New bird mom and 3 month old cockatiel - hello!

[Rallio]

Hello to everyone!
As the title suggests, I've got a young cockatiel (Ventus) and it's my first time bringing a bird home. I've had mostly rodent friends until now, so I am somewhat prepared for the "building trust with a prey animal" dynamic.
Ventus (in my profile pic!) is a super sweetie, we've only been together for a week but s/he's already excited to perch on my shoulder, beak my hair and cheek, and (attempt?) singing with their beak literally placed as far into my ear canal as it can go. I'm in love.
Since this is my first time with a bird, I know I have a lot to learn, so please be patient if I end up with a ton of questions!!
To that end! My first question is about bathing...
I noticed yesterday that Ventus was cleaning theirself a LOT more than previous days, and a small amount of down feathers were discarded while s/he did so. Small amount being maybe a dozen, to my knowledge. Also, Ventus was taking particular note to chew his/her feet over and over. There is no blood, or I would be at the vet instead of posting here lol but the frequency of foot chewing was concerning. I thought to offer a bath, which didn't go well, so I tried misting.. Which went worse. At this age, I should still bathe him/her, right? So I ought to try new ways? I don't want to overstimulate and stress the sweetie, so I hoped for some advice before going for another day of no fun.
Thanks for reading, and thanks in advance for any advice!

 

[sierraecho89]

Hiya! Welcome to the forum!

> I've had mostly rodent friends until now, so I am somewhat prepared for the "building trust with a prey animal" dynamic.

Oh, dude, birds to rodents are like night and day. They're SO different in that birds are freakishly smart. They remember everything!

> Ventus was taking particular note to chew his/her feet over and over. There is no blood, or I would be at the vet instead of posting here lol but the frequency of foot chewing was concerning.

Hmm, does sound like he's a bit itchy. It can take some time to figure out which method of bathing works the best for him; I take Louie into the shower with me because he likes being around me and running around the shower bar, but I mist my amazon, budgie, and cockatiel. The little ones don't really like the misting (they prefer dunking themselves in a water bowl), but they don't bathe enough if I don't, so.. yeah. lol. Others will likely have more advice!

 

[sunnysmom]

Welcome to the forum! Your tiel is a cutie! If it's only been a week, I wouldn't worry too much about bathing yet. I think birds have to be comfortable in their environment to bathe. So it's probably too soon. My tiel liked being misted. But only if it was after 11:30 a.m. Not in the mornings. And I would sing a silly bath song so he knew we were having fun and that it wasn't supposed to be torture. LOL. You can shoot the spray bottle up so it kind of falls down like rain and make sure the water isn't too cold. I would wait another week or so and just try again. Birds preen a lot. So don't worry about that. And my cockatoo cleans his feet all the time too. As long as he's not hurting himself, I don't think I'd worry about that either.

 

[Cowboy&Chica]

Welcome to the forum Rallio,
I would just leave a dish with water in his cage if you do not have a cage bathtub for her/him. She/He will choose the time that is convenient for her/him to take a bath. Eventually you will learn the time of day that she/he likes to take a bath. When you learn that then just make sure you clean the dish and put new fresh water for her/him in time to take a bath in. They love fresh cold water in the summer Some of my birds do like to join me when I take a shower. So, in time you will learn what your bird likes. Enjoy your new friend.

 

[Rallio]

Thank you for your replies!! I'm glad no one felt too alarmed by the description of how s/he's been cleaning themselves. I actually had a nightmare that I woke up to a bloody bird, which was of course thankfully not the case, so it eases my anxiety quite a bit. I'll try putting a bath in their cage for now, and keep an eye on how that's going for future bathing ways. Thank you
To sierraecho - Haha it's true, I used to lovingly joke when my bunny was mad about something that she'd forget it happened by tomorrow, which was usually right, so I'll have to be extra careful with my little birdie lol

 

[Zara]

Welcome to the forum

birds are freakishly smart. They remember everything!

I´ll say!

I agree with @sunnysmom , it has only been a week. They are still adjusting so it is not uncommon that they do not want to bathe.
Some birds hate being sprayed/misted.
None of my birds have baths in their cages. In the summer they follow me to the kitchen and I turn the tap on, in the winter I put a shallow dish of warm water on the floor of the living room.

 

[Cowboy&Chica]

No its not alarming at all... oh and I forgot to mention one of my lovebirds like to chew on his foot only when he is on the floor of the room to the point he looses balance standing on one foot and tip over lol... I never saw him chewing on his foot while inside his cage or on the wood stand he only does it when on the floor why i have no idea.

 

[iamwhoiam]

Welcome to AA.

 

[Rallio]

Thank you, all the warm welcomes are very nice
Also, I really appreciate the shared experiences! Ventus stopped chewing his/her little feet about halfway through the day yesterday, and spent a ton of time hanging with me happily, so I'm not having a heart attack and his/her little feet don't seem to have issues. phew. Thanks for keeping me sane everyone!

 

[Cynthia & Percy]

welcome

 

[Fergus Mom]

Welcome to you @Rallio and Ventus! Cute name... may I ask how you named him/her? V sounds like a little doll, and I'll bet will get used to bathing once he settles in. Just make sure he gets fresh water and seed daily, and post more pics!

 

[Rallio]

Thank you!
Their name means wind in Latin - but it's also a double meaning for me, because Ventus is the name of a character in a video game that my husband and I enjoy. But, I've already morphed it into "Venny" when I talk to him/her haha
And yes, fresh water and food every morning, or more depending on where the poop falls lol!
Is there much of a general agreement on how much to feed your tiel when they're young? I've seen certain amounts per size of bird, but at 10 weeks old I'm scared to malnourish them, so I've definitely been exceeding that..
And here's a few more photos - I've got a very old phone and don't take many pictures, so they aren't very good, sorry! But the one of him/her sitting in the food bowl was really cute in real time haha

 

[expressmailtome]

Welcome, and enjoy the site!

 

[Cynthia & Percy]

welcome

 

[EkkieLu]

Welcome aboard! And many congrats on your new baby!!!

 

[greys4u]

Since Ventus has only been with you for a week, that is a real short period. He's adjusting to a new home, sights, smells, etc. and people. For now let Ventus set his own pace, just be patient, it will pay off. Here are links to two of our forums, has great info.While there take a look at some of the other forums.
http://forums.avianavenue.com/index.php?threads/poisonous-foods-metals-compounds-that-effect-birds.1291/f
Cockatiel Corner | Avian Avenue Parrot Forum

 

[Rallio]

Thank you for the links! I'm picking up a lot of information from these, the help in navigating is much appreciated