Is my bird bored/nervous?

Well, my cockatiel has really got me wondering about her. I've got her in a large cage and she's got toys gallore (I try to rotate and swap her toys with my budgies toys every once in awhile) Tho she does on ocassion play with the toys, she spends a lot of time on the floor of her cage playing in the paper. She does shred it sometimes, not that often, but she loves to burrow under the paper and come out on the other side. She seems very content doing this. She will also pace at the bottom of her cage, it's more like a run tho. But I believe she does that to get my attention because she only does that when I'm around. That's her way of saying she wants out because when that door opens she's right there!
I was also wondering if I can pass a cold to my birds. I've just came down with this awful cold so I haven't been getting her out until I know I'm over my cold. I do regularly wash my hands and all that. But can I still handle her or is it better not to Thanks
Mandi

 

Hi shredding and burrowing of the paper on the cage floor is nesting behaviour she is trying to make a safe place for eggs, So she could be getting broody.

You can still handle the bird aslong as you wash your hands thorougly (sp) and do not let her near you mouth or nose. If you have her next to you and you need to cough or sneeze turn your head away from her so that she does not breathe in the particals.

Mike

 

Uh oh. She's only 4 months old, almost 5 now. Is this normal at her age? I really don't want her to lay any eggs soon cuz I don't want her to get eggbound. Is there some way I can distract her? If she is gonna lay eggs, at what age would she start this? Also, if she has eggs....is she going to get mean and protective of her eggs? Thanks!
-Mandi

 

I have had 1 cockatiel that was in a cage of her own and she was 4 months old, She displayed the same behaviour as your bird but she never laid any eggs so hopefully yours will not.

They can start laying from around 4months old with only 1 egg ever being laid and they usually ignore this after a day or 2.

To stop her getting broody when she is out of the cage and sat with you do not scratch under her beak or the back of her head as this imitates the male trying to get the females attention.

Also placing her cage in a different area will put her off as this will put her on edge and will not want to risk laying eggs incase predators get them.. Reduce the amounnt of light she gets per day, and if you use a water mister to spray her then i would reduce this to only once every 2weeks.


Mike

 

Awww. Will there ever be a point when I can pet her again? She will nudge my hand so I pet her....guess I'll have to resist her request. She likes to cuddle right under my neck also and she puts her head down on my cheek or shoulder. I will move her cage this weekend to see how she does with that. We need to re-arrange anyways to make room for the Christmas tree.
Also, she has gotten to the point where she will play on the top of her cage, before she insisted on being on someone. She will play for the most part outside of her cage...so will this help distract her from wanting to lay eggs?
Every morning before I go into the living room (where she's at) she whistles so pretty for me, then once she see's me comin' she starts yellin' until I get her out. She's too funny.
So, would it be a good idea to keep her from visiting my moms male cockatiel?
Also, he is a pearl...she was told he would lose his pearling as he got older...is this true? He is older than mine and has a lot of pearls...will he keep any of them?
Sorry for the long post! Thanks a lot.
-Mandi

 

the more and longer she is out of the cage the less likely she is to want to lay eggs.
Reduce the light so say she gets 14hours of normal and artifical ligh drop this to about 8hours, Covering the cage with a dark cover is a simple way to reduce the amount of light she is getting...

using these methods will still allow you to pet her, But if she starts to dip her head and put her bottom in the air making what sounds like a clucky noise then stop petting her all together as this is her wanting to breed with you..

Mike

 

Oh, I'm glad to know I can still pet her. She's so sweet, but I don't want her to lay any eggs! She doesn't get much more than 8 hours of light, it's winter here and we don't have a light in the living room....tho the light from the kitchen shines in there. It's 5:00 right now and she's already up on her perch where she sleeps. But just to be sure I'll cover her cage early every night. Thanks for your help!
-Mandi