BirdChannel Forum / Life With Birds / Bird Behavior

Ruby made a Goffin cry today.

RedDragon1288 — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 19:31:18 GMT

Okay I took Ruby to my local pet store (he is not from this pet store) because the staff knows him and they love it when he visit (pretty much they ask to see him). I took to see the other parrots they have and the Eleanora Cockatoo went into full display about 5 mintues of him and Ruby checking each other out. It was weird because before Ruby never pay any attention to none of the Cockatoos. This time I believe because Ruby did care and Ceasar (E. Cockatoo) got scared and went into full display and bluff mode. When that happen I was like Oh no Ruby you want to start a fight (Ruby just want his food actually). Next I take him to see Lenny the Goffin Cockatoo and Ruby seems more interested in Lenny than Ceasar. Lenny was interested in Ruby also but was beaking Lenny a lot. Lenny in response lift his foot to Ruby and before I can separate them, Ruby grab his foot and Lenny screamed because that probably scared him. Ruby didn't bite down and didn't cause no injuries (thank goodness) but curious of a possible friend. Well I don't think Lenny would make a good addition because I feel Ruby will bully him. I know from the past when I was in the process of buying Ruby that he didn't like Conures and Amazons.

Follow the leader!

Parrotz — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 08:20:28 GMT

Both of my boys have very strong personalities. Zeus is around 10 years old and Picasso is 3 years old. Usually when I feed them I just open the cages and let them wander for a few minutes. Animals & People both love it when they get a chance to get out of their cages. For the most part my birds understand that they are supposed to stay in the bird room. However, Picasso sometimes wants to either follow dad or go exploring. Now if one leaves the room the other is sure to follow. I never come back to find just one missing bird. Zeus is always just steps behind Picasso when he exits the room. They know that they're not suppose to do this and often I'll catch a bird looking around a corner to see if I'm watching. It's funny that Picasso is the leader and yet it's Zeus that seems to feel most empowered to do things. I suppose that this is part of having fun for them.

Aging well!

Parrotz — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 03:59:47 GMT

I met a 25 year old Miligold Macaw yesterday. He was a really sweet bird and he's a rescue. This macaw acts and feels like he's under a year old. He is absolutely beautiful. This little boy actually managed to look exotic in a store full of exotic birds. Wow! It makes you wonder how anyone could have given this bird up.

Do I do it this way or that?

amea_gari — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 00:49:50 GMT

So in another post I mentioned that I am working on teaching my caique, Koi, to not jump on my computer keyboard while I type. Someone had a good suggetion not to let him into a situation where he would, and if I can't teach him to stay off, I will go the avoidance route to avoid frustration on both our parts.

However, this question could be applied to other situations.

Now, I haven't yet got my clicker in the mail so I haven't started clicker training the step up yet. He still won't step up unless he wants to. So here's the situation. He'll be on his playstand, and will fly to my arm, then from my arm he hops on the keyboard. I have to remove him one of two ways.

1. I pick him up and play with him for a moment, tickling him and whatever else, to make sure he dosn't learn to associate being picked up with frustration.
Downside: He knows to get my attention when he's on the playstand, all he has to do is hop on the keyboard.

2. I pick him up and simply move him back to the playstand. This avoids him deciding that a good way to get attention is doing an undesirable behaviour.
Downside: He simply gets frustrated with being picked up bodily and may in time start to bite.

Which should I choose? An answer to this question will hopefully help me to better understand how I should act in multiple situations. Thanks as always for any advice!

Maybe it's time :(

amea_gari — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 05:25:55 GMT

I'm an emotional person, and I feel sick as I write this. Many of you know the whole story of the past year and a half when, after my cockatiel died, I decided to get a new parrot. I have always loved birds, and being prone to depression and anxiety, I always found these amazing animals were able to cheer me, keep me company, and help me as much as any pet could.

I decided upon a senegal and in December 2008 I brought home a 3-week old baby. There was a lot of stress and anxiety about whether I could hand-feed him right, but we got through it. Then about this time last year, he began to bite.

Here I am a year later, at the point of making a heartbreaking decision. I think it may be time to give up on having a bird, and rehome Taka.

I am sure Taka's bites are no worse than what most of you deal with. Ok, I guess I am a wuss. I have a very low pain threshold and I also seem to completely lack intuition and understanding of my bird's moods and behaviours. I get bitten every day-- sometimes seriously. Today he nearly took off the tip of my nose.

