Cockatoo parrot is a cute, funny bird that can be easily trained. In addition, she can speak, whistle melodies, somersault, and even dance. Many people dream of becoming a cockatoo owner. But few people know how dramatically the life of all family members will change with the appearance of a crested handsome man in the house.
Free life
Currently, the cockatoo parrot is widespread throughout Europe. They were brought to us from Australia, New Guinea and the Philippine Islands. There are about twenty species of cockatoo. The smallest of them are the size of a jackdaw or a crow, and the largest of them are black grouse. There are no green or blue flowers in the cockatoo plumage. Most species of these birds are white. Black and gray are also found. Pink cockatoo live in Australia, yellow in the Philippines, and yellow-cheeked and red-cheeked in some islands. The cockatoo parrot differs from other species in its characteristic very beautiful crest on its head and the shape of its beak. In freedom they keep in packs, fly well, walk tolerably well on the ground, climb trees perfectly, and some even know how to dive. They feed on grains, fruits, tubers, larvae, insects. They love corn very much. Often flocks of these cute birds fly into the crops, for which the peasants apply the most stringent measures to them. Now many species of cockatoo are listed in the Red Book.
Breeding in nature
Females of most cockatoos differ from males in only more modest body sizes. Only some species have sexual differences in the form of spots, stripes, different colors of the
iris. In nature, birds form pairs during the breeding season. Nests are built in hollows, as high as possible from the ground. Eggs in the clutch of large species are 2 or 3, and small ones - up to 5. Hatching lasts 28-32 days. Chicks are born fledgling, with large beaks. Most often, the couple feeds the cubs together. Sometimes parents do not leave their children even after they left the nest. After the mating season, the couples reunite in a flock.
Captive breeding
In captivity, a cockatoo parrot is not the easiest species to breed. Difficulties begin with the selection of partners. The male can kill the female if he did not like her. Therefore, it is advisable to grow a couple together with infancy or provide the male with several candidates to choose from. It is necessary to constantly monitor the birds after laying the eggs, and in the nest arrange two entrances so that the female can escape from her chosen one in time.
The second difficulty is feeding. In order for the birds “wanted” to acquire heirs, their diet must be changed, increasing the content of germinated grains and animal proteins. But one cannot overdo it here, otherwise the male will have aggression instead of a desire to mate.
The third problem arises after the birth of the first chick. Often the female feeds only him, and the owners have to take care of the rest.
How to grow a chick "from the cradle"
If the female is engaged in feeding the hatched chick and abandoned the remaining eggs, they must be placed in an incubator. They maintain a special temperature and humidity, set the ventilation, and turn the eggs several times a day. After the chicks are born, the temperature in the incubator is reduced to 27-28 degrees. They begin to feed the babies at the 12th hour of their life. The role of the artificial “nurse” is performed by a small syringe, and in the future - a spoon. The easiest way to cook food is from baby formula, adding fodder lime and vitamins to them. A small cockatoo parrot asks to eat day and night every 2 hours. He ate or not, check on the fullness of his goiter. Overfeeding the baby is not recommended. Finishing each meal, you need to simulate natural feeding. You can add millet and fruit to a grown-up chick. Adult birds are happy to eat carrots, cucumbers, seeds, nuts, peas, beets, celery, corn.
Pet house
A cockatoo
talking parrot , cute, funny, playful, is the pride of its owner. These birds can learn a few phrases and many kinds of sounds. They also easily learn various tricks, movements, are able to fulfill some requests. This is what enthusiastic viewers see. Behind the scenes are problems and difficulties known only to the owners.
Cockatoo - freedom-loving birds. If they are constantly kept in a locked cage, they begin to get nervous, get sick. This is expressed in plucking their feathers, in aggression towards the owner. Therefore, these birds must be given the opportunity to fly at least half an hour a day around the apartment.
A cage for them needs to be bought especially strong, preferably metal. Lock the door with a solid lock, which cannot be opened with anything but a key. These precautions are needed because the wooden rods of the cockatoo are turned into chips in a matter of hours, and simple locks are opened no worse than a seasoned bear cub.
Walking around the apartment
All cockatoo owners should remember that leaving pets out of the cage for a long time is extremely risky. Firstly, curious birds may be interested in wiring, damage it, and kill themselves.
