Doubts about getting a galah

[Sergior]

Hello to everyone!

My name is Sergio, I'm 30 and I'm from Spain. First of all I need to say that I'm not a very good English speaker (but I can understand it without a problem) so hope you can understand me!

A few months ago my 5 years old female cockatiel, Whisky, passed away. I'm still living with a same old male cockatiel, Pinneapple, and two 3 years old budgies, but it's not the same kind of relation. While the living birds are around me and sometimes ask for scritches, they go just find without me, they are a very addorable flock. But Whisky was very different in the way that she was always asking for my attention (she was a part of the flock too, but in another way) and asking for head scritches. She was the most loving bird.

I'm still missing Whisky a lot but she is not going to came back, so I'm start thinking about having a new bird to try to have a new beautiful relation, but I don't feel prepared to that bird being a cockatiel beacuse I would feel like I'm replacing Whisky, even if it's not that way. Also, if I have a new cockatiel I think probably I'll start comparing the new with Whisky, with it's just not fair for the bird, Whisky or even me.

So that's the reason I started thinking about getting a Galah. As far as I know, they're pretty similar on a behavioural level to cockatiels, wich it's pretty fine beacuse tiels goes awesome with my way of living, nut I need to be sure to what should I expect if finally got one. To be honest, in the past thought a lot too about getting a Galah (a female), but with a bird as demanding as Whisky was I just think it was not a good idea beacuse her life quality would not be the same.

I've done my research anout Galah, but I'm still in doubt so I'm wondering if someone with experience with both, Galah and tiels, could help me on this question beacuse if I finally decide to go for a Galah it needs to be this year, beacuse the next one most part of parrots would be banned in Spain (but not cockatiels, so I always could have one in the future if I feel prepared).

Thanks a lot to everyone!

 

[AussieBird]

@zoo mom has both a galah and tiels

 

[Pixiebeak]

I'm sorry for your loss of Whiskey..some souls we just connect with in a deeper level.

 

[Sergior]

@zoo mom has both a galah and tiels

Oh, hope she can help me! Thanks a lot!

 

[Sergior]

I'm sorry for your loss of Whiskey..some souls we just connect with in a deeper level.

Yeah, that's right. She was the most sweet birb ever

 

[zoo mom]

Hi @Sergior soory I didn't respond sooner but I wanted to make sure I had the time to give a proper answer and not just rush through it.

I currently have 1 tiel and 1 Galah. I have them in the same room but I don't let them out at the same time for safety reasons due to the great difference in body size and beak size.

Grahamy ( cockatiel) is pretty much hands off. She usually prefers to sit on her cage and do occasional flights. Sometimes she will land on Russell's (Galah)cage and he doesn't seem to care. And sometimes she will land and sit on my as long as I don't try to touch her.

Russell (Galah) is a very interactive bird. He loves to be on me and get lots of kisses. He knows a couple tricks but I haven't really tried to teach him many. He will shake and wave consistently and will sometimes turn around. He can occasionally be nippy especially if you are ignoring him. I love Russell Peck Boogertoo (his full name) but he is a handful. If you are in a stable situation (not likely to move around alot) and can afford the large cage he/she needs, and toys he/she needs, and can accommodate separate out of cage times or separate rooms, then I suggest you go meet some if at all possible, They are a handful, very noisy and can be very destructive.

If after meeting one/some you feel that you are ready for a challenge and are willing to commit to a living buzz saw then go for it. Just make sure you can keep them safe.

If you have any questions post them in this thread and I will do my best to answer them.

 

[sunnysmom]

Sorry for your loss. A bit different but I have cockatiels and a goffin cockatoo. I also got my cockatoo after I lost my cockatiel Sunny who was definitely my heart bird. I do think Galahs are more mellow than goffins but way more active than cockatiels. I would say take all your cockatiel behaviors and noise levels and multiply by 20 and that's a Galah. : ) They really are beautiful birds.

 

[Sergior]

Hi @Sergior soory I didn't respond sooner but I wanted to make sure I had the time to give a proper answer and not just rush through it.

I currently have 1 tiel and 1 Galah. I have them in the same room but I don't let them out at the same time for safety reasons due to the great difference in body size and beak size.

Grahamy ( cockatiel) is pretty much hands off. She usually prefers to sit on her cage and do occasional flights. Sometimes she will land on Russell's (Galah)cage and he doesn't seem to care. And sometimes she will land and sit on my as long as I don't try to touch her.

Russell (Galah) is a very interactive bird. He loves to be on me and get lots of kisses. He knows a couple tricks but I haven't really tried to teach him many. He will shake and wave consistently and will sometimes turn around. He can occasionally be nippy especially if you are ignoring him. I love Russell Peck Boogertoo (his full name) but he is a handful. If you are in a stable situation (not likely to move around alot) and can afford the large cage he/she needs, and toys he/she needs, and can accommodate separate out of cage times or separate rooms, then I suggest you go meet some if at all possible, They are a handful, very noisy and can be very destructive.

If after meeting one/some you feel that you are ready for a challenge and are willing to commit to a living buzz saw then go for it. Just make sure you can keep them safe.

If you have any questions post them in this thread and I will do my best to answer them.

It looks like their very different birds and that scares me a little bit beacuse, even if I know there's a lot of difference in individual personality I belived that cockatiels and galahs was pretty similar in the way they behavior and interact, so that's the reason I was thinking about a galah

 

[Sergior]

Sorry for your loss. A bit different but I have cockatiels and a goffin cockatoo. I also got my cockatoo after I lost my cockatiel Sunny who was definitely my heart bird. I do think Galahs are more mellow than goffins but way more active than cockatiels. I would say take all your cockatiel behaviors and noise levels and multiply by 20 and that's a Galah. : ) They really are beautiful birds.

Goffin cockatoos are pretty fun too, but I think I can't have a white cockatoo on the way they need and deserve hahaha
But about the galahs and cockatiels that's what I heard a lot, that galahs are mostly like cockatiels but with redbull inside hahaha

 

[zoo mom]

Galahs are fiestier, louder, more energetic, more prone to behavioral issues than cockatiels. And much more destructive. I truly recommend that you meet some before making a decision for or against. I love my Russell very much, but there are days I think I must of lost my mind when I chose him.

 

[Shezbug]

Goffin cockatoos are pretty fun too, but I think I can't have a white cockatoo on the way they need and deserve hahaha
But about the galahs and cockatiels that's what I heard a lot, that galahs are mostly like cockatiels but with redbull inside hahaha

I honestly would not put Galahs and cockatiels in the same category for anything other than they come from the same country, both have crazy flight patterns and they have similar diets- sure there are some really chilled out quiet galahs which is more like a tiels behaviour but not all are like that, some are as much of a handful as a Sulfur crested cockatoo and some are quite placid but to say they are like cockatiels is very untrue and could cause some heartache or problems if you get one simply because you think they are alike.
They are generally much braver than cockatiels, much much louder, much cheekier, much more likely to escape cages than a tiel, mostly they are much busier than tiels, more likely to investigate and rearrange furniture and belongings than a tiel etc- they are most certainly a cockatoo even if they are one of the easier ones to live with.

 

[Tanya]

I've had cockatiels in my life for about as long as I've had my Galah. They are very different animals. More behavioral issues with my Galah (feather barbering, screeching contact calls, panic-flying when startled, biting visitors and chewing on wood furniture). They are also quite a bit dustier and make a much bigger mess when eating! That said, I love my Galah and I'm pretty sure she loves me. If you're ready for the commitment and live a house (or are in an apartment with very thick walls), a Galah can be a good companion after the 2-3 years it takes for them to fully form a bond with you.