I am constantly worried about whether I do enough for him, whether he's happy, whether he's lonely. I even briefly attempted to take in another senegal that needed a home, hoping maybe the two could provide companionship for each other. It didn't work out and I had to return the other bird.

And in the midst of all this, I am a very unhappy bird companion. Ultimately, I think neither Taka nor I is happy.

So what now? I /cannot/ send this bird anywhere with anyone unless I feel very secure that his future will be secure and happy. I guess a bird rescue is my best option but the thought of adding my beloved bird to the numerous unwanted not only makes me feel horrible for him, but for all the other birds too. I regret that I did not adopt a bird myself-- there are numerous well-behaved birds who desperately need permanent love and companionship, and here I am actually thinking of adding another to the number.

My feelings on captive birds have changed over the past year. I've been awakened to the sadness of a bird who never flies, who spends so much time in a cage, alone. Pets should bring us companionship and joy, but lately, thinking about Taka makes me sad. I don't feel that I am providing him the mental and emotional stimulation he needs. And then there's the biting, which renders his benefit to me almost nil. I'm sad, I think he's sad, and I am sad that he's sad. If not for the biting, I think I could pull through. But now it's at the point where this bird and I are not good for each other.

What can I do? Can a bird rescue offer any hope of a bright future for him? I am sure they have people who are trained to handle birds like him, and maybe they can bring him around where I have failed.

Everything I have done has been with the best intentions. I need to make sure my next step is the right one. If it's right for Taka, it will be right for me, because the worst thing I can imagine is living with my failure to him.

Alright, so I have poured my heart out. He's sitting on my knee right now acting like a perfect darling and making me wonder whether I can really give him up, but this decision has been a very hard one to come to. It's not one I can make lightly.

Advice...? Suggestions...? Please help me do the right thing.

BITE PRESSURE

Parrotz — Sat, 29 May 2010 20:30:59 GMT

There seems to be a huge urban myth over bite pressure. It's giving us a bad reputation. There are lots of web sites that post bad information on the subject. I saw a posting on this web site recently, in one of the contest categories, where a woman was boasting that her Hyacinth Macaw could generate 2250 PSI of biting pressure. Parrots do not generate bites in the thousands of pounds per square inch.

A good answer to this question is found at:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20060727014713AAtMxAJ

The source is: Marc Marrone, BIRDTALK and BIRDS USA magazines.

The answer to the biting question is kind of common sense. We know that it takes roughly 300 PSI to crack a macadamia nut. For the most part only the Green Wing and Hyacinth Macaws can do this. I played with both of these varieties today. Their maximum bites are around 350 PSI.

Somehow reality is never as exciting as the myth.

Is it ever ok--

amea_gari — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 21:42:36 GMT

I posted this on the Caique forum I am on, but I thought I'd see what you folks had to say about this.

I was wondering, is it ever okay to force your bird to do or stop doing something? I will offer an example.

Koi (yes apparently I have named my caique Koi) is constantly clambering to jump on my computer keyboard so he can pry keys off, when I am sitting at my computer. I will put my hand down for him to step up, but he completely refuses, puts his head down, and in every way tells me "NO LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Is it ok to pick him up by taking hold of his back, or is this the kind of thing that leads to frustrated parrots who resort to biting? This is an issue I have struggled with.

My understanding currently is, it is wrong to ever force your parrot to do something. The only right way to do it is to encourage him to do something else, like attract him away from the keyboard or bad behaviour with a toy or treat (only a sunflower seed would work!)

Now obviously if his life is in danger, I'll grab him in whatever way I need to, but when I am dealing with him on a day to say basis, just trying to keep him off this or stop him from chewing that, what measures are an absolute no-no?

Don't tease the 'Too!

Parrotz — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 16:45:06 GMT

My boy Zeus was screaming a little for attention this evening. I went in to quiet him and saw that I needed to replace his ball. We go through a few balls with Zeus. So when I returned with a new ball and squeezed it a few times (it squeaks). The volume went up and so did the feathers. Someone wanted their toy and they wanted it now. I may have tossed the ball into the air a few times before I opened the cage door. Out comes a "Too on a mission. Don't stand between a 'Too and his toy it's dangerous. Soon my little U2 brought the ball over to share. As soon as I touched the ball he rough up my fingers. Now Zeus was teasing me. I guess fair is fair. We had fun.

