tiel is the way to go. That way you start out with a tame cockatiel that you can handle. A avary bred cockatiel can be tamed but it will take time and if you both work its extra time you may not have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now