Training & Behavior · Birds
Living with Cockatoos
Target Training, Diet Upgrades, and Plucking Solutions
A cockatoo feels everything at full volume, and this course is about giving it structure instead of chaos. 10 lessons on the cockatoo brain and its need for a flock, the Velcro bird trap and how to build independence, teaching solo play with foraging puzzles, the scream extinction protocol and the burst that comes first, heavy-duty wood a big beak can't destroy in a minute, cooling springtime hormones with sleep and head-only petting, powder-down dust and lung health, feather destructive behavior and the vet workup that comes first, target training and brain games, and a low-fat pellet-and-chop diet.
About this course
Living with a cockatoo is often described as living with a toddler who has bolt cutters for a beak, and Lesson 1 explains why: a brain wired for constant flock contact and emotions felt at maximum intensity. Lesson 2 names the biggest mistake owners make, the Velcro bird, and shows how T-stands and short absences build a cockatoo that can be alone. Lesson 3 teaches solo play with busy boxes and multi-stage foraging puzzles, and Lesson 4 walks you through the scream extinction protocol, including the extinction burst that makes it worse before it gets better. Lesson 5 is wood: pine blocks, untreated 2x4s, birch logs and bark-on fruit branches, hung on hardware a cockatoo can't snap. Lesson 6 cools spring hormones with 12 hours of sleep, cavity removal and petting only the head and neck. Lesson 7 covers the keratin dust cloud and the HEPA scrubbers, kitchen ban and misting that protect both your lungs and the bird's. Lesson 8 takes feather destructive behavior seriously, starting with a full avian vet workup before any behavior plan. Lessons 9 and 10 finish with target training, brain games, no free food bowl, and a low-fat diet built on pellets and vegetable chop.
What you'll learn
- Why cockatoos need a flock and feel everything at full intensity, and undoing a Velcro bird
- Teaching solo play with busy boxes and foraging puzzles, and running the scream extinction protocol
- Heavy-duty wood enrichment on stainless quick-links and aircraft cable, with bark-on fruit branches
- Cooling spring hormones with 12-hour sleep, no dark cavities and head-and-neck-only petting
- Managing powder-down dust with HEPA scrubbers, misting and a kitchen ban for everyone's lungs
- Feather plucking workups and foraging, target training brain games, and a low-fat pellet-and-chop diet
Who this is for
New cockatoo owners who carry their bird everywhere and are starting to see the panic when they leave; anyone whose cockatoo screams the house down for attention; and keepers of a plucking bird who want to know where to start.
Course outline (10 modules)
Quiz & Certificate
Knowledge quiz
After completing all lessons, take a short quiz to test your understanding.
Go to quiz →Completion certificate
Pass the quiz and earn a shareable certificate of completion.
View certificate →Frequently asked questions
Ready to get started?
$9.99 · Lifetime access · 10 lessons