Rose Breasted or Galah CockatooSize: 14” in length. Small end of the large parrots with a short tail
Life Span: 40 years with proper diet Origin: Australia Understanding Rosies Rose breasted cockatoos are playful, energetic parrots. They can learn to mimic human language and are considered fairly good talkers. They can learn to perform tricks and many people these days are training them to “free fly”. Galahs make good lifelong companions to the whole family. They are not considered a “one person” parrot, which makes them a good family bird. Their bright pink color, manageable size and fun personalities make them popular among homes. Once mature, females tend to have reddish or light brown eyes while males have black eyes with the flesh around them being pink. Prior to maturity the only way to determine sex is through DNA testing. Cockatoos have more dander than other parrots and should be bathing regularly. Between 3-5 times in the winter months and 5-7 in the summer months is a healthy amount of bathing for these parrots. If your bird wants to bathe more often, it is good to encourage it as it keeps their skin and plumage looking healthy and can make it easier on allergies to dander. Bathing can be done in numerous amounts of ways, every bird will have his/her personal preference so it is best to let your bird try them all to tell you what it likes best. Every bird likes to bathe in the wild; it would be unnatural if your bird refused to ever bathe as well as unhealthy. |
Personality and Behavior
Rose breasted cockatoos live in flocks of over 1,000 parrots and are very social birds because of it. They love interaction, socialization and being the center of attention. They love training and learning new things, anything that stimulates their mind and challenges them to figure out something new. They require many different types of chewable toys that they can destroy as well as puzzle toys that challenge them to figure out how to get inside of it. They have a crest of feathers on top of their head that goes up and down depending on their mood, it can lift from excitement, concentrating on what you are saying or doing, or from being startled or even angry. They are sensitive birds, however, and require quite a bit of attention and interaction from their owners. Those interested in owning a Rose-Breasted Cockatoo should make sure that they have plenty of free time to spend with their new pet. Because rosies are more prone to having problems regarding their weight, a flight cage is highly encouraged as a means to properly exercise and stay as healthy as possible while living in captivity. They should at least be allowed a minimum of 3 to 4 hours outside of the cage per day, so that the bird can play, fly, climb and stretch its muscles. Care and Feeding Parrots tend to like to “dip” their food or soak it in their water in order to soften it for eating. It’s important to keep their water dishes fresh and clean to avoid bacteria build up. This should be done daily. A pellet diet supplemented with raw fruits and vegetables is the healthiest for companion parrots but some can be picky, in which case, you can try cooking these healthy foods in different ways. To keep your parrot busy throughout the day and avoid boredom (which leads to biting, screaming and feather plucking) it’s best to provide fun and interactive ways for your bird to eat its meals every day. Such ways include using skewers for fresh foods and various food finding toys for hard foods such as pellets. |