# Chirping if I'm out of sight



## Clawsworth (Nov 9, 2009)

Two questions: 
We live in a studio-sized apartment, so there aren't many instances where we leave the main living area. However, when either of us does, Nimbus starts chirping pretty loudly until we return. Even if I only take a couple seconds to grab something out of the closet, or go into the bathroom, she chirps! It's as if she wants to keep an eye on us.  I'll leave and she'll act like it's a big deal that I return, and when I come back she'll just start preening or something. 

I've been trying lately to reward her with millet when she's quiet, but I'm not sure if she associates it correctly; associating a treat with inaction seems to be a harder concept to pick up rather than receiving a treat at the moment of good behaviour. I also tried getting both of us to go out of sight near the closet and bringing her millet when she stopped chirping, but we only did this once because my husband got bored of it. :blink: I'd like to train her now because when we have an apartment with more than one room it could start to be an issue. Is there a better way to do this or should I keep up what I started?

Secondly, I'd like to get her a cockatiel friend once we have real jobs and are out of the house for more than four hours a day. (I've already read about quarantine and good ways to introduce them.) My question is: will a friend for Nimbus (we're thinking a female around her age) make it so she's also less likely to chirp like crazy if we're out of sight?

Thanks for any input -- here's a cute cockatiel wallpaper for your time! 
http://blog-imgs-19-origin.fc2.com/n/i/w/niwako/okame_desktop.jpg


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## Catherine (Jun 11, 2009)

I am picking that you have a handraised bird who is very people-oriented. She may not realize that she is a bird. If this is the case, she will miss you dreadfully when you are out for hours.
If you are going to get a second bird, I'd do it quickly. It may be that Nimbus will ignore the second bird anyway. It would then depend on the persistence of the new bird whether they in fact become companions.


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## Clawsworth (Nov 9, 2009)

Eep. Why quickly? We're moving back to Canada next June and it's going to be tough driving 2,500 km with ONE bird (thankfully my husband doesn't mind tending to her from the passenger seat). She is hand raised though; we got her from a breeder who had just about every type of bird in her house, so I'd assume she would know she's a bird! Would it be bad if we waited until around June or July? :hmm:


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## Clawsworth (Nov 9, 2009)

Bump. Anyone?


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## Mythara (Apr 9, 2009)

Is it flock calling that she's doing? It's pretty much normal that they'll call when you go out of sight, and you can never stop it completely. In the wild, being alone puts a cockatiel in a very high risk situation, as they are a lot more likely to get grabbed by a predator, than they are in a flock. So to her you = flock = safety. Being alone = danger. 

Try setting up a routine for her when you leave the room - for example, when we put our jackets on to go out, our two don't really bother to call for us, because they know we'll be gone for a while. If you're just going out of the room for a minute, put her on a playgym, or on top of her cage, and tell her you'll be right back. Ignore the calling. Some people reccomend not going back until they're quiet, but it can be impractical sometimes. I ignore the calling, and go back into the room whether they're quiet or not, however I do ignore them until they're quiet, and then talk to them. 

A friend won't stop her calling. If anything it's more likely to double the noise if they both bond to you - unless you get a bird like Kami. Kami lets Lofty do all the calling, unless we've just got home from work, and even then she'll only call if we look at her. I'm not sure if she's smart, or just lazy, lol.

However, getting a second bird before you go may make the journey and the new home less stressful for both birds. At the moment Nimbus is settled. Introducing a new bird would briefly be stressful, but then she would settle down again before the move, and having a constant companion during the journey and in their new home would help both settle in - and provided they get along, it could even make the journey easier for you. We took our two on holiday a few months ago - an eight hour drive each way, and staying in two different houses could potentially have been very stressful for them, but they took it all in their stride, even when we were out for a few hours a day. I'm sure the fact that the two of them have always been together helped with this, although they aren't bonded to each other. However that's the only reason I can think of for getting a second bird before you move. 

Hand raised birds though, despite there being other birds in the house, still don't always realise they are a bird. Because almost all the socialisation they get comes from humans, rather than their parents, they learn from humans and often they become completely reliant on their owners to do everything. They need to be taught independance. Birds that haven't been taught independance often don't play with toys, and stay in one place when their owners aren't in the room. If you check WallyBird's Sign's of Bonding post and Annie's Smart but Spoiled - Help post I wrote a lot more about independence on there - probably too much, lol, but it is something that's very important to any parrots overall happiness.


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## Clawsworth (Nov 9, 2009)

Thanks, that's really helpful! I think it's the flock calling -- high pitched chirps, sometimes in quick succession. That's true though, she doesn't call to us when we're putting on our jackets / backpacks and leaving the apartment. Nimbus plays with toys often though, and she loves to forage (she's so smart that she flies over to her foraging area as soon as she sees me throw more seeds and treats into it...) However, she does stay in one place when we leave... sometimes I'm even worried that she doesn't eat when we go to class!

I'll look into getting a new 'tiel before we move since it's at least a 24 hour drive and we'll be at many different hotels; thanks so much for your reply!


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## Clairey331 (Oct 21, 2009)

What a great idea. Good luck on choosing a new mate for Nimbus, and good luck with the move!


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## Catherine (Jun 11, 2009)

What has been said is really good. The reason I suggested you get a new bird quickly is so that there is a better chance of Nimbus being willing to associate with another bird before she is too set in her ways.
I have a hen which came to me after she was lost. She was several years old. She is totally people focussed. Wendy does not eat with the other birds (cockatiels and budgies), sit with them nor interact in any way. She just waits for me.


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## Clawsworth (Nov 9, 2009)

Okay you guys have convinced me -- now to convince the husband!


