Tiel & Budgie

Question
Hi,
We've had a cockatiel for about 2 years now, and we've had a budgie for about one year. We keep them in the same room. They are both females and both can fly. When we take the budgie out of her cage, she immediately wants to go on to the cockatiel's cage. She holds on to the side bars, then the cockatiel comes over and they hold their beaks together as if they were feeding eachother or kissing. I have no idea why they do that, are they fighting or playing? Then when we try to take both of them out at the same time, the budgie ends up trying to stand on the cockatiel's back. Of course she doesn't like it and ends up freaking out. Why does the budgie do that? Sometimes when we take them out they'll actually eat spray millet together or play a little in the same place, but not soon after that, the budgie starts chasing after the cockatiel. I've seen many pictures with budgies and cokatiels who actually get along and play together, I was wondering why it is not the same with these two.  

Answer
Hi, Karla.  Thanks for posting your questions.  Obviously, your 2 parrots want to spend time together.  Parrots use this "beaking" as a way of greeting each other (parrots use their beaks to perform many functions, not just to bite or eat).  Seems like your birds might be lonely and want each other's company (birds prefer other birds to humans).  I don't know why budgies/keets do this, but my keets like to tease my tiels and often when they are out together, the keets like riding on the tiels tails!  The tiels don't like it much, but I think they are just playing.  However, during mating, a male bird will balance himself/stand on the female's back to complete the mating process.  But in your case, I think they are just playing (budgie has it's way of playing, tiel has his).  It's OK to let them out together as long as they aren't hurting each other.  The tiel can stand up for itself if the budgie is picking on it too much.  Perhaps they just need supervised time out together to learn how to get along with each other.  When you see the budgie doing this to the tiel when they are out, and the tiel doesn't do anything in defense of itself, you can gently chase the budgie off the tiel (but you don't want to scare the tiel and you don't want them to think you're trying to tell them it isn't OK to play together).  Positively reinforce good behavior, i.e., give the budgie and tiel a treat when they behave well together; shoosh the budgie away (negatively reinforce the bad behavior) when it picks on the tiel.  

You need to remember that not any 2 birds are the same or have the same personalities...each bird is different.  In addition, sometimes different species of birds don't get along well together.  So, sometimes what you see in books, etc., is the exception and not the rule.  I've found that tiels and budgies/keets usually get along well together, except with the "riding-the-tail" game!  Keep working with them, perhaps let them out together more often (perhaps the anxiety of watching each other through separate cages creates problems when they are out together), etc.

If you need more help, come back.

Chrys