Results are in for Bruce's medical test

cblovetree — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 20:06:42 GMT

Hello friends at bird channel, well the vet called and I was not home but my mom said the doctor (vet) said all his test came back good, which is excellent news. So she is going to mail me a list of different things to try to do for Bruce to keep his mind off chewing his feathers, in the mean time does anyone have any suggestions? I am going to get him some more thread perches he loves to chew, and some toys in which are made for shredding, the only thing is he is scared of new toys at first, it takes him a long time to warm up to a new toy, but I am going to get him some. He has become very agressive toward me, I am not sure if this is because Solomon loves me so much, or he just has mixed feelings toward me because he can feels my stress load these days. I know my stress limits are at a all time high, I have such great problems living here at home with my mom, and I have very little happiness in my life these days, so many personal problems that I will not get into here. Any good tips on things to get Bruce interested in new things? I am happy to hear anything in which people think will help, what does your birds like to do for fun? All ideas are welcome, I will try anything to help my little guy, thanks in advance.

News on Bruce

cblovetree — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 09:36:20 GMT

Hello my feather loving friends, I took Bruce back to the doctor yesterday, for the 3 more test he needed. He lost about 4 grams, which still has him at an good weight, he was a little over weight from to many sunflower seeds. The feather chewing is still a problem with my little guy :(. The Vet said I should have the test results back by next week, and from what she could see he looked healthy. He has been taking his vitamins everyday, and eating less seeds. If all checks out the Vet did say that sometimes they put birds on a little Prozac, has anyone else every heard of this? Not sure about this, so can anyone help me find out more about this route in treatment? Thanks

Does a problem exist?

Parrotz — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 18:41:42 GMT

Last Sunday I traveled from Orlando, FL to Palm Coast, FL for a bird club meeting. There I met a young Russian couple with two birds. One bird is a B&G and the other a U2. This is the same mix as my flock at home. The B&G is less than a year old and seems perfectly normal. I'm worried about the U2. This U2 is older and has an open band on his leg. This U2 has the personality of a rock and is sweet, yet uncomfortable with people. When this Umbrella was released from his carrier he flew to me on his partially clipped wings. His feathers were full of pins and I put him with Zeus for some grooming. After a healthy grooming he flew from Zeus to be alone atop his carrier. The carrier is homemade from galvanized wire. The Russians had a home built playstand made of wood. I'm suspecting that the cages at home might be do it yourself as well. I'm worried about this 'Too and I'm not sure why. What do you think?

It's Official. Everyone hates my Meyers.

CriminalistW — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 08:11:10 GMT

My poor Meyers has officially been excommunicated. My mom calls him creature and tells me to get rid of him at least once a day because she can't pet him or give him scritches like she can my cockatiel.

My sister got really angry yesterday because she was trying to give him a chip (which he loves) and he bit her instead of taking his chip. I thought it was kind of funny but she got mad and said I should trade him for a nicer bird.

Poor little Drover. No one likes him but me. I guess they don't know how to handle him. Lucky for him it doesn't matter what everyone else thinks. He makes me laugh and I think he's quite a character, so he's here to stay.

Fly me to the moon

ickybird — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 06:23:48 GMT

My daughter is visiting with her daughter. My 'little girl" ( hardly a LITTLE girl any more) is the only person I would trust clipping the wings and nails of any bird with the exception of one vet tech at the vet school.
It is the day of reckoning for Eeper. She has been here for over a year and is an excellent flier. She does several commands that are important to life ( go to your house, get off the TV) She does a few tricks. But she will not come up onto my hand and she is still very afraid of every part of the human anatomy but the right shoulder and ear (ouch). the side where the most age spots reside.
So I am waiting to hear sounds of life coming from my daughter's room to have her help me clip Eeps wings. I figure in the coming months that Eep is not fully flighted, she can learn the things that she needs to know to live in a human household that she has not valued to this point.
I HATE having to clip wings and after this I will let them grow out again. But I do see it as the only way she is going to learn to interact with people other than to dive at them, or to look down from the top of the book case. I think it will also cool her jets a bit in what has become some aggressive behavior around anything she sees as hers. Including the long suffering dog. the dog is not in aggreement with her. He does not want to be HER dog. He wants to be mine and to have the chance to hide from her when she is out and not have her come flying around the place looking for him.
so I am going to dig up some sissors and poke my grand daughter so whe wakes up her mom and Eeper will be semi grounded for a few months.

Telling Time

Parrotz — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 15:08:28 GMT

Well it's official now, my youngest bird has learned how to tell time. I can hear Picasso, my Blue & Gold Macaw, honking at me from the other room. It's after 6pm and I'm expected to watch TV with the boys. He's right it's past time to start.