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## Kerry78 (May 25, 2009)

haha so how did the convincing go? 

2 of my birds do that flock calling thing but usually there out the cage when im not in the room and they will come and find me if I go into the other room,

what you can do is just call her name frequentley when she makes the noise,
when I call sandy he's up on the door watching me lol


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## Clawsworth (Nov 9, 2009)

Convincing will take time.  It took me months to convince him to let me get a cockatiel in the first place, but now that we have her he LOVES her!

Are they too loud if you're in another room, or only if they can see or hear you? I'm curious if we have two females if they'll be noisy when we go to another room and can't hear us.


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## Kerry78 (May 25, 2009)

My female Missy makes a beep Beep noise when I leave the room but Sandy he will make all sorts of noises he sometimes screams if im not there with him, he is a spoilt bird though, my other half wasn't happy when i first got my first tiel neither now he's obsessed, infact he seems to think he knows more on them then me funny that cos he doesn't live with me lol

females are less noisey then males,
but ive heard females do fight?


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## Clawsworth (Nov 9, 2009)

I know that beep beep noise you're talking about! XD I'd like another female for sure because I don't need to be raising baby 'tiels when as a grad student... someday though! (Don't tell the husband!) 

*browsing craigslist for 'tiels*


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## Kerry78 (May 25, 2009)

haha! if you did get a male tiel you could split them into 2 cages and put they cages by one another, im unsure about 2 females Missy hisses when i show her the mirror and I guess she wouldn't like another girl on her turf lol

it might be different though if say 2x young girls were together from a early age 

goodluck with the hubby


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## Mythara (Apr 9, 2009)

Gender really doesn't make much difference to 'tiels. Two girls are as likely to get along as two males, or a male and female. It's just a myth that two females will fight. Missy's reaction to the mirror could be partly fear or the mirror, and partly a reaction to the "other bird" hissing at her. It probably isn't aggression towards another bird or female.

Females may be less noisy generally but I don't think it counts when you're talking about flock calling. We can hear our two outside the house when they start calling when we come back after work. Generally though, ours call when we leave the room a few times, then they're quiet unless they hear us moving, and feel the need to remind us they're there. But if what we're doing fits into their routine, then they don't mind - for example, if I take them out, then leave the room for a few minutes, they'll call, because it doesn't fit their routine. But after they've had their time out and everyone goes back in their cage, and then I leave the room, they won't call because that fits their routine and they know I'll be back soon with tea.


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## Clawsworth (Nov 9, 2009)

That's exactly what I'd like to happen, and I'm assuming that having a friend will mean she won't be chirping constantly until we get back (only if she hears us or after we leave a few times) but correct me if I'm wrong. Is it good to "chirp" back to them?

I brought tea back to my 'tiel once, and look what happened. 
(Don't worry, we didn't let her drink any, and she didn't try to anyway, she just liked the steam coming up from it.)


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## Mythara (Apr 9, 2009)

Some people say do call back, some people say don't. I tend not to, because I can't whistle and it's hard to make myself heard through the house without yelling. I don't think it matters too much, as long as you're consistant in doing it.

I normally drink from bottles, lol. Glasses/cups are reserved for when the birds aren't around normally. Nothing is safe from our two.


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## Kerry78 (May 25, 2009)

Parrots are known to drink Tea especially African Greys,
I know somebody who has 3x AGPs and they definatley love there 
tea just at the right temp 

@ Mythara, Maybe she was just scared of the mirror but she didn't like 
her reflection put it that way


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## Clawsworth (Nov 9, 2009)

I thought I read somewhere that tea is bad for 'tiels, and I just double checked and that seems to be because of the caffeine. So that would mean decaffeinated tea without sugar would be okay?


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## Kerry78 (May 25, 2009)

Hmm I think Decaf might be ok but i'd wait for someone to re-assure you first!
none of my tiels have ever been intrested in my cup of tea/coffee just my dinner plate I now shut the cage when im eating otherwise they land right in the middle the lil devils :d


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## Clawsworth (Nov 9, 2009)

I'll wait and see.  hehe I've had Nimbus land right in the middle of my food before, but now we have a tub near where we eat and we give her veggies from our meals in her own little dish so she can eat with us without going after our plates.


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## Kerry78 (May 25, 2009)

lol that must of took alot of practice,
if I eat anything at all sandy will try and get it,
I put a bowl of toast in the morning out for him cos I have it and he just wants mine if I go by the cage, he loves egg and cheese on toast but he really loves fried egg even though he shouldn't have it he just makes so much noise until he gets it, he's a spoilt kid bird


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## fluoro.black (Nov 5, 2009)

My Peachy does the same thing, but only a few times really, not heaps. I'd agree with the others in saying it's a flock call hehe.


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## Mythara (Apr 9, 2009)

Kerry78 said:


> lol that must of took alot of practice,
> if I eat anything at all sandy will try and get it,
> I put a bowl of toast in the morning out for him cos I have it and he just wants mine if I go by the cage, he loves egg and cheese on toast but he really loves fried egg even though he shouldn't have it he just makes so much noise until he gets it, he's a spoilt kid bird


Kerry, you're teaching him that if he makes a lot of noise, then he'll get what he wants. I know it's tough, but the best thing to do is ignore him, and not let him have any.

Caffine is definitely bad for them, but I don't know if decaf would be ok. I don't think they get all the caffine out, and I'm not sure what the process is, it may introduce something that would be bad for them. There may also be something in else tea that's bad for them, as well as caffine. Plus then you would always have to be watching out for them going for hot tea - burning our tongues is bad enough, I'm sure it would be worse for them having a burnt tongue that they use for everything, like preening and climbing around, and possibly a burnt crop too.


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