Cockatiel Questions

[donnam9916]

Hello to everyone, and thanks for all of everyone's help...I have a question about my cocakteils.....Hope someone can help...I have three of them and two will let you hold them, the female is holding out...Also, I have two males, and one female..I am trying to breed them, but the males are only intrested in each other...they have been raised together by the previous owner...ANYWAY, how do I get one intrested in HER...lol.......Also, why do they screech? How do you stop that?? They sing, and whistle sooo sweet, then sometimes just a loud screech? Why? What am I doing to upset them? I totally LOVE my babies, and need a little help and advice...Please send any help to my email.. I am not sure how to seach this site, so any emails would help...THANKS IN ADVANCE...DONNA

[White Wolf]

Moved to its own thread.

[MyBirdIsEvil]

Why do you want to breed your birdies?
I don't know too much about cockatiels, but most birds often won't mate without being on the right diet, in the right enviroment, and being introduced correctly.
Is your female even receptive to mating? Do you know what kind of diet you should be feeding your female in prep for breeding?
Do you know much about hand feeding/raising baby birds?
If you don't know all of this you probably shouldn't be trying to get your birds to mate. Baby birds die very easily and females that are not genetically sound or on the correct diet can have trouble laying eggs and be injured or even die.

Also, why do they screech? How do you stop that?? They sing, and whistle sooo sweet, then sometimes just a loud screech?

They're talking to each other. Usually when they're screeching it's either an alert call or they want attention.

[Svetlana]

I know this is an old thread -- but if you have to ask such a simple question about their calls (it's probably for your benefit -- trying to get your attention -- that screech is their contact call) you are NOT ready to breed your birds.

Besides, cockatiels are already among the most likely exotic pets to end up in a rescue. So unless you are very knowledgable, it's a BAD IDEA.

[Lola Bologna]

Hi:

I have bred canaries successfully and have tried cockatiels with some success. However, I did have 6 eggs that were fertilized and upon checking them, there were 6 full term babies inside. I had lost them all. I figured it was a humidity problem in that it created a very hard shell that the beaks could not penetrate through to hatch. I had 2 successful hatchings subsequently. I discontinued because the female was just not the right temperament. She was way too nervous in general.

My advice is to do a lot of reading before you attempt. There are several good books strictly on breeding cockatiels in pet stores. The internet is also a good resource.

There are some birds that will never be interested in mating. I had a male that was more interested in his male partner. In placing him with a female, nothing happened. All I can say on that topic is that you will know when you have the right pair. A lot involves trying different matches.

The breeding pair should be in 1 cage alone with no other birds. Placing a nesting box will initiate the egg-laying. Other than these 2 points, I suggest to do a lot of reading.

Here is a website for starters: http://www.cockatiels.org/articles/breeding/breed2.html

I believe this website will address your concerns about screeching.

You must also assess why you want to breed these birds and if it will be worth your while. There is literature on this aspect out there also.

Good luck!

Lola