Socialization question

dizzynscout — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 17:26:39 GMT

Today I went to visit a friend and I brought both Dizzy and Scout with me. Dizzy has been on multiple outings with me and knows how to behave, so when my friend opened her travel cage door, Dizzy jumped right onto her hand and started chatting with her. And Dizzy had never met her before!

Scout, on the other hand, has never been outside our home except for vet visits. She is 8 months old (today!) and was nervous and very skittish the whole time. My friend's daughter, who is about 3 years old, made Scout very nervous and she kept trying to fly off my shoulder (she's clipped) whenever the kid passed by. So Scout didn't allow my friend to hold her. I understand African greys are rumored to be nervous about little kids.

My questions are these:
Is it good to still bring Scout over to my friend's house for visits? Is there anything we can do with the child situation? And is this type of socialization good for Scout? No one else lives here besides my husband, me, and our menagerie, and if my hubby and I want to go away for a weekend, we would feel better about leaving Scout and Dizzy both with a trusted friend, which my friend is. BTW how often should I bring her out of the home? A few times a week? Once a week until she gets used to it?

Thank you all for the help! I've asked many questions on the forums and have searched through many articles throughout the interwebs, and I find you can never know too much about your fids!!

Can I get my bird Solomon to stop attacking?

cblovetree — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 13:29:43 GMT

Hello to my feather loving friends, well as you all that know me know about Solomon and his endeavors. Now he has become such a sweet bird to me, and my son-in-law I mean he is really a sweetie, but he hates my mom and daughter, and will attack them. He does this often. I will tell him no and sometimes lock him up, but he seems to really hate them, for reasons I can not figure out. Now I know he hates women in general because he wasn't treated very well by a woman for 6 years of his life, in fact this is why I rescued him because he finally nailed her one day and put a whole through her bottom lip. I am sure she must have hit at his cage with a broom, because he is not fond of a broom, how ever he doesn't go crazy over seeing on now.

My mom and daughter are both nice to this bird, and they never bother him. However because of space limits where we live he has good views and access to them when they have to walk by or go into the bathroom. Now he will come out of his cage and stalk them, and even fly off and attack sometimes. I hate the fact that my mom can not even walk through her home without fear and caution. Solomon does have his wings clipped, but not a lot because she has cat's in the house and I want him to be able to fly if he needed to. The cats could care less about the birds, but to be on the safe side I like them to be able to get to a high place.

I have posted a photo of this sweet bird, and I will try to get a picture of him in attack mode soon to post. Is it because I am small and and do all of his care? My mom and daughter are larger then I. Solomon will even get on top of his cage and hang on with his feet and flap his wings to exercise them, or test them out I am not really sure. I would love to be able to get a handle on this issue.

If I go stand by his cage, and stand guard they can get by okay, but this isn't always going to be the case. I hate to close him up, because Bruce is out all day, until I go to bed. I let there doors stay open until I go to bed, I turn lights off and tell them night, night each night around 9:00 p.m. Solomon will try to get me to hold him when I do this, but he is slowly getting with the program. Bruce will go right to his door, or back of his cage and go to sleep. In fact if I don't get to the lights right at 9:00 p.m. Bruce will let me know what time it is. I am open to any suggestions, and thanks ahead of time.

What exactly is a "tame" bird

Whitefrost11 — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 08:16:06 GMT

So I have had my budgie for almost a full year. Whenever he sees me, he flies to my arm or shoulder. He is trained with vocal commands but if I hold my finger out, he willingly hops onto it. He chirps while on my shoulder and likes to nibble my neck.

He cant talk.
He doesn't like to be petted

He does fly to you.
He does stand on your finger
He is not afraid of strangers.

So is my budgie tame or not tame? I am so confused what "tame" even means and regards to...

Thanks for the help!

Bird chasing dogs

California girl — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 07:02:26 GMT

I have an 18 month old Umbrella Cockatoo. I have had her for only 2 weeks. For the first week and an half, she was content to stay on top ( playgym) of her cage or on her portable perch. Now, whenever I open her cage she immediately gets down on the floor and chases my dogs. They are not aggressive towards her, but instinct can easily override good behavior. From what I was told, her previous owners allowed her to run all over the house with their dogs. I don't think that is a good idea. I put her in her cage when she gets on the floor and she doesn't seem to mind being in there at all. Other than the dog chasing, she is extremely well mannered. I give her LOTS of one on one cuddle time and other attention. I would love to let her be out of her cage most of the time. Any suggestions?

how can i keep my macaw off my shoulder

scarlet tiki — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 20:38:59 GMT

I already know I need to keep her off my shoulder and why,. But she is so quick sometimes it is almost impossible. She don't do anything bad while she is there until u or some else trys to remove her from your shoulder then she will nip your hand. How do I keep her on my hand or arm. If I put my thumb over her foot she don't. Like that. So if anyone has some advice I would love to hear it thanks.s

Timeouts?

amea_gari — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 23:06:52 GMT

As most of you know, I have been dealing with a biting parrot for almost a year now. These days, we have our good days and bad days.

