Birds are a severely underrated pet. The people that get it, get it. The people who don’t often feel the need to remind everyone that they don’t like birds, but that’s okay.
Honestly, who can deny that birds are adorable when there are videos like this one from Sunday, August 27th?
@yumyumthetiel No lips? No problem! Yums gives out the smooches regardless #yumyumthetiel #parrot #cockatiel #bird #parrotsoftiktok #cockatielsoftiktok
Personally, I am indeed a bird girl, and @yumyumthetiel is actually one of my favorite birds to follow!
The Squishmallow Yum Yum is trying to smooch is actually a parakeet, not a cockatiel. Parakeets, though they’re still sassy as anything, are a little bit smaller and they don’t have the same feathery tuft on top of their heads that cockatiels do. Don’t let it fool you, though: parakeets love kisses just as much!
Yum Yum himself is a cockatiel, and a gorgeous one at that. He’s got pretty standard markings and coloring: most commercially-sold cockatiels you find in pet stores share that grey and yellow look. Yum Yum does have very rosy cheeks, though, which only adds to his already outgoing personality.
Cockatiels love giving kisses to things that make them happy; it’s how they show their affection. A cockatiel’s kiss can look scary at first since it looks relatively similar to a bite, but once you get used to it, it’ll quickly become one of your favorite things. You’ll know it’s a kiss and not a bite if it’s accompanied by behaviors like:
- Clicking noises
- Beak grinding
- Happy chatter
- Nuzzling
Bites are also faster than kisses are: it’s more of a strike. Kisses will be gentle. While it’s totally fine to kiss your cockatiel too, just make sure your mouth is closed and try not to get any saliva on the bird. Additionally, you should clean off your lips by gently exfoliating with a wet wash cloth right after just to be sure you don’t ingest bacteria.
Cockatiels really are fun for the whole family. They’re wonderful and cheery, and they lend themselves well to adorable names like Yum Yum. What more could you ask for?!
