(Part 2) Top products from r/cockatiel

I agree with the other posters- your little tiel looks a little bored and ready to play! a bigger cage would be surely appreciated, and some toys.
Toys are kind of hard because you never know what they will be into at first- and even then their tastes change!
These comfy perches are a good place to start

they are a little easier on their feet. As for toys, I generally go with 3 types of different toys to give my birdie some variety: something to shred, something that moves (likes a swing) and something shiny.

Planet Pleasures has a lot of great bird toys (funny name but good bird toys...)
These shredders are great and perfectly safe

my baby tiel (well, less than a year old) is rather obsessed with this toy called 'falling beads' (3rd one down from the top) and it meets my criteria of something shiny and something that moves.

as for guessing your bird's mood, this article is very helpful

And finally, as for taming your bird and getting it used to you, have you tried feeding it birdie crack millet by hand through the side of the cage? I wouldn't normally give birds millet just to eat but it works as a 'treat', gets the bird to have a good association with you, and is useful for training later on down the road.

I hope this is helpful! Good Luck!

Sometimes it can take time ( normally weeks) for them to get use to new toys.

Here are a couple I personally used:
A) Foraging wheel. Super popular among all parrot owners.

B) Probably my tiels' first foraging toy I got them.. They love to chew up the seagrass and I would hide seed balls in the 'flowers'. The seagrass mat won't last long but I did keep the bulbs to use continuously.

C) This is a tad trickier foraging toys. You can first make it easier by taking out the wooden blocks and balls. Then slowly add it after they get use to it There are also paper strips that they will probably love to take.

D) Foraging clear ball

E) Another one of the 'first' foraging thing I would do for my tiels is this millet holder. This is super easier to set up. I would especially do this for longer trips out of the house. I would throw in millet and hang it and they would go to town on it. A couple other option is stuff it with veggies or seed balls with paper in between.

F) If you don't wish to put too money down at first, you can use a shoe box and shredded paper. Here is my flock using a slow feeder bowl with rock decor

G) You can put paper over their food bowl. At first your bird will knock it off. Then you can put a rubber band and poke huge holes. Then you bird will do little work to tear through the paper. Later make the holes smaller and smaller until you stop making holes. Then your tiel will have to tear through the paper to get to her/his food.
H)This tippler toy A tad harder toy for your tiel to figure out. You will have to fill it up a lot and probably tip it a couple times for him to see.

H) This clear, drawer toy Anotehr challenging one. You will have to leave it open at first then over time close it. Your tiel will learn to open drawer by himself eventually :D

Here are some pictures of my flock using these toys I mentioned.
I covered their play stand with paper so they will have to forage through it
My conure with the tippler toy
My tiels with the millet holders
Shoebox example with my flock
Millet with seedballs and paper
The put paper over their food bowl example
I used my late dog's slow feeder and rock decor for them to forage
Clear drawer toy
Example of C foraging toy

Good luck! :D

Harrison's, mixed with
Roudybush, topped with mixed human grade freeze dried veggies (broccoli, spinach, peas, corn, tomato, bell pepper, and carrots). He gets a couple nutriberries in his hanging treat ball. Plus he eats his share of whatever we're eating.

It sounds like a lot, but I mix the pellets in one container, and the veggies in another. In the morning I put half a shot glass scoop of each in his bowl, plus a couple nutriberries in his treat thing.

He is a healthy weight, and recovering from a blood infection. If I could get him to eat fresh veggies instead of dried, it would be great, but he refuses. Loves the dried. It would cost a lot to get everything at once, but buying over time wasnt that bad.

Edit: fixing the formatting.

Some recommendations - from my own experience of fostering 5 birds in a similar condition as yours. Big big big cage, lots of different perch types, and use a towel or sheet to form a backing to part of the cage, to give it some area that it isn't worried about what's behind it. A radio set low on something like jazz or classical through the day will help set it a bit on ease, especially if it is a single bird. Keep him in a nice quiet spot, and I wouldn't even attempt handling for a couple weeks. Through your daily routine it is likely to freak out a little and scurry away. Just move calmly and slowly, just handling the food and water bowls, no sudden movements or grabs/touches, and praise in happy tones, whistle, or imitate whatever sounds it makes.

I also found my foster birds to be quite lacking in nutrition; once they settled in, I began to offer pellets, cuttlebone, Nutri-Berries, and birdy bread (cycled them through). Mine were seed only, but have moved to Rowdybush pellets and destroy a cuttlebone in a couple weeks.

As for dust/bath, when the bird is settled in, you can try light spray/misting, and to encourage the bird to bathe to find a water 'relaxation' device and the sound and sight of the bubbling water will make it do the bathing motions (half-open wings, rubbing head under them), then spray/mist or offer water in a pie dish. Until then, consider an air filtration device like these: http://www.amazon.com/Honeywell-Compact-Purifier-Permanent-HHT-011/dp/B000N9CPQK/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1395162523&sr=8-4&keywords=honeywell+air+purifier

Best of luck to you and your new buddy!

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!"