I wondered if I should try a time out for Taka when he bites or acts aggressive. I have a small stand which is in the next room outside my office (where we usually interact) and I have found he hates to be alone and out of sight of me. Taking him to his cage when he has been aggressive hasn't seemed to work all these months, but does anyone think a timeout, a place he goes specifically when he has been bad, that he does not like, might be useful?

For the most part, if no one is in the room with him, he is not brave enough to leave a perch/cage and go exploring. So the couple of times I have taken him out and left him there, he has remained. He'll call for me rather insistently, but stays put.

If so, how long should I make these timeouts last?

Is my bird stressed?

California girl — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 15:12:11 GMT

O.K. I'm back again. My 'too is acting really stressed out. I tried playing on the floor with her today and it went really well at first. After about 10 minutes, she got really agitated, wings out, crest up then biting. I put her back in her cage. She has been intermittently pacing and climbing all over her cage. We have had some stressful stuff going on at home due to some water damage and had lots of GIANT fans going 24/7. (not in her cage area). Also, we are having to euthanize an old, beloved dog and our entire family is upset about it. How can I calm my bird and let her know everything is alright. My goodness, I feel like I did when I had my first child 27 years ago!

girls vs. boys

wishforabird — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:56:42 GMT

girls vs. boys

I am going to have my bird by the beginning of the summer, and from what I have read and "heard" you guys go through I really want a boy...

Girls: cage territorial, egg issues, etc. I am afraid of going through what Mom and Dad just did with Miah. IT would break my heart.

Boys: I am sure they have aggression too, they are boys...but they seem to be more even tempered...?

one place I am going to has all of them sexed, another one says she would rather find a nice bird then have it sexed...so I choose based on personality, etc...what if there are 3 boys, I'd rather just choose from them and have a nice boy bird. I have a girl and a boy budgie and the girl is feisty and sometimes downright MEAN, and the boy is sweet and skittish. that ismy experience, but this is also a different species.

there is a semi-recent article in Bird Talk that emphasizes that it is important to know your bird's gender so you can have a better idea of medical issues that may arise, so you can expect certain behaviors, etc... I think it is a good idea too for these reasons..and I really don't want to even have to deal with eggs... they scare me.

Trying to chew my tshirt, sleves etc.

ILOVEMYBIRDS4EVER — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 11:43:50 GMT

Hi al i have adpoted a 6 year old quaker he is a biter but it less when I fist got him. everytime i wear a tshirt, a sweetshirt anthing with leaves he will try to bite me and chew the sleves etc.. Anything i can change that??

Updates on Bruce and Solomon

cblovetree — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 08:53:30 GMT

Hello to all my bird loving friends, just wanted to update anyone who is interested to know... First off Bruce, I did take him to the vet, wow $78.00 fee day of for blood draw, and poop sample, I had to write 2 post dated checks for $75.00 each month. Not sure if this is really high priced, but I loved the vet in which took care of him. He still needs a couple more test done in the future, but his blood work was great completely normal yea! He was how ever around 10 grams over weight, doc said more then likely from the "sunflower seeds" and seed diet he seems to like. I am trying to change his diet to pellets, but this isn't flying to well with him, so I have to mix it with other food, no more sunflower seeds for either of my birds. He also has to take vitamin A & E oil everyday because he may be lacking in this, mainly because he picks out the seeds in his food. I have to try to get it in him through other foods. I went and got him some fresh fruit, veggies, whole grain pasta, natural peanutbutter. Vet said it would be okay to get him to eat it this way. Same with his new colorless pellets. I am sure his problems are coming from Solomon in the house.

Great news on Solomon as well, I finally found a bird rescue place in Michigan. They seem very knowledgable, and loving. Their website looks great as well, they are actually going to take him, it will be a couple of weeks and then they will be in the areas picking up another bird. They seem like a great rescue center. In fact, they have a one person "man" that is looking for a Sun Conure, or Jenday which is great. I know Solomon will do great with the right person, and I am sure they screen their people well, at least this is what I am told. In fact the guy told me that most of their rescues are from people in which can not longer care for their birds due to job loss, very sad but better then abused birds I think. I will keep you all updated on both of my babies. Thanks for all of your help from my earlier post. Cindy, Bruce, and Solomon.

