Finding a Cockatiel Friend

[Markydi]

I have a 7 year-old male cockatiel rescue. Last week, his female mate died from apparent old age. (Also a rescue- unknown history). Since my bird has never been alone and has had only female friends, would he accept a male bird? Second part, a rescue has a cockatiel they found as a stray and he thus far has not wanted to interact with other birds. Would this be too risky adopting him? Would love to help a bird in need, but my lovely bird must come first. Thank you.

 

[LaManuka]

I have a 7 year-old male cockatiel rescue. Last week, his female mate died from apparent old age. (Also a rescue- unknown history). Since my bird has never been alone and has had only female friends, would he accept a male bird? Second part, a rescue has a cockatiel they found as a stray and he thus far has not wanted to interact with other birds. Would this be too risky adopting him? Would love to help a bird in need, but my lovely bird must come first. Thank you.

Welcome to the forums, @Markydi, though I'm very sorry for the loss that brought you here.

In terms of whether your male will accept a new friend, that's difficult to say at this point - he will certainly be grieving the loss of his female companion and missing her terribly. Personally I've usually been pretty quick to find new flock-mates for my birds whenever I've had a loss, like within a week or two, but it's been because I wanted another bird, just as much as not wanting my remaining bird to be alone. So far I've been pretty lucky in that they've all gotten along well, but every bird is different and I've always had to be prepared for the possibility that they might hate each other, or indeed that they might love each other just a little too much! To that end, I've always had separate cages so that they have a safe space to retreat to if relations become a bit too intense. I really don't think there's any way you can tell whether your male will be happy with a new friend of either sex ahead of time, you just need to be prepared for both eventualities.

Again, my condolences for your loss, and I hope this helps you and your lovely boy. 🙏