Budgies & Cockatiels together

[plutus1947]

Hi everyone,

I have recently got both a Cockatiel and a Budgie. They both live in the same large home and get on extremely well although they do have the odd little tiff. The budgie is definitely in charge.

I noticed recently that my Cockatiel (Peanut) gets a sunflower seed, shells it and feeds it to the Budgie (Merlin).

I very often see one bird simply feeding the other with other food as well.

As they are two different species I was a little surprised to see this happening.

Has anyone else who keeps a Budgie and Cockatiel together experienced this?

 

[LaManuka]

Hello and welcome aboard to you and Peanut and Merlin!

My cockatiel Fang and budgie Valentino are housemates too, and yes the budgie is very definitely in charge even though he is a latecomer to the flock. My vet once observed that budgies are like a pesky little brother, always wanting to be involved and pestering the rest of the family and that describes our Val pretty well. I’ve had to put three food dishes in for the two birds because Val is always pushing Fang off whichever dish he tries to eat from! Thankfully they get plenty of out-of-cage time so Fang is not too badly impacted. I haven’t seen either one feed the other but Val has learned Fang’s habit of dunking his pellets in water so they’ve got some fairly serious pellet soup going on!

I hope you will post some pics of your babies cos we love photos here too

 

[plutus1947]

Thanks for your input LaManuka.

I didn't have any 'pesky' brothers in my younger days but I did have two pesky sisters. They are not pesky anymore though now we have all grown up.

I note that your budgie insists on 'ruling the roost' in the same way mine does.

When I kept two budgies together it was common for them to feed each other but I was sort of amazed to see a cockatiel and a budgies doing the same.

 

[Allee]

Sounds like Peanut and Merlin are pretty happy housemates. My cockatiel (Sweet Pea) and budgie, (Piper) share a flight cage. I’ve seen them feeding and preening each other from time to time. I can’t really say who is in charge, they seldom fuss at each other. They have three food dishes, two at opposite ends of the cage and two water bowls so no one ever has to wait for a turn.

We do love photos if you have some to share.

 

[Talven]

Never really been a big fan of housing anything with budgies after seeing a poor 'tiel that had been housed with some. The poor thing was missing toes that the budgies had bitten off. They can be terrible bullies to other birds and cause damage to them. Glad to hear that it is working out so well for everyone. I guess it makes a difference how many budgies and what gender.

 

[reeb]

I’m a bit late to this! I have two budgies and one cockatiel who all live happily together in one large cage. Initially, I kept them separate, but Berry (my female ‘tiel) kept flying into the budgies’ cage every night. They’ve been living together for nearly 2 years, and there is very little aggression. Berry and Pearl (my female budgie) tolerate each other, and Opal (my male budgie) is the glue that holds the flock together! He feeds both girls and is absolutely in love with Berry, even though she’s a cockatiel! It’s definitely possible, but not in all cases. I think it’s very dependent on personality.

 

[plutus1947]

ReThanks for your reply Reeb and you interesting info.: Budgies & Cockatiels together

Thanks for your reply Reeb and the most interesting info.

I have kept budgies and tiels together on several occasions but only one of each not three all at once.

I know I said that my Merlin is a control freak it is not that bad. As I mentioned they often feed each other and do their bird thing by massaging each others head with their beaks.

Every morning when we uncover the birds they are always on the same perch together even though they have one each.

I love these little beings and they trust myself and my wife and although they don't yet fly to us they will sometimes come on to our hands quite happily.