Ask Lafeber

can chicks bond to people

My umbrella Cockatoos just mated. I wish to allow them to raise their chicks on their own. Will the chicks be able to bond with us humans, as do their parents?

Hi Oee,

Cockatoos are very hard to breed. Mating does not guarantee there will be eggs or chicks. Your birds need a very large cockatoo nest box, a nutritious diet and privacy. If they do manage to hatch chicks and they feed them, the best method is to co-parent the chicks. This is where you will start to handle the chicks when they are a few weeks old but still let the parents feed them. This can be tricky because some birds will not tolerate the chicks being removed to handle. Please do a google search for co-parenting cockatoo or parrot chicks for more detailed information on this method. If you simply allow the parents to raise them without being touched by humans until they are weaned, then they will be wild and you will have to work to tame them.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda