# Girls don't talk??? Mine's gone on a rampage



## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

I have a female cockatiel as far as I know, pearl and all female behaviours. She's never really said a word, and hated her cage.

I recently got a new cage, thanks to reccomendations here and she absolutely loves it. Since getting the cage she really loves going in and is generally happier. 

Since the first day in the new cage however she has started full on talking; literally mimicing whatever i say with actual clarity. My housemate witnessed it too, i said what a clever bird and instantly the bird started mimimicing me.

Is this normal? I heard females don't really tlak but she's non stop chatting away!! about 4-5 months old at a guess and strange because there was not even a peep prior to this. Is it just a phase they go through when they learn they can make new sounds?


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

in the space of me posting this ~10 mins she's almost learnt a full on wolf whistle! i trained her to do the first part which was easy but the second part took the ten mins! unbelievable


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## xoxsarahxox (Dec 13, 2010)

What female behaviours are you reffering to? 

Females dont really talk, some can whistle but Ive never heard of a female talking.


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## morla (Aug 15, 2011)

That's so cute!


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## elinore (Jul 22, 2010)

My Maggie learned to "say" the word Mommy...but it was really more like an enunciated whistle used generally as part of her "I'm so happy you're home" flock call (I know that doesn't really make sense but I don't know how else to describe it lol!). She also whistled the words "pretty bird" a total of 4 different times over 8 years, once when she was relatively young, and then later, sometimes a year apart. She must have learned when I would ask things like "would the pretty bird like to over there" and such, so somehow she picked it up. I wouldn't call any of this "talking" though...are you 100% sure your bird's a girl?


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## lperry82 (Aug 2, 2010)

This is the pearl cockatiel http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=22239


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

Female behaviour such as, raising the backside and lowering her head which is predominently female as far as i'm aware as it's their mating "position?" Also there is no beak banging, no heart shaped wings, no songs 

but even on tv they will say random phrases and she will just blurt out chattering sounding so similar, the enounciation and toning is all right..


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

Literally any word or sentence i try to say she will try copying


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

how old is she?


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

about 4-5 months i believe. she was a hand reared, they told me she was a male but there is no male behaviour at all. she bonded to me very quickly, very intelligent and well tempered.. doesn't call for me much when im in the house - occasionally does and will fly to me. Happy to go in her cage, or go to sleep or preferably she flies to me and sits with me getting scratches...

This is her temperement generally


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## chloe92us (Jul 12, 2011)

The head down thing is probably just asking for scritches....my very bonded male does it constantly, lol! Also, he doesn't beak bang wither, and only shows heartwings to his reflection in the big mirror....but not all the time. 

I would guess you have a male.


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## jeme (Jan 19, 2010)

You won't know for sure until after the first molt or two, but it sure sounds like she's a he!

Some birds are awesome talkers and it sounds like you got one. Enjoy!


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

at that age, and she started talking and whistling, shes a boy


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## lattelove (Aug 30, 2011)

Yeah I agree, I think you have a male. Talking is a male behavior. And just like jeme said, once the molt comes you'll be able to see if it's male or female. I'm banking on male tho  Either way it sounds like you've got an awesome tiel!


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

It's not just head down, it's head down bottom up facing away from me ! Then she will occasionally coo!! It really doesn't look male behaviour, ! Also very non aggresive, never even shouted at me-
Will just walk away when she doesn't want to be touched


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## jessnry (Mar 26, 2011)

Some males can take a bit to act like males.. like my little one Sokka -- didn't start with the heartwings or beakbanging until he was about 6mos. Some birds are just late bloomers. And I dunno about most male tiels, but mine is also more cuddly/docile than his sister, who can be quite fussy.


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## chloe92us (Jul 12, 2011)

LucyKemp said:


> Also very non aggresive, never even shouted at me- Will just walk away when she doesn't want to be touched


Did someone tell you males are aggressive? I don't have a lot of experience, but my male is "sweet as pie".


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

Males will pull their wings back to form the shape of a heart when whistling. Males also tap on cage bars, food dishes, toys and other surfaces to attract the attention of a mate. One male behavior that often puzzles and disturbs new bird owners is the sight of their bird briskly rubbing the vent against a toy, perch or other object, while quickly swishing the tail from side to side. Adult male birds will masturbate if their hormones are stimulated. Females on the other hand, exhibit a much different and more subtle behavior when ready to mate. The female will tilt her head down forward, then slightly elevate the tail, while making soft chirping sounds. The picture above towards the left shows the soft, almost entirely gray face of a female normal gray. (All very young, normal grays look like females until after their first molt.)



this is what i read, the bird doesn't whistle AT ME, but will whistle with me she is practising what she hears and trying to mimic. Someone on tv said a phrase about cake and i was in shock when she repeated it - i used to have a parrot so I know for sure she is talking


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## igottafeelin (Aug 29, 2011)

It is my understanding pearl boys won't lose their pearling untill after the first or second mold. So untill then she will look like a she. also, I don't think you can base male vs female based on one main behavior. Awesome he's talking though!


