Cockatiels Are Not For Everyone – Here’s Why

‘Tiels are cute and good- natured birds, and everyone likes to hear them whistle. But here’s what you need to consider before you actually bringing home a cockatiel.

1. Birds need physical stimulation, too.

Some people buy birds because, in their eyes, they are easier to care for than for a cat or a dog. The dog needs to go outside and get plenty of exercise, the cat needs her space and birds just sit in a cage, right?

Wrong! Birds normally fly, that’s how they live in the wild. And the cockatiel, even though he is a small bird, will need plenty of exercise. That means he need a spacious cage and some out-of-the-cage time every day. That means you will have to have some patience while he’s circling around in the room and please, please leave the windows and the doors closed while he’s busy doing that. The bird has to be supervised for the whole time while he’s enjoying his exercise, because he might fall behind furniture and injure himself.

2. Your ‘tiel has emotional needs too.

Cockatiels are social birds, they live amongst a flock and tend to not do so well alone. If you plan to acquire one bird, be aware of the fact that cockatiels have the emotional intelligence of a 2-year old human- that means he’s needy!

You will need to spend at least two hours everyday with your pet. That doesn’t mean you will have to hang with him for two hours, but at least be in close proximity to him for that amount of time, he will try to interact with you and communicate you his needs. You can listen to music, or read to him aloud or just talk to him. The bird will like to perch on you and watch you doing your chores or just chill.

If you are a busy person, that gets home late from work, eats on the run while watching the latest on Netflix and then heads to bed, then you’ll have a really depressed cockatiel, with behaviour problems and eventually health problems.

2. They tend to live for a long time.

If taken care of properly, cockatiels can reach up to 14 years. That’s a long time. Take into consideration that the cockatiel will really bond with you and will have problems adapting to a new environment and to a new human. If you can’t commit to take care for a bird for at least 7-10 years, than just don’t buy it. Buy a cute, small mouse.

3. They do have behavior problems.

Cockatiels like to sing and vocalize, will attempt to communicate with the birds outside and like any other bird, will be especially noisy in the mornings and in the evenings. But I had my Chico for 4 years already and my neighbours didn’t suspect I had a bird in my house.

But if they are not stimulated enough or do not have a routine, you might find yourself with a screaming bird. The bored cockatiel, that doesn’t get the attention he needs will attempt to get it by being really loud. And if you do not react properly, this behaviour will intensify and will be really hard to unlearn.

So, if you like your peace and quiet, get a cat. If you do not have the patience nor the time necessary to stimulate your bird, get a fish. It’s better for everyone.

4. They need a specialized vet.

Taking care of the cockatiels is an easy job, but you will have to closely watch his appetite, his water intake and to make sure he has a variety of foods in his diet. Cockatiels are birds of prey so they will try to hide the fact they are ill until they can’t do so anymore. You will need to become an expert at your bird’s behaviour, closely watching his patterns and also his droppings, as they can tell a lot of your birds’ health.

If he gets ill, you will need to find a doctor that has some experience with treating exotic pets, while most of the vets are specialised in treating dogs and cats.

5. They are fragile birds.

When it comes to the environment, cockatiels are really sensitive. They enjoy a routine – lights on/out at specific hours, they enjoy a consistency and they don’t really like change. Actually, they are frightened by it. So they need someone that can maintain an order and a consistency for long periods of time.

Also, they are fragile birds, they sometimes have night frights and will need your immediate attetion otherwise they might injure themselves.

They are not well suited for small children. They are beautiful, sometimes majestic and very friendly- perfect target for children- but they are to be handled with care, so they are better suited with older children. So keep that in mind when buying one.

If you can manage all of the above you should know that cockatiels are great companions, they are kind and quirky and sometimes empathetic, really nice to watch and can entertain you and your guests with beautiful songs and vocalizations. If taken care of properly, your bird will become your best friend.

Best of luck!

Unconditonal Love and The Ideal Relationship (II)

When you want to be loved or give love unconditionally, you might be actually skipping a few steps.

Unconditional love is given by parents to their offspring and vice versa. This is actually the first step. If somehow you haven’t felt this unconditional love from your parents (most importantly, your mother), than you will project this need unto your lover.

This will only cause you suffering, because we cannot expect this kind of love from a stranger. So the first step is to resolve your past problems, accept them as they are and move on.

Photo credits https://www.theodysseyonline.com/moving-on-art-of

Unconditional love for strangers (= any other person that your parents or your children) appears only in a clear heart, one that loves without past resentments, without being needy. Actually, when you get to the point of loving unconditionally, you do not expect love back. You do not expect anything back. You just give love, you appreciate and if the bond gets somehow broken, though sad, you move on with respect to the other’s feelings.

