Budgie vs. Cockatiel: Which bird talks, cuddles, and is bigger?

Cockatiels can definitely have big personalities. With consistent and training, they can learn songs and may speak though not as good as other parrots. They can certainly bond strongly with you as long as you put in the time and effort.

Due to the large size difference between both birds I would not recommend attempting to house them together in a cage or small aviary as your larger bird could easily pick on or kill your smaller bird.

You cannot differentiate between male and female cocktail externally, a blood test is needed for that. you cannot keep budgies with cocktails together, you run a very high risk that the cocktails will attack and seriously injure the budgies,

If the cage is large enough for two birds and they are introduced gradually, another female cockatiel could be added. Adding a male will likely lead to mating and egg laying. Also, the possibility exists that the birds will bond with one another and interact less with you.

Hello! Cheeko can certainly learn many tricks and maybe words. Cockatiels are not great “talkers” and tend to do much more singing. However, birds are extremely smart and if you put the time into training, you should be rewarded no matter what age the bird is. I highly recommend using positive reinforcement clicker training. Find his favorite food item (like spray millet) and ONLY ever give him this food during training sessions. This helps get his attention for the task and motivates him to learn. You can watch you tube videos or buy training dvds by Good Bird, inc. They are very well respected in the bird training world. Just remember to have patience and be consistent. Good luck!

Thanks for reaching out. Choosing a smaller of the parrot species if probably the best. Cockatiels, budgieregars are lovebirds can be great companions, are intelligent and fairly easy to care for. Longevity should be considered, as cockatiels can easily live into their 20s, and possibly longer. Hand-reared parrots tend to be more socialized towards humans, but can also lack the some bird-like traits. Do a little research, visit some pet stores. Good luck.

Hi, and thank you for this question, Two weeks are not always enough to train a bird. Most cockatiels don't speak at all, some will imitate noises but will usually not speak. As to perching on a shoulder or a hand, if the bird was not hand-fed at as a baby it may not be adjusted to humans at all, and may never get really tame. If it is tame and just doesn't want to perch on you, try offering rewards (treats) when he does.