🍖Feeding a Cockatiel: diet, conversion and bans
Cockatiel : A base of small-parakeet pellets topped up with seeds, leafy greens and a little fruit. Cockatiels are prone to weight gain, so keep sunflower seeds for training sessions only.
In short: About 30 cm including a long tail, 15 to 20 year lifespan, moderate noise level. A small cockatoo, gentle and affectionate, it shows its mood through its crest and craves daily contact. Prone to night frights, it thrashes in the dark: a soft night light and a stable cage prevent injuries from panicked flapping.
The Cockatiel diet, beyond the seed mix
Small-parakeet pellets as the base, topped up with measured seeds, leafy greens and a little fruit; a weight-prone species, so keep sunflower seeds for training. At 80 to 120 g, quantities stay modest — composition makes the difference, not volume.
Switching foods, gently
A seed-fed bird does not switch to pellets overnight: blend gradually over weeks, offer pellets in the morning when hunger helps, and weigh regularly to confirm real intake. Finches and small hookbills are stubborn: patience beats deprivation.
The absolute bans
Avocado (lethal), chocolate, alcohol, caffeine, onion and garlic, unpitted stone fruit: the avian blacklist allows no exceptions. Water is changed daily, fresh fruit removed after a few hours. After any suspect ingestion, call the avian vet at once — the metabolism of a 80 to 120 g bird leaves no margin.
Frequently asked questions
What does a Cockatiel eat daily?
Small-parakeet pellets as the base, topped up with measured seeds, leafy greens and a little fruit; a weight-prone species, so keep sunflower seeds for training.
Which foods are forbidden for a Cockatiel?
Avocado, chocolate, caffeine, alcohol, onion and garlic top the list: all toxic to birds at any dose. Salt and human cooked dishes are also out.
The guides that apply to you
- Macaw Diet: Managing Fat and Avoiding Obesity
How do you feed a macaw without making it obese? The share of fatty nuts, a pellet base, the risk of hepatic lipidosis, and portion benchmarks.
- Stone fruit (peach, apricot, cherry, plum) for birds: what precautions to take?
The flesh of stone fruit is a treat for most birds, but the pit itself carries a specific risk. What to know before offering any.
- Cuttlebone and mineral blocks: which one does your bird need?
Calcium, iodine, beak wear: what cuttlebone and mineral blocks are for, how to attach them in the cage and which to favour for each species.
- What a Budgerigar Eats: The Ideal Ration
What should you feed a budgerigar? The share of seeds and pellets, leafy greens, calcium and the mistakes to avoid for a healthy budgie.