So somehow true love, one that doesn’t suffocate is really attentive to the other’s needs, while being in contact with yourself.

The ideal relationship that I am talking about is the relationship that we see in fairy tales in romantic movies, one that prevails any external difficulties, and is somehow stubborn and lasts through the years.

A good relationship, a relationship that is beneficial for the both of the partners is one where the individuals grow, despite their differences, because the mutual respect and caring is helping them overcome anything.

The good relationship carves the may to maturing and self- actualization.

The good relationship is not ideal, because it could break, because the emotions someday might not be there anymore, or one partner has an entirely different need that the other, and they need to go outside and fulfill it. They might find they are heading in different directions and shifting towards the other wouldn’t be an option because it would mean sacrificing their own need for the other and that isn’t an option.

The good relationship is not ideal because it is real, because it is something alive and like any other thing alive, it will suffer mutations and sometimes die.

Malavita ( The Family )

Daca va plac filmele de actiune, cele de comedie si cele despre mafia italiana (care, dupa umila mea parere, ar trebui sa aibe propria lor categorie), atunci poate suntem suflete-pereche atunci poate veti savura fiecare cadru din “The Family”, care pe mine, cel putin, m-a cucerit din prima scena.

Daca nu ati gasit deja singurei pe almighty Google informatiile elementare, atunci aflati ca Luc Besson (exact, regizorul monumentalelor The Fifth Element, Leon si Transporter) este regizor si scenarist (in colaborare cu Michael Caleo). Aliatii sai sunt (cine oare altcineva decat… ?) marele Robert de Niro, minunata Michelle Pfeiffer si surprinzatorii Dianna Agron si John D’Leo. Se alatura cohortei de “grei” Tommy Lee Jones si o alta suita de actori de origine italiana care contribuie, in final, la crearea atmosferei.

Filmul este ecranizarea romanului frantuzesc “Malavita”, de Tonino Benacquista. In America titlul sau este “BadFellas”. Deja de aici poti spune ca e o intorsatura interesanta, sa ajungi sa cunosti si partea cealalta a baricadei, eventual sa o si simpatizezi.

Intriga este destul de simpla: familia unui mafiot din America se muta in Franta, intr-un orasel retras, in cadrul unui program de protectie a martorilor (“ciripitorilor”). Scopul este sa ramana nedetectati cat de mult timp posibil straduindu-se sa nu iasa in evidenta. Acest lucru se dovedeste a fi mai mult decat dificil, ci aproape imposibil.

Tenta tragi-comica a filmului este accentuata de contrastul dintre situatia dramatica familiei (daca nu v-ati prins deja) unui mafiot si comicul de caracter. In principal, firul narativ este destul de simplu si totusi surprinzator, lasand loc de un (probabil- sper eu! ) sequel. Sarea si piperul sunt, de fapt, personajele ( absolut genial conturate ) si schimbul inteligent de replici.

Fiecare personaj este diferit, are propria sa lume, la care nu avem acces nici macar noi in totalitate, de aceea reactiile si deciziile lor sunt de multe ori imprevizibile.

Cu toate ca probabil sunteti tentati, la inceput, sa va concentrati pe capul familiei, veti fi surprinsi sa va dati seama, ca, pana la final, ajungeti sa indragiti familia in totalitatea sa, fara sa va puteti alege favoriti.

Interpretarea actorilor da viata personajelor, iar firul narativ reuseste sa faca conflictul credibil, aproape real , in asa fel incat veti sta ca pe ace pe tot parcursul vizionarii.

“The Family” ne poate invata ca nu putem ascunde cine suntem cu adevarat…. pentru prea mult timp.

Mai mult de atat nu va spun, va las sa descoperiti singuri.

Noi, devoratorii de filme, cu burtile multumite, ii dam nota.. 8.

“The Family” pe imdb http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2404311/

Unconditional Love and The Ideal Relationship (I)

Love is the most discussed topic in the whole world, at all times. In it lies our most desired behaviors, our most desired image of ourselves, a unique way to express ourselves, as inherited from our parents and tested and validated on our own… Love encompasses the way our parents showed their affection towards us but also that secret way we wanted them to show their care, the way strangers showed their appreciation, the way society taught us to express ourselves and also the way we wished we would have experienced ourselves.

Love is a heavy word, a really heavy concept. Love caries rejections, curiosities, affirmations, beliefs, disbelief, opinions, self images, rules and a complete set of how to break them too. Love can be nullified, broken, condemned, rejected, integrated, used as a currency, etc.

Although it is such a broad concept, we all know what is feels like. True love. Or how it should feel like. Although it carries our mark, our definition of love would be the same.