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

I did hope for a male .. because I really wanted a whistler/talker, but she(it) is great as is.. so smart ! very surprised i wasn't expecting them to be this clever.


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## jessnry (Mar 26, 2011)

Congrats on having a little talker! Yes, these are smart little birds -- they'll always surprise you with clever antics. My guess is you have a male who's just a late-bloomer. Much more likely than a talking female (which is very rare, but not completely unheard of)


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## chloe92us (Jul 12, 2011)

LucyKemp said:


> Males will pull their wings back to form the shape of a heart when whistling.


Mine doesn't, unless he's whistling at himself in the mirror. When he's in his cage or playgym singing or talking, he doesn't do heartwings. 



LucyKemp said:


> Males also tap on cage bars, food dishes, toys and other surfaces *to attract the attention of a mate*. One male behavior that often puzzles and disturbs new bird owners is the sight of their bird briskly rubbing the vent against a toy, perch or other object, while quickly swishing the tail from side to side.


These behaviors are probably true when they're hormonal, but your tiel is very young and he's a singleton, right?


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

yep to both questions!

but why would a male start raising its tail up, facing away from me and making squeaky noises??


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## chloe92us (Jul 12, 2011)

LucyKemp said:


> but why would a male start raising its tail up, facing away from me and making squeaky noises??


I have no idea about that one. 

But, if you are going off of behaviors alone, then the fact that your bird is talking is the biggest indicator of all to him being a male! If the ONLY female behavior he/she has displayed is raising her bum and squeeking a few times, I think there's more evidence with the vocal signs!


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## elinore (Jul 22, 2010)

The male I know does some weird things that can't really be explained easily. For example, he'll beg for you to put a tissue or piece of paper on his head, then chirp oddly and stomp around. We have no clue what he's up to, but he sure likes to do it! Sometimes tiels just do funny things that aren't really indicators of gender...they're just quirks! Sounds like your bird is a sweetie whatever gender it may be!


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## Puppydog (Oct 13, 2011)

Cool! I definitely have a male! I love this forum. You learn so many interesting things!


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## rockysmum (Mar 1, 2011)

I have bred female cockatiels that talk, i was most surprised as i didnt think girl tiels could talk , i have a few customers that have kept in touch, i have 2 ladies whos birds are definatly female they have laid eggs both the birds talk , one talks a lot and learns fast like your girl, sweet isnt it


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

So it's likely a talking female?

Note, it's only certain times of days for example just now she started attacking her seed stick and making "bickering noises " like real people do, 

She won;t whistle songs fyi, just repeats and talks what we do


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## Ellie.Rose (Aug 8, 2011)

I had the exact same problem with my Sunny, what we thought was a 'she' turned out to be a he even though he never showed male behaviour, i mean he used to just sit there quietly and one day he just went crazy whistling, talking, shouting.


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## rockysmum (Mar 1, 2011)

It is so hard to sex babies, i kept one of my babies that i was sure was a he BUT when he!!!!! went through his first moult he kept his pearl feathers so my little boy is a girl i got that wrong


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

Thanks for your responses all.. she's quietened down the last day or so - it seems to be evening time when she is in her cage then she mimics everything.

I wonder why she behaves like this when in her cage? It is only my voice that she copies when talking, not my flatmates. However when my flatemate did a strange sound ( i made a post about this a few weeks back) she started mimicing him and pretending to be aggresive I guess she is just smart and uses her mimicry for boredom/defense than using it to "woo" someone...

All in all, pretty definite it's a girl though, only because of the mating signal.

Heres some examples of noises she makes - when the macdonalds advert whistle comes on, she will almost without fail whistle back ( not a tune, maybe two quick bursts) and then if I call out a name to someone in another room she will chatter the single syllable almost quicker than I have the chance to say it so we both pretty much say it at the same time ( Does anyone know what I refer to when I say this? )


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## Mentha (Jul 11, 2010)

rockysmum said:


> It is so hard to sex babies, i kept one of my babies that i was sure was a he BUT when he!!!!! went through his first moult he kept his pearl feathers so my little boy is a girl i got that wrong


Some male pearls retain their pearls longer than others. I have a pearl that has went through his second molt and still has his pearls, I know he's a male because he's raised two clutches of eggs this year as a daddy.


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## lperry82 (Aug 2, 2010)

Have you got a recent pic or a video


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

Watching her now uncovered, it looks like the majority of her talking is when she is hanging upside down on her perch ( i rearranged things) so I guess this is her marking her territory and speaking as she does it? Is this common in females or males?


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## LucyKemp (Jul 26, 2011)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7Yc-EypQAE

Here is her making weird noises to my flatmate, i think she is playing because she flies to him then does this 

Is the sound a normal vocal for a female cockatiel?

(ive never heard her do these noises other than arround him)


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## Siobhan (Mar 21, 2010)

Birds are individuals just like people are. They say female budgies don't talk, too, but I've had two and both talked. The one I had as a kid could say several things and the one I have now can say her name and "pretty bird" and she certainly chatters and whistles budgie sounds as much as my boy does.


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