'tiel tales!

[Lady Kakata]

Got a funny story about your 'tiel? Share here!

My own is what happened with Bonnie and her new fruit stick. I got some fruit sticks from my Australian aunt made by Trill (for non-UK'ers; Trill products here are exclusively budgie seed and millet. They don't sell cockatiel stuff or anything beyond the most basic budgie items) and wanted to try them with the 'tiels

I took out the dish that I normally use for their veg, washed it, dried it and put it back in, hanging the nut treat above the dish to allow the seed to fall into it rather than through the grate and onto the cage floor where they wouldn't be able to get it, since they are prone to shredding fruit sticks before actually eating the bits they drop on the floor

So I just leave them to go investigate their new stick while I tidy the kitchen. I can see that, as usual, Bonnie is first to investigate and start destroying the stick. But she is actually making a semi-screech noise, followed by her 'laughing' noise. The laughing always makes me laugh so it's an endless cycle sort of thing, but I wasn't aware of why she was doing it

I came through and sat on the sofa, watching Futurama, when I glance over to the cage. Bonnie had her head in the bowl and was doing her screech/laughing. The mad bird was talking to herself! XD

I think she wondered where all the veg had gone and the near-empty bowl was sort of facinating, hence her putting her head into it and doing her laughing. Sometimes birds find really odd ways of amusing themselves XD

[Andie]

It is funny the level of excitement that the simplest things (or in your case, nothing!) can create!!

My cockatiel, Dobby is a champion forager!! She waits on the perch shaking with excitement when she can see me making up a fresh bowl. All it is is paper cat litter and finch seed!! She scurries down the side of the cage when I open the door and is usually in the bowl before I even put it down.

This is the only seed my parrots get, but still I don't quite get the level of happy it creates!!

[Ashling]

This morning Peanut was squealing to the wild birds outside and I had my bf over who gets grumpy if the birds are loud on weekend mornings (his only sleep-in time) so instead of covering the cage, I brought Peanut back to bed and he snuggled into my face and rubbed his cheek against mine asking for scritches and let me nudge his head with my nose and started making kissy noises. It was so cute!!!

[Sue195350]

Scooter runs up and down my arms when I am washing dishes. she gets so excited.She loves playing in the dribbling water. We do this everyday. you would think she would not get so excited doing it everyday. its so cute

[Lady Kakata]

My birds are facinated with me when I'm on the phone, as the phone is right next to their cage. So, when I'm on the phone, they both come down to have a nosy.

Bonnie is down at the bottom of the cage and is staring at me through the corner of the cage. She's walking backwards and fowards, she's liturally walking backwards!. I think this grate is annoying her and she wants down the bottom of the cage to lay eggs

Anyway, my good story is sitting at the cage door. There is a leather computer chair and I moved it to sit in front of the cage and I opened the door to the cage and watched them go about their business. They don't bother coming out so it's a good moment to watch them go about their business face to face.

But Angel was curious when I opened the door, looking down at me from her perch as usually when I open the door it means food or I scritch her head.

Get this; she CAME DOWN the cage, and SAT on the ledge of the door! Right in front of me! Angel is a very shy bird so to me this was amazing. We spent some time there, me just scritching her head and talking to her. I did the same again today and she was so relaxed she started grooming herself! I hand-fed her some sunflower seeds, gave her some head scritchin's, generally had a good time while keeping an eye on the jealous yellow weasel (Bonnie XD)

Hopefully this is the first step in hand-taming sweet Angel :3

[prettypenguin]

My Pretty can't get enough of me brushing my teeth! If I start to brush without her she starts to scream and flies to the bathroom to land on my head. Ruby follows along, but she doesn't like it as much. Pretty really likes it when I spit water, she sings and yells and makes a huge fuss!

[Ashling]

... recently Peanut has started acting like a lorikeet and hopping like Ashling does. It is incredibly cute I need to get a vid!!