Secondly, they do not remain indifferent to furniture, paintings, figures, flowers, vases on the table, books. All of this they are happy to break, tear, in every possible way rendered worthless. The danger is varnishes and paints that cover furniture and surfaces. A parrot swallowing dangerous pieces can get sick and even die.
Thirdly, on the cockatoo feathers there is a white powder formed from the crushed ends of the feathers. The birds are shaken regularly, and this powder is scattered throughout the apartment.
Character Features
Defeating an apartment is not all that a cockatoo parrot can do. Owner reviews give an idea of how demanding attention the bird is and emotional in expressing its feelings. Having become attached to the owner, the cockatoo become, figuratively speaking, its shadow, constantly requiring attention. Offended, the pet can refuse food, pluck feathers, even tear its skin. Often such problems arise when the owner needs to go somewhere, for example, to go on vacation. It will be difficult for a cockatoo to bear separation.
The second feature of his character is vindictiveness and aggression. If the cockatoo does not like the owner’s handling of it, it can hurt very badly, tear out a piece of flesh and even eat the phalanges of the fingers. What is curious, a bird can injure its owner not only when it is angry, but simply by playing.
Noisy and noisy
In nature, cockatoos are very noisy birds. They calm down only for the period of hatching of the chicks. They always scream when they are scared and when everyone is happy. So the birds cleanse their lungs. It is clear that at home this habit remains. Their scream is very loud, sometimes heartbreaking. Sometimes you don’t immediately realize that this is not a man yelling, and not a pig is being cut, but a cockatoo parrot expresses its pleasure in life. The price for them is quite high. In addition to buying the bird itself, the future owner needs to include in the expenses a large, very strong and convenient bird cage, good feed and a lot of toys. They are a parrot living without a couple, are simply necessary. Toys are not so expensive, but the parrot will often break them and break them with their beak, so you will have to buy them often.
How much does a cockatoo parrot cost
According to some sources, the cost of a cockatoo with documents is from 90 thousand rubles and above. It is influenced by many nuances.
Low, as a rule, is the price if the bird does not have all the necessary documents or it is sick. Unfortunately, cocktails are often smuggled into us. These, so to speak, businessmen are only concerned with revenue. They catch and carry unfortunate parrots, breaking the laws. In order not to be caught, birds are euthanized and hidden in places unsuitable for living beings. Few of them remain healthy after this. In addition, a parrot caught in the wild can be a carrier of viruses. Merchants are trying to quickly sell goods, so they do not set high prices.
If you buy cockatoos in special nurseries, many problems can be avoided, although the price will be higher. It depends on the type, size, age, skills of the bird and the degree of its taming. A man-fed parrot costs more than the one that the parents fed.
It happens that the owners sell the cockatoo. Here the price varies quite a wide range. Sometimes a parrot can be given for free, if only the new owner was a good person. Nevertheless, buying a cockatoo without proper documents, there is a risk of acquiring a problem bird.
The most popular types
Many are interested in
how many cockatoo
parrots live . Their life expectancy depends on the conditions of detention, size and type. The most popular are yellow-crested, white-crested, yellow-cheeked, pink, Moluccan and Goffin cockatoo.
Sulfur-crested cockatoo is large and small. Large has a body size of up to 55 cm, lives up to 50 years. He is harder to breed in captivity, worse at learning words, but he performs various tricks perfectly. Small yellow-crested grow up to 35 cm. Their life expectancy is 40 years. They hardly learn to talk, but are very smart and funny.
White-headed cockatoo parrot (photo) is considered a long-liver. In captivity, his age can reach 70 years. These birds are very popular due to their extraordinary artistry. They absorb words and sounds well.
Yellow-cheeked cockatoos are considered excellent talkers. They are unusually strongly attached to their home and master. In the summer they are even allowed to fly in the wild without fear that they will not return.
Pinks live up to 50 years. These are calm, peaceful birds, medium in size. They learn words poorly, but are very attached to the owner.
Moluccan cockatoo is very beautiful. He is extremely quick-witted, imitates the voices of animals well, but remembers few human words. Lives up to 80 years, delivering a lot of pleasant moments to its owners.
Goffin's cockatoos are considered among the smallest and most loud. Nevertheless, in captivity they are kept with great pleasure. These cute birds almost do not speak, but excellently cope with the most complex castles.