I wouldn't feed just any seeds. I've been feeding my bird this stuff

Dolly's Delights Organic Sprouting Bird Seed https://www.amazon.com/dp/B073ZHNKYH/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_xki0AbP939YR3

My bag lists millet, sunflower, buckwheat, wheat, red lentils, adzuki beans, mung beans, Canadian brown flax seed, alfalfa, radish, quinoa, and sesame seeds. Can't tell in what ratios, but sparse on Sunflower, and more based on the smaller seeds.

I wouldn't feed sprouted gardening seeds. Maybe sprout some regular cockatiel seed mix if nothing else.

Also, a drop or two of this stuff per 2 cups of water helps keep your sprouts from molding if you have any issues.

Nutribiotic Gse Liquid Concentrate, 2 Fluid Ounce https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002JHZO8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_tni0AbNT8T439

If you see what looks like white fuzz on the tendrils coming out of any seed, look to see if they are uniform bristles. Those are root hairs. Looks like mold at first (fooled me for a while).

I just adopted a ten year old female cockatiel, whose previous owner passed away. The cage she was being housed in had two perches, no toys, and her behavior is very similar to what you describe. She's with my other two cockatiels now and LOVES the two thermoperches I have in their cage. I would definitely recommend those, as well as heating pads pinned around the outside of the cage to keep her warm. Fluff tents won't do the job, and tiels can get sick in the winter (just from drafts around the house) pretty easily. Here's the amazon link:

http://www.amazon.com/K-H-Thermo-Perch-Small/dp/B000795ZE0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1418747885&sr=8-1&keywords=thermoperch&pebp=1418747886436

As for toys, the older tiel hasn't picked up on much yet, but my others like ones that they can destroy, as well as ones with mirrors. It depends a lot on their personality, so I would try a variety. Let me know if you need any help or have more questions!

The aviator is a really good flight harness and comes with a CD to help with learning how to use it on your bird. I have it purchased and am working with my girl to get her used to it. You can find it on Amazon but probably other sites too

Edit: here is what I have and see recommended often https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000TEXE0U/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_DC.QCb86S59NM

I have always used Mosquito Forceps, they are a better choice and can get closer to the skin to pull a feather. Used widely in the medical field. You can buy them online on amazon.com or a Nursing scrubs shop may sell them. These are the ones I have :-) http://www.amazon.com/Haemostatic-Forceps-Straight-Halstead-Mosquito/dp/B000BJUG0E

Thanks for your reply. I feed him a mix of:

• http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001VAIJLA
  
• http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000HHODIQ
  
• another seed I can't recall right now.
  
  Also fresh veggies and sometimes fruits/nuts.

I have something like this. https://www.amazon.com/Kaytee-Take-Travel-Carrier-Small/dp/B0002ASBUE/ref=mp_s_a_1_15?crid=2CUKBH56YE9XH&keywords=travel%2Bcage%2Bfor%2Bbirds&qid=1555555391&s=gateway&sprefix=travel%2Bcage&sr=8-15&th=1&psc=1

Have them go together to the vet. One of them hold the bird on the way as a comfort to both.

This is what my vet recommended for an underweight cockatiel. My mom uses it for her very-small-boned conure, too. It’s sweetened, and they usually really like it: https://www.amazon.com/Quiko-Classic-Supplement-Birds-Pouch/dp/B0002DHIPK

Obviously, millet is worth considering—they pig out on it, and it’s high fat. But it’s not super nutritious.

They each have their own cage. Atm, Yuki’s is a lot smaller than I’d like, which is why I’m working on a small fundraiser. Tbh he wasn’t planned, I got him because he was basically dying and that was a spare cage I was given. But Tanpopo has a large flight cage full of toys and food. Here’s a link to it.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002AQ228/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_Q5EZCbYTX9SSQ

I have the same problem.. I started buying this seed, and never looked back. It doesn’t have all the weird cat food like pellets (seriously, wtf are those?), no sunflower seeds, and no dust. It’s perfect for my picky tiels, and it has some dried fruits which makes it smell amazing.

Amazon (UK)

I believe it was this: JW Comfy Perch for Birds https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002AR71S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_GnzMAb56TC611

I have two I can review :) First, this one I bought for my birds last year, and they did sit on it a lot. I used it for step-up training too. One of them almost destroyed the ladder from chewing through it. It's currently in pieces on my floor though because all the wood is held together with cheap glue that finally lost it's stick. My tiels don't like swings, so I replaced that with a toy, which keeps them busy for a bit :)


Second is this one. Even though the price is a steal compared to other play gyms the same size, I don't recommend it. My tiels weren't interested in it at all. Every time I tried to put them on it they flew off immediately. They couldn't even be enticed with seeds in the little food cups. The toy on it is in a bad place for a tiel to play with. (Further, my tiels still haven't touched that toy even when I put it in their cages in easy places.)

There are much better pellet mixes available. We use
RoudyBush Daily Maintenance Bird Food, Mini, 44-Ounce https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000O3BI90/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_iKAIDb276CJ0E

It has soy oil but not sure why that would be bad for a bird.