Ask Lafeber

I need some advice to bring a female cockatiel friend for a cockatiel?

I have a 9 year old male cockatiel. He hatched from a nest of elderly birds and was the only survivor. He bonded with the family, and loved cuddles until one day we had a compulsory purchase order for our home and had to move out. He was two years old at the time. The move stressed him and he became a completely different bird. He used to have the freedom to fly to any room when he wanted, but in the new house he had to stay in the cage because of the builders constantly coming in and out. He began to feather pluck under his wing pits (really bad) which wasn’t very easy to notice at first until he started struggling to fly. The only thing the vet told us was to apply F10 cream to help heal the wound. Sadly after the healing, the skin between wing and body bonded and kept tearing each time he tried to fly causing him to pick at it more. We would take him back to the vet and they would give us antibiotics and F10 again! I eventually got him used to stepping up to go somewhere when he felt like it rather than flying to avoid causing injury to himself and did everything I can to distract him from plucking I have succeeded at a good level. I’ve noticed the past few month he became obsessed with a mirror in my room and wishes to stay close to it all day. I put him back to his cage to sleep and he begs calling me in the morning to take him to the mirror again resuming his plucking habit. He would in front of the mirror doing nothing all day with a few pecks at his food when he gets too hungry. I am worried this obsession is not very healthy and is because he is lonely and wants another cockatiel beside him. I have been seriously considering to bring him a female friend. I really don’t mind if he stops being cuddly with me and bonds with her, of course I will miss his affection but I just want him to be as happy as possible. I wish there are places that let you try having a pair meet each other to see how they get along, but all I can find are baby cockatiel sales. Please can I have someone’s input or advice before bringing one home? Thank you

Hi Zey,

I’m sorry your little guy has had so many problems. While this does seem to have been brought on by the changes, there could be other health issues going on. I would try to find a Vet who is Board Certified in Avian Medicine. We have a locator and links to other sources here:

Find an Avian Veterinarian

I know you took him to a Vet, but it doesn’t sound like the Vet specializes in treating birds. Wing web issues can be very complicated and putting cream on it is only treating one possible cause. Given his beginning, he could have some genetic issues at play here. He was under a lot of stress, and this is when underlying conditions can show up. I don’t know that another bird is going to be what he needs. And as you mentioned, he might not like the bird you choose. You would need a bird about the same age. And older bird doesn’t do well with a younger bird most of the time, and you should never put a young female with an older male. If anything, another male might be an option. I would focus more on finding the true cause for his wing issues so that hopefully they can be treated and his flight restored, as this seems to be important to him. Cockatiels do love to fly. If you got another bird and it can fly, this is going to further frustrate your guy. I agree that letting him sit in front of a mirror all day isn’t the best thing since he isn’t getting exercise. You might try introducing some foraging exercise to keep him busy. We have a play list with videos showing tips, so I’ll give you that link, too. But I do think getting his health in order is going to be key to making him happy.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda