Reddit reviews ZuPreem Natural Bird Food Smart Pellets for Medium Birds | Made in USA, Essential Vitamins, Minerals, Amino Acids for Cockatiels, Quakers, Lovebirds, Small Conures (2.5 lb Bag)

No worries, that's what I'm here for! They'll usually get sleepy around sunset and sleep shortly thereafter if their cage has been covered, and wake up at the crack of dawn if light starts shining in. I've read that they should get 12 hours of sleep a day, but I've never known my birds to get that much, though they do catch quick naps throughout the day.

Pricing could be a little bit tricky, depending on where you live. You'll want to check your local breeder for a more accurate pricing. From my local breeder, cockatiels are about $120+, if you find a good deal for a cage, it could run you about the same. I got my flight cage for about $35 on sale at PetSmart. Food is moderately priced, though going through bags so often may be costly. Also, a good tip is to feed your bird a variety of foods, since seed on its own is like their version of junk food. Pellets are a good choice (I use the Zupreem brand pellets, which cost about $15 for a 2.5 lb bag), along with some variety of leafy greens, fruits, nuts, plain boiled egg cooked with no salt, etc. Sometimes it's difficult to find what your bird likes right away, but persistence is key! There are also recipes around on the internet for "bird bread" which is great for them and easy for you to make! Also a reminder to read up on what they can and cannot eat, avocado's one of the big ones, as far as I can remember.

After that initial drop of money, you'll also want to get a reputable avian vet, in case of emergency and general checkups (and a DNA sex if you like). Those may be costly, but worth it if you want to keep your bird friend happy and healthy. I pay about $70 for my birds' general checkup, and luckily nothing's happened to them where they need medication, but I've read that antibiotics can run up to $400 or so.

Hopefully this will answer your questions, but if you'd like me to go moreso into a topic, let me know. :)

Pellets are fairly easy to find online. Here are some examples:

Harrison's pellets

Roudybush Crumbles and the smaller Roudybush Nibbles

Zupreem Natural pellets and Zupreem Fruit Blend

There are many more, but these are the one's I've looked at for my own cockatiel. My bird is not a big fan of pellets, but he will occasionally eat Zupreem Fruit Blend for budgies and the Roudybush Nibbles. He ignored the larger, "cockatiel" versions of the pellets.

My cockatiel is also not a huge fan of veggies. Like your bird, he'll eat the broccoli bits that look like seeds. I found out that he'll eat anything that looks like that, which includes cauliflower (especially purple cauliflower) and broccolini. He likes crunchy stuff, so he'll nibble on the stems of kale, spinach, and other greens (not the leafy part). Try as many crunchy vegetables as you can: green cabbage, red cabbage, snow peas, green beans, pea pods, etc. If I make a big show of eating sweet peppers and carrots ("mmm, yum yum, these peppers are sooooo good!"), my bird will get interested and try a bit. If you can, make yourself a little salad with lots of different vegetables and pretend to keep it away from your bird. When she comes up to steal a bite, let her get away with it. My bird will eat more vegetables if he thinks he's sneaking "people food!"

Great! Definitely keep him at fewer hours of daylight for a while, then you can increase some.

For food: Here is a recommended brand for cockatiel food, in case you wanted my opinion. ;) Just make sure it's not his whole diet (include some veggies) like I mentioned, because we don't want him to get Hypervitaminosis A or renal disease.