I have had my male cockateil, Prince for 8 years. He was bought from a petstore and learned the "step up" command within 2 days. However, he is very territorial of his cage, will hiss and be mad at people who get near it...even to put food in his cage. When he is out of the cage...he likes attention for just a few minutes..then gets cranky and warning bites. He also is very picky with his food and only eats a small variety of seed from his food dish. I really would like him to be more friendly and I just don't konw how to help him. Any ideas?
2006-11-29 05:27:25 · 4 answers · asked by Jamie J 3 in Pets ➔ Birds
He also refuses to play with any toys...he's got about 8 toys in his cage...and the only thing he uses is one perch and his ladder...that's it.
2006-11-29 06:41:32 · update #1
You should have stopped him by doing that long time ago. Now he is use to it and will follow this crakiness for the rest of his life. However you can chnage him from doing this. Make him think that the thing he is doing is wrong. Does he eat treats? Treats is a good idea for him to stop doing this behavior. When he does something bad dont give him treats, when he does somthing good, give him the treat right after he does the good thing. THis will motivate him to stop. He will get use to this ans stop that behavior. To tell you the truth its pretty hard to train a old bird.
Or the other thing you can do is get a new cage so he wont react very fast to being territorial. He will get territorial in a period of time. In that period of time make it think that you are sharring the property with him. This might help.
2006-11-29 09:48:56 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
My quaker is very territorial like Prince is. But he does love his toys and food. I am concerned about Prince not eating enough. You might need to take him to an avian vet to have him checked out. He could have some type of infection??? Have you tried fresh fruits & veggies with him? My babies love raw squash, appes, bananas, pears.....Just be sure to wash it well & cut the peel off. I have learned this the hard way. I have a sick cockatiel right now, Precious. She has had a bacterial infection(got better) and now she possibly has a fungal infection. So be very careful what you expose Prince to. Also for the toys...maybe put a couple at a time in his house and see if he likes them...then change them out later.
2006-11-29 15:00:24 · answer #2 · answered by birdmomma 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
OK so you have had him 8 years.... now you want him to be more friendly?? I don't think there is much you can do at this point.
I have a 8 month old cockateil. She has her moments of attitude, too.
I know with my baby, once she is out of her cage she is fine, as long as you don't try to touch her!! It amazes me how they act. If she decides to "LET" you pet her.... it is only on her head. As far as seed goes.... she is the same way. I have tried giving her different beans and things. When I first got her I had issues with her eating my house plants. So my mom said to try her on new green things.
2006-11-29 13:41:49 · answer #3 · answered by ~Crystal~ 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
An 8 yr. old cockatiel is like a 72 yr. old man. haha
Really.
2006-11-29 16:17:34 · answer #4 · answered by oodlesoanimals 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