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Thread: Is there an intelligence/huge personality difference in Cockatiel species???

 
  1. #1
    Junior Member
    ILoveBirbs's Avatar


    Parrots

    1 male White-faced Cockatiel named Domino 1 male Pearl Pied Cockatiel named Yahtzee and 1 male Cockatiel in Heaven named Boo, I love you Boo <3

    Is there an intelligence/huge personality difference in Cockatiel species???

    Hello, I'm sorry I haven't been on here in a long time... ^^;

    My first bird, Boo, died back in April..and on September 23 my dad's friends who gave me Boo gave me two more birds. I think they're both Pearl Pied Cockatiels, and one is grey (I named Domino) and the other is yellow (I named Yahtzee).

    These two are very different from Boo, who I think was a normal grey Cockatiel. (He may have had some Pearl Pied in him, but he didn't look like these two) I think he was around 2-4 months old when we got him, and we had him for around 6 months before he died.
    Boo would learn songs very fast, like I could could whistle the tune for a few days and he would pick it up just like that. He learned how to give kisses. He would lean up to you and make a kissy noise and chirp something that sounded like "kisses!" which is what I would do when I kissed him.

    I'm also very sure he loved me back, because he never wanted me to leave him alone. (Although he would fly off in the house every now and then) If I ever tried to leave my room, he would fly to me and land on my head or shoulder. He would duck his head for me to nuzzle him with my nose or chin (he didn't want me to use my hand/fingers)

    He also loved meeting new people. He had no problem with other family members, even my little cousins. In fact, he would try to land on my youngest cousin's head like every time he saw her. And even when we got him off her, he would fly back to her.


    These 2 birds...it's like they're scared of people. Idk if it was because they were never handled like Boo was with their previous owners, or if they just have that much of a personality difference?? Their previous owners said they were around 2-4 months old when we got them in
    And they don't really sing. They chirp and I guess make up their own songs, but whenever I whistle a tune, they shake their head like it either hurts their ears or they don't like it. (I don't whistle the songs Boo had learned, I just can't make myself do that...)
    I think Domino is TRYING to learn La Cucaracha, but it kind of sounds like he's tone deaf. I read that inbreeding could do that to Cockatiels?? I'm not sure how inbred they are, but I'm assuming they either have the same parents as Boo, or Boo's siblings are their parents.

    They rarely fly to me or other family members. I'm sure they're comfortable around me because they step up on my fingers/hand, and they do sit with me from time to time when I put them on my shoulders, but it's not long before they fly off again.
    When I leave the room, they whistle for me like "hey! Where are you?!"

    They act like they want my attention sometimes, like fly around and chirp. But whenever I go to them, they just sit there or turn away. Sometimes they'll come to me and we can look out the window together.
    They don't duck their heads for nuzzles either. It seems like they only let me do something like that when they're spooked, so they just sit there staring off into space and I try to nuzzle the top of their heads. They let me kiss them, and I do pretty much the same thing I did with Boo. The only difference is that I say "kissy!" instead of "kisses!"

    Now one thing they do that Boo never did is they hop. They will hop and then do a noise that sounds like me saying "good job!" But that seems like the only trick they know/like to do. Domino also likes to strut around doing I think it's called "love wings"?


    sorry for the huge wall of text, but I thought I should probably give a lot of info about them.
    I know each bird is different in their own way, but how did we manage to get 2 birds who can't/won't sing and don't like people?? It may also be that Boo was a genius and more sociable than these two. I could be expecting too much of them... It just seems strange to me, and I was wondering if it's because they're a different species of Cockatiel.

    Thank you for reading! ^^

  2. The following user likes this post:

    Dragonlady2 (11-21-2019)

  3. #2
    Super Moderator
    Dragonlady2's Avatar


    Parrots

    Willy-Eclectus, Oliver-alexandrine, Mookie-Senegal, Bella- Australian King, Joey and Peewee- Barrabands, Peachiegirl-Peachfront conure, Pepper- crimson belly conure, Peanut-plum head, Babyblue-parrotlette, Harry and Louie-canaries.
    Welcome back! Do these birds share a cage? As well, do you know if they are male or female?

    Birds are like people...each of us/them have our own personalities. Even within the same family.
    Both birds sound like they are doing very well with you. You can do more specific training by taking one at a time in a different, smaller room like a bathroom. By training, I mean handling it and getting it used to you. Use treats and keep the time short. No more than 10 to 15 minutes at a time and only once or twice a day. When they are out together, they may have less motivation to interact with you.

    I am so sorry to hear about Boo. These little critters leave a hole in our hearts when they pass.

  4. #3
    Senior Member
    rivx's Avatar


    Parrots

    Two cockatiel hens named Gracie & Matilda
    The different colors of cockatiels aren't a different species -- they're just different color mutations, different genes. I think of it like a human with blonde hair and a human with brown hair, although it is more complex than that lol. I agree with what was said above. Personalities are always individual, and life experience can sometimes shape them. A little time to warm up might make them more confident, or they might just be more on the independent side. Both are fine.

  5. The following user likes this post:

    Dragonlady2 (11-21-2019)

  6. #4
    Junior Member
    ILoveBirbs's Avatar


    Parrots

    1 male White-faced Cockatiel named Domino 1 male Pearl Pied Cockatiel named Yahtzee and 1 male Cockatiel in Heaven named Boo, I love you Boo <3
    Thank you! And yes, they do share a cage. It's a pretty big cage so they have plenty of room to move. I'm usually home so I pretty much spend the whole day in the room they're in before they decide it's bedtime around 5-6 and then I leave. (before the time change, their bedtime was at 7, so they started going to bed around 6. Now it seems like they're ready to sleep by 5!)

    I'm pretty sure Domino is a male because he struts around doing his heart wings, but I'm not so sure about Yahtzee. Some days I think it's a boy, and other days I think it's a girl. Domino keeps doing heart wings around Yahtzee, but idk if he's trying to impress Yahtzee or me, or just trying to show he's the dominant one. I think they're both still too young to be thinking of mating, right??

    They're a lot more sociable now than when we first got them. (They both came to me and climbed to my shoulder by themselves!! ) I guess I just need to be more patient with them. It's just so weird how different they are.

    Thank you ^^

  7. The following user likes this post:

    Dragonlady2 (11-23-2019)

  8. #5
    Junior Member
    ILoveBirbs's Avatar


    Parrots

    1 male White-faced Cockatiel named Domino 1 male Pearl Pied Cockatiel named Yahtzee and 1 male Cockatiel in Heaven named Boo, I love you Boo <3
    Ah, sorry! I knew they were called color mutations, but I thought it might be easier to say species instead ^^;
    I think you're right about the life experience part. These two weren't handled before I got them, so I had to teach them to step up. It didn't take very long, thank goodness, and I think they're starting to warm up to me
    Thank you!

  9. The following user likes this post:

    Dragonlady2 (11-23-2019)

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