Continued discussion about Bruce and Solomon

cblovetree — Sat, 29 May 2010 13:53:28 GMT

Hello everyone, thanks so much for wanting to help me out here. Okay, I do not know why the photo's did that, I will post only one photo at the end of this thread. Monica, Bruce and Solomon are across the room from each other, you know they seem to be fine with each other, I just don't know how well they would do, but Bruce will hop up on Solomon's cage if I take him over to it, and Solomon doesn't seem to mind, I just don't want nothing to happen. I worry more about Bruce getting hurt, he thinks he is a human. I do not see any signs of trouble for Solomon, he may be picking up some naughty behaviors from Bruce, but he like to watch Bruce and if Bruce take's a bath, then he does the same. Solomon has been around other birds his whole life.

You know, now that I am watching Bruce better he may be just getting his old cut long feathers out to make room for new ones? Bruce has always been a very good groomer, he has a good schedule that he follows on his own. I think he really just does not like me talking to Solomon and cooing him, I think it makes him a little jealous. My mom said she was going to loan me the money to take Bruce to the vet, I will just take him in, and as far as the price, I thought it was high as well, but in the area I live in Michigan, the vet's in which treat birds is very limited. I have to drive now to Kalamazoo which is a good 35-40 minute drive.

What I would really love to do is, find Solomon a good home with someone that I know will give him the time he needs with a human. He likes men better, and no children or women would be best, unless you had a woman in which will take the extra time to let him warm up to them. It is hard to find a good home for a parrot, as you all know our parrots are like children, and they live a long time. They are messy, and loud, and need a lot of attention daily, with a good diet and sleeping patterns, it is hard to find someone like that in which you know in your heart will take good care of him, and do it for the life of Solomon. Bruce is use to being the only one (bird) in which has gotten treats, and all of my attention for the past 15 years, I can see why he feels a little bit jealous, but I am sure to always include Bruce, and my daughter as well as myself holds him everyday.

I will keep you all posted on what the vet has to say, and then get back to you all. If anyone knows of a good solid home for Solomon I would drive him to the person, providing it wasn't to far, and then I would meet someone, how ever I would rather have him closer to me, so I could make some home visit to check on him. I would also want to leave my door open for his return, if he got to be to much. But I don't want him to have to keep changing homes, he needs a good solid home, with lot's of love. He is really a sweet bird, loves toy's, and he would love contact with someone he can trust. I will not just give him away to just anyone in which is not experienced in parrots. We all know as well, that our little feathered friends will bite at some point, and it does hurt, so this is something a person has to know a head of time. Having a parrot requires so much love and care, but as we all know they give so much in return. Okay I will try to post a couple other picture of Bruce, he is now going to the other wing, and is just going for those longer feathers, he is eating the stuff out of his feather stems, but he always does this when he grooms, he is a very good groomer. Thanks again everyone, Cindy

Challenging his place in the flock?

broccoli — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 19:44:24 GMT

I've posted before about issues here and there seems to be more lately despite the work we have done- yes in some senses he has been better but overall we still have some problems.

The past month we've had some frustrations with him- biting when being put back into his cage for the night, and also flying away from us when he doesn't want to come. For my husband and I this is not acceptable, Broccoli doesn't do this- she knows step up means step up- not fly away. I know birds are different than other animals but this makes me nervous since he is fully flighted. If something were to happen I believe we'd have an issue with him getting away from us.

Today my husband was home ill, and he let the fids out for about an hour- then he went to take care of something so he went to put them away. Broccoli came right away- no problems, but Cinnamon continuously flew away and it took my husband going back and forth at least 7 times to finally get him (and he literally had to grab him- something we don't like to do).

Also my husband used to be Cinnamon's favorite- but it seems that bond is deteriorating and my husband is at a loss as to why.

He's also been very aggressive lately- to the point where I have to pull Broc out seperately and then him later- he will NOT leave her alone and she eventually gets very angry. Specially when she's just wanting to sit and cuddle with me or my husband- Cinnamon isn't a cuddler AT ALL. Which is fine- we don't have an issue with that- but we literally have to put him away so Broccoli can have a few moments of peace.

When we try to pull Cinnamon out to have alone time with us- he flies to Broccoli's cage- we go get him- he flies back to her. After a few tries we put him in his cage for a few minutes- then try again. It almost seems like we are forcing him to hang out with us and that's not what we want.

