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Teika is a cinnamon-whiteface-pearl. The Cinnamon gene
gives her the soft brown hue to the gray coloring. The Whiteface gene (known as mutations) give her the white face and
body, and she lacks the orange cheek patches of other cockatiel mutations. The Pearl gene gives her the speckled back
and wings. Teika is a "three in one" bird, but she's one of a kind!
Teika came to live with me in June of 2005. Her former owner Mindy needed to find a
good home for Teika, and her cage mate Beaker. Teika and Beaker made a long journey by car (10 hours) to live with me.
Many months of planning went into her adoption. Mindy wanted to find the "right" home. And.. now, here she is!
Right at home!
Though a little reserved, Teika is making great progress getting
to know her new family. She is very vocal (unusual for a hen) so I'm sure speech is right around the corner.
Mindy reports that Tieka can sing "I'm So Pretty" and has a fairly impressive vocabulary, including her name, Mindy's name,
Beaker's name, MY name, Hi, Hello, and a few others. Its not uncommon for cockatiels in an unfamiliar environment to
cease talking for a while. Teika hasn't "said" much, but she did "babble" "I'm So Pretty" in perfect tune one evening,
and she regularly whistles and "chitters" at me. During her well bird check-up at the Avian Veterinarian, I was told
she may never speak "human" again. Since she's in the company of birds she will learn to speak "bird". I was disappointed,
but she's got so many other wonderful qualities I didn't stay sad for long.
Teika is constantly suprising me! Just when I think
I have her figured out, she shows another side to herself! At first, I thought she was afraid of all new toys because
she seemed to cower in her cage at any new thing. But, amazingly enough, she has gotten over her initial shyness and
tries new things every day! She wasn't much on eating vegetables before she came to live here, but a few trials with
some "tiel appealing" veggies like parsley and cilantro have created a veggie beast! She can hardly wait now, for me
to pin the morning's offerings in the cage. Terrified of the willow swing when she first arrived, she has quickly decided
its a great new toy and plays on it regularly. The biggest accomplishment yet was the conversion to pellets! I
thought she'd be stubborn about changing from seeds to pellets like another hen I know :: cough..Apache.. cough:: but
with some trial and error finding the "right brand", Teika muches on pellets as if she has eaten them all her life.
She is completely weaned from seeds! I'm so proud of her!
Teika is "tall bird" according to my Veterinarian and should weigh about 95 grams She's
right on the money weight wise. You should have seen the LOOK on her face when I uncovered the cage and she saw Teika for
the first time. She couldn't get over how pretty she is! Because of her light coloring, things like "Stress bars"
show up easily, and since Teika is a little uptight, she had some that the doctor pointed out on her tailfeathers. Stessors
could include moving, egglaying, diet, molting, breeding, and anything else a bird could deem "stressful". Her lower
beak is also a little uneven and needs some wearing down. She's got new mineral blocks now, and her conversion
to pellets should help! A checkup in a few months time will reveal how much. Already, I can see two new tailfeathers
without stress bars that have grown in. Good girl Teika! Other than that, she's in great health and very active. She
has the cutest lil "henny chirps" and every once in a while, she'll tease me with the beginnings of a song, or something that
almost sounds like a word. Ooh Teika!
Although Teika is female (she laid eggs in her previous home), I think she may suffer from
a little gender confusion. ::giggle::: She and Beaker (renamed Trinny) are a bonded female/female couple, and Teika
is DEFINITELY in charge. Teika is the only bird in the flock, besides Neo who will give Silver what he's got coming
to him when his "Kingly attitude" goes to his head. And.. boys.. for the record. Whatever you do, DON'T make a pass
at Trinity or you will get Teika's wrath! That's HER woman and she will let you know! (She let's Silver know on a regular
basis when he tries to be a romeo). She's vocal like a male, defends her mate like a male and does, er... other things,
like a male, and yet, she's female. Go figure!
Teika is rather regal in her ways and prefers quieter
activities. However, there are some things that will reduce her to "typical playful" cockatiel behavior in
a matter of seconds! A shiny pair of glasses, for instance, is too irresistable, no matter HOW queenly you are!
So is my wedding ring! And, we now have proof of Tieka's fall from "regal" grace. She actually doesn't mind
the "barbie jeep" and has gone for several rides. Here's the evidence! Be warned, its cute. :-)
Teika is a joy to have around and I'm glad I've had this opportunity to get to know her.
Thank you Mindy, for allowing Teika to become a part of my life!
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