What is the sex?¿?¿

[Lill]

Hi all fellow bird owners, im new to parrot forums so pls feel free to share your knowledge and tips with me i would really appreciate it. I have had male budgies and i had a male singing canary and also owned finches but new to cockatiels. So im joining with my little 12 wk old cockatiel Elvis.
I bought Elvis from a breeder 2 wks ago but unfortunately he was parent reared and i do believe he has had little to no human contact as its being quite mission to earn his trust as he hisses at me when i change his food and water but i do realise its going to take time and patience.
The breeder assured me he is male but for some reason im starting to question it. He isnt very vocal but he loves his mirror he isnt that sociable but will get excited and bob his head when i shake the water spray bottle as he knows its shower time. Ive attached a couple of pics if anyone can tell me their thoughts i would be so grateful .
Ps: excuse the look of him , i took the photos after his shower

 

[EllenD]

At only 12 weeks old, there's no way to tell what sex the bird is visually. The only way you can tell this bird's gender before it goes through it's first big molt and is at least 6 months old or older, usually between 6-10 months they have their first big molt, is with a DNA-test using either feathers or blood. Any Avian Vet can do this for you (you should be taking your new bird to a Certified Avian Vet or Avian Specialist Vet within the first couple of weeks of bringing him home for a complete Wellness-Exam anyway, so you can have the Avian Vet do the DNA test then), or you can order a DNA Test-Kit from several different labs online, where you pluck a few chest feathers, send them back in to the lab, and in a couple of weeks you'll get the results...Or, you can wait until the bird matures and has it's first big molt, and then you can look for the visual signs of gender on it's adult feathers. But right now, with it's baby feathers, there's no way for anyone to tell you the sex, not the breeder or anyone else.

 

[GaleriaGila]

What Ellen said... six months at the earliest... unless the breeder did a test, which it doesn't sound like.
Either gender is delightful in cockatiels. The males are the vocal ones, usually, but the girls are wonderfully sweet and well-suited to apartments or anyplace where noise is an issue. Annnnnnd... I have seen an example, captured on video, right here, of a female talking.

 

[LeslieA]

You might consider checking out Avian Biotech online. Many AVs and breeders use them for DNA testing then charge you more! Both my new AV and my breeder used them!

 

[LeslieA]

BTW, I use IQ Tech for only $13.99 +
0.73 postage through USPS
In fact, I just used them last week on my Sun Conure who seemed to be acting submissive. The only difference I found other than price was the collection point. Biotech accepts chest feathers while IQ wants cloacal feathers.

 

[Lill]

At only 12 weeks old, there's no way to tell what sex the bird is visually. The only way you can tell this bird's gender before it goes through it's first big molt and is at least 6 months old or older, usually between 6-10 months they have their first big molt, is with a DNA-test using either feathers or blood. Any Avian Vet can do this for you (you should be taking your new bird to a Certified Avian Vet or Avian Specialist Vet within the first couple of weeks of bringing him home for a complete Wellness-Exam anyway, so you can have the Avian Vet do the DNA test then), or you can order a DNA Test-Kit from several different labs online, where you pluck a few chest feathers, send them back in to the lab, and in a couple of weeks you'll get the results...Or, you can wait until the bird matures and has it's first big molt, and then you can look for the visual signs of gender on it's adult feathers. But right now, with it's baby feathers, there's no way for anyone to tell you the sex, not the breeder or anyone else.

EllenD thanks so much, yes we are booked in next week. There are quite a few vets near me but as you say i did want to take him to an avian specialist vet so signed him up to one and have our appt next week. But thank you i didnt realise it would be 6 months or over.

 

[EllenD]

BTW, I use IQ Tech for only $13.99 +
0.73 postage through USPS
In fact, I just used them last week on my Sun Conure who seemed to be acting submissive. The only difference I found other than price was the collection point. Biotech accepts chest feathers while IQ wants cloacal feathers.

$13.99 is a great price for DNA-testing!!! When I bred and people would request DNA testing for the baby they were adopting, I would typically pay between $20-$30 plus any postage. So that's a fantastic price.

I've never used a lab that requested feathers from around the vent/cloaca area, only from their chest. I'd think that plucking feathers from around the vent area would be much more sensitive for the bird than from the chest; any time I've plucked from the chest they haven't ever really fussed or even been bothered much by it at all...

 

[Lill]

What Ellen said... six months at the earliest... unless the breeder did a test, which it doesn't sound like.
Either gender is delightful in cockatiels. The males are the vocal ones, usually, but the girls are wonderfully sweet and well-suited to apartments or anyplace where noise is an issue. Annnnnnd... I have seen an example, captured on video, right here, of a female talking.

Thanks so much for the links GaleriaGila no i dont think the breeder had done anything like that.

 

[EllenD]

What Ellen said... six months at the earliest... unless the breeder did a test, which it doesn't sound like.
Either gender is delightful in cockatiels. The males are the vocal ones, usually, but the girls are wonderfully sweet and well-suited to apartments or anyplace where noise is an issue. Annnnnnd... I have seen an example, captured on video, right here, of a female talking.

Thanks so much for the links GaleriaGila no i dont think the breeder had done anything like that.

If the breeder had had a DNA-test done, they would have had a DNA-certificate showing the bird's gender, and usually breeder's only do that if the customer requests it and pays for it themselves, or they state that DNA-sexing is included in the price of the baby. So your breeder most-likely didn't have it done.

I'm sorry that the breeder lied to you about "knowing" that the baby is a male, that's unfortunately a common thing that some breeders do. I've also heard of breeders who "feel the pelvic/hip bones" of the baby, and they claim that from that they can tell the sex of the baby bird...This is also a total lie and complete nonsense.

 

[Lill]

BTW, I use IQ Tech for only $13.99 +
0.73 postage through USPS
In fact, I just used them last week on my Sun Conure who seemed to be acting submissive. The only difference I found other than price was the collection point. Biotech accepts chest feathers while IQ wants cloacal feathers.

Thanks LeslieA but im still trying to get him used to hands i can just about change his food and water he obviously has had little to none human contact as he is still so wary i get the occasional hiss sometimes too. But i umderstand this will be slow process i must be patient so i really dont think i will e able to even pluck a feather from him ��

 

[MonicaMc]

Maybe the breeder knows gender by lack there-of of mutations?

I mean, if the father is a cinnamon, pearl or lutino and this one is none of those, then automatically male.


Otherwise, it's just the breeders best guess based on behaviors.

So maybe ask what mutations the parents are?

 

[Lill]

Hi there and thank you all for your comments. I do have gender test results back and HE is a male cinnamon pied.