I'm not sure if it's a maturing issue that has brought this about (he was born January 2009)- but he's not even 2 years old so I don't think it is.

I know it was suggested I keep the fids seperate so we could get Cinnamon to bond with us more- but unfortunately I'm not living in a large enough place to do that at the moment. And we spend most of our time in the living room so we'd hate to put one fid in a seperate room since we don't spend much time in the other rooms besides when we bathe in the bathroom or sleep in our bedroom.

I read some literature online and of course they all say different things. One says don't clip- he can still be tamed- but I think we have tried a lot and there are still a lot of issues. The other said clipping will make him more dependant on us and help with his aggression. It seems the consensus leans towards clipping him.

I'm going to have him clipped this weekend at the vet- just enough so he can't fly up but he can fly down in case.

I feel at this point this is the right thing to do- but am curious if anyone has any other opinions? I have posted before about how since he became flighted he also became aggressive and wasn't like this before he was flighted. He was fully flighted in January of this year. I was reluctant to clip but now I feel I have very little choice as I'm hitting my breaking point.

Children are such heartbreak

amea_gari — Tue, 04 May 2010 17:53:57 GMT

Hey all. I haven't been around in quite a while. Been busier than usual with a photography class and various stuff. Just figured I'd check in and share my current experiences, maybe get some more advice or at least support.

Taka, my 1.5 year old Senegal is as nasty as ever. He bites when he is angry, territorial, and otherwise for no discernable reason at all. But he /definitely/ bites when he is displeased. I regularly receive vicious bites when returning him to the cage in his perch. I reward him with a treat when he doesn't bite under these circumstances, but it's RARE that he doesn't. He'll step off my finger with one foot, then realize what is happening, and CHOMP.
These are not pecks or nips, either. This is flesh tearing, blood-spilling viciousness.

On Sunday, as I was returning him to his cage, he lunged at me and bit through my lip.

I really love this bird, and I have done everything I can to curb this behaviour. But we're to the point where the biting may see me inadvertently retaliating. Or he may find himself in his cage on a more or less permanent basis. And really-- that's not what I want in a pet, and I am sure that's not what HE deserves out of life.

Sadly I have begun considering taking him to a rescue. I hate to add to their burden, and I HATE to say goodbye to Taka, but if I can't interact with him-- life in my household is not going to be a happy one for him. He'll be alone and bored. :(

Gah. What do I do? I've told myself that at LEAST I need to give him 3 or so years, to see how he grows up. He's a baby, or a young bird at least, and maybe these are stages and growing pains.
I dunno.

Night Frights & Your Pet Bird

Flock Moderator — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 18:30:51 GMT

In the August 2010 issue of BIRD TALK Magazine, cockatiel night frights was explained. What has your bird's reaction been to earthquakes? What other causes do you attribute to night frights? What do you do for your bird after a night fright??

I am worried about Bruce

cblovetree — Fri, 28 May 2010 06:48:50 GMT

Hello,to all my feather loving friends. I am so worried about my 15 year old Cherryhead Conure Bruce. As many of you know Bruce is my baby, I have had him for over 15 years now and he has never done anything such as this (I have enclosed pictures). The only thing in which has changed in Bruces life is the fact that I rescued

a Jenday Conure last Oct. He is now in the same room as Bruce, but Bruce has been the only bird in our life since day one. He has lived with cat's and dog's, but no other birds. Bruce has bonded to my daughter years ago, he still see's her everyday. Now before anyone suggest I move the birds apart please note that I am living in a small home with my mother. I really do not have other options as to where I can place the birds, and still have them both in areas in which they get human companionship regularly. Bruce has to have this, this is what he knows, he actually thinks he is human I think. Solomon is doing so much better being among people, and I do not want to isolate him from human contact on a regular bases. Please help if you can. Also please know that I would take him to the vet, but I am without the funding which is $70.00 for a well bird check. Should I blow off my car payment and take him in right away? Does anyone have any advise as to what I should do today? Like I said I am so worried about my little man.

Thanks so much,

Cindy

That's me in the corner

MasResik — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 06:40:50 GMT

Came home from sunday practice last night, looked in the cage to say hello to Winter and he wasn't at his usual spot on the ladder. He wasn't sitting on his food bowl. He wasn't on the floor of the cage walking around. I started to panic! Then I happened to look in the upper back corner of his cage and saw him sitting on the bars tucked into the corner. I think someone got up to the top of their cage and couldn't figure out how to get down. After trying to talk him down a little he started to turn and hang there but still seemed a bit unsure what to do. So I slowly raised his ladder up to him, he attempted to leap to it, missed and then tried in vain to flutter/fly to the second perch. Landed instead in his food bowl and began to walk around like he meant to do that.
Adventure awaits!

