I have hand reared many cockatiels with mainly very good results and love doing it. They live together in a separate small aviary and are a pleasure to look after. When I am in there they chat to me and will come and sit on my shoulder. Although they are tame they have lost the real closeness they had when they were very young. We have often thought we would like a very tame cockatiel in the house again and our lovely lone chick from this year seems to fit the bill perfectly.
Although I handled him often as a chick, since fledging and being in the aviary he has become quite wild so it will be quite difficult to make him very tame. The first day he was in he spent most of the time peeping over the edge of the cage to see what was going on.
Pichu The Cockatiel
By the next day he had brightened up and was sitting on his perch shouting loudly along to an Abba song! Today I have been putting my hand into the cage just to rest next to him several times a day. Already he seems a bit more settled with me doing this and doesn’t panic too much. Hopefully after a few days of this he may be ready for me to offer him some millet in my hand. I know these early stages can take several weeks so I will be patient and record how we get along.
Pichu The Cockatiel Sitting On A Perch
Life In The Aviary Garden 