No Feet to Eat???

[xx.jaye.xx]

I have a 3, almost 4 month old cockatiel that I just got a couple of weeks ago. His name is Winston, and he's absolutely wonderful... But he won't use his feet to eat anything! He drops his food all the time. I know there's nothing wrong with his feet because he just got a vet check up. He just never uses them to hold anything.

Does anyone have advice for teaching him to use his feet? Anyone else have this problem?

Thanks!

[JustCockatiels]

I do not think cockatiels need their feet to eat things. I have a 2 yr old pearl pattern and she eats out of a bowl just fine. You can try and give it to his mouth with your hands, if it bothers you.


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[xx.jaye.xx]

Normally I would agree! But he seems to struggle to keep things in his mouth - even toys. He has a hard time eating peanuts and not dropping toys. Sometime's he'll eat from my hands, but he normally insists on doing it by himself. He's a strange one for sure!

[PlaxMacaws]

Hi xx.jaye.xx ... welcome to PP. Consistent with the statement from JustCockatiels , I think that some (possibly most) cockatiels tend not to hold food with their feet. However, I believe that some will. And it may not be possible to teach one to hold food items if it doesn't do so already. Another member with better knowledge of cockatiels than I possess may chime in to confirm or deny the accuracy of my comments and perhaps offer some additional advice.

[xx.jaye.xx]

Hm... Interesting. I'll have to let you know if he eventually picks it up! (no pun intended). Sometimes I just wonder if maybe once he figured it out, he'd realize that a lot of things become easier when he uses them. He's a bit clumsy, so I think he'd enjoy the extra help from a foot.

[Dragonlady2]

If the vet is saying nothing is wrong, go with that. It is still quite young and may just need some time to grow into using its feet. My Barrabands very seldom use their feet to hold things. My eclectus was the same until he was 2 or 3 years old. As long as it is eating I wouldn't worry too much.
Welcome to the forum...looking forward to some pics.

[Lady]

Hi,
I'm no expert on cockateils, but I agree. I don't believe they use their feet for food. And you did mention his is just 4 months old so I'm sure he will find what works for him. All if not most birds are messy eaters. I never saw a cage that the floor wasn't littered with crumbs and even large pieces of food .

[Quakerella]

Hi Jaye. Cockatiels don't normally use their feet to hold things. This does not mean they won't. As for food, in the wild they are normally ground foragers, hence the long, lean toes. They like small pieces of various food so they can use their beaks. I am currently hand feeding quakers and cockatiels, and the cockatiels can't open their beaks up nearly as wide as the quakers can.