Shrinking bird?

MasResik — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 10:20:11 GMT

Ok, being a first time bird owner, I may just be parinoid here. But I swear that Winter my Parakeet was bigger looking when he first moved in with me. He eats, I've seen him, still havn't caught him drinking water yet. I hope he's been doing that when I'm at work or not in the room...

But I swear that he looks smaller. Moves around, chirps when he gets the right groove going and is energetic. Is it just that he may have been "poofy" when freaked out from the transition from petstore to home? As he got used to his new surounding would he lay his feathers down and not be so fluffy like?

This prob sounds silly, but it just struck me as odd last night.

Eeper 's progress

ickybird — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 12:31:48 GMT

We are finally seeing some desire for our company and touch from Eeper. you may remember she is my Fischer's lovie and we have had her since June. Although she has learned to do a lot of things, touching was not one of them. I have been letting her take the lead in this and we are slowly getting some success. If any of you have heard me say "enjoy the process" this is what I am getting at. 10 months of waiting for this bird to let me touch her has been a lesson in patience and enjoying the little things.
So now if I want her to fly to my hand, I hold a beer brewing magazine in front of me....No other mag. works for some reason...and she will hop onto my thumb and then on my finger. I can then put the magazine down and scratch her cheeks and neck with the fingers of the same hand. Last night I was able to bring my other hand over and touch my bird perch hand but not her. We are saying "Step up" when this happens, but as of yet, she is not connecting stepping up with her action. But maybe with beer.

Digging and Confused Birds

EricWesley — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 00:11:47 GMT

I have this weird parakeet that digs holes in the ground, and throws rocks. Is that normal?

I also have a lovebird, Sunshine, that thought he was a parakeet, and only liked blue ones, even though he was green. But now, since I got a female lovebird, Antigone, he only loves her and attacks everyone else. Is that normal? I have no clue any more.

______________________________________________________
Ugg boots
Uggs

Macaws & Toes

Parrotz — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 20:22:33 GMT

My macaw loves to play with my toes. At the end of a "Birdie Day" we have two hours of out of cage time, where my birds and I play together and watch TV. During this time Picasso, my Blue & Gold, loves to play with my toes. With my feet propped up Picasso will walk down my legs to my feet and start wrestling with my toes through my socks. Zeus, my Umbrella Cockatoo, loves to act as a cheerleader during this event. Sitting atop of the same chair, Zeus loves to bounce around while Picasso pulls on my toes. When Picasso becomes bored with the toes he will burrow his beak either under or between my feet.

Does anyone else do this or something similar?

Lovie as tool user

ickybird — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 16:18:52 GMT

One of the things zoologists have often said was a difference between man and the rest of the animal kingdom was the use of tools. Well, then we saw that chimps fashion tools. So OK the great apes can do it, too, then the monkeys were choosing the right rocks to smash nuts . So OK all primates. Then Ravens and crows were trimming sticks to get things out of pop bottles. So OK....but that is IT! ( there are other tool users and makers, but you get the picture).
Eeper, my Fischer's lovie, has two cups attached to the cage side with trap doors. She gets water in one and her seed in the other. She has a HEAVY crock with very tall sides on three sides for her pellets ( this is keeping her from throwing so many on the floor for the dog). Then each day, she gets an ice cream bowl for OJ. We get the super pulpy one. I put this in the far corner of the cage. It is a very hefty pressed glass bowl.
She has a whiffle ball that she plays with. Before, she would put it in her water dish. Now that we have this new very tall crock, she has been trying to get it into the crock. But the crock is very tall and very narrow and the ball is just about a bit too big for her to carry. It drags.
So today, she shoved the juice/ice cream dish all the way across the cage to put it smack up against the crock. Then she got on the rim and sort of hopped about on it from side to side. I am now thinking it is to see if it will tip. Then she hefted the whiffle ball and climbed the cage bars with the help of shoving the ball along the side of the crock and she finally stood on the rim of the dish with the ball still in her mouth. This took several tries with slight variations of placement of the bowl and climbing and whiffle balancing. Eventually she was able to maneuver around to the short side ( still too tall for her to just hop in) of the crock and dump the ball inside. She took a look at it. One of those sideways looks they do to really eyeball something