Author: Chewy Editors

The foot of a bird is really amazing. Except when flying, a bird is standing on its feet all of the time. While standing all night would completely tire out a person or dog, parrot feet and legs are perfectly designed for long-term perching. When a bird crouches, due to the anatomical connections between the joints and tendons in the area, the digits (toes) automatically clamp around a perch. In addition to the tendons locking, there are minute projections on the under surface of some of the tendons that interdigitate (interlock) and act like a ratchet on the insides of the tendon sheath. How cool is that? Then when a bird stands, the joints extend and the ratchet action is released. Because many pet birds have trimmed wing feathers and cannot consistently fly, they spend 24 hours a day standing on their feet. It is for this reason that proper care of the feet is vital. There is a saying among horse people that goes “No feet, no horse?” To some extent, this is very true when it comes to our pet birds, as well. Of course, there are exceptions. I have a wonderful little Meyer parrot named Keeley that was donated to me as a neonate because his mother had chewed off all of his toes while still in the nest. He had two little stumps for feet and, while he could be considered handicapped, nobody told him that! He toddles around on his deformed feet and plays and has a large vocabulary. He holds a piece of food down under his foot to nibble at it, and he loves to untie knots in pieces of rawhide using his beak and his little foot stump. I have arranged a long, squat cage for him since he can’t perch. He is a happy, healthy bird. Since he lost the major portions of his toes when he was a baby bird, he knows no other way to be. But, problems involving the feet or toes in an older bird can mean serious trouble.

For the safety of your cockatiels, I think it’s time to separate them. You have several options. One, you could take cockatiel Frosty out of the aviary and bring her in as a pet cockatiel, then the boys can go back to being buddies without the influence of a love interest that has broken up their relationship. Two, you could separate the male cockatiels and put them in a cage of their own; or, three, separate Blondie and Frosty into one cage, and give them a chance to build their relationship. If the cockatiels continues to have fights, you could put them into three separate bird cages. If you separate the aggressive pet birds now, you can reunite them in mid-summer and over the winter when breeding season has passed. It’s natural to have times when pet birds congregate in flocks and other times when they pair up to raise families. It’s also natural for a male cockatiel to act aggressively toward its mate when there is danger around. Spikey feels protective toward Blondie, so he rather aggressively drives him away from other birds and from people. Spikey is probably frustrated that his cockatiel suddenly has his eyes on another bird. I had a lovelorn cockatiel injure its intended mate when it could see but not get to the object of his affection. I know that displaced aggression and frustration can cause injuries, even though cockatiels are normally peaceable birds . That is why I suggest you segregate Blondie and Spikey or set up a separate cage for your trio if they can get along without the outside interference of other birds. Trios of cockatiels can get along, but only if all the birds agree. They can even raise a nest of chicks together with the “aunt” or “uncle” helping incubate eggs and feed babies. Posted by: Chewy Editorial Featured image: Via Rhys Moult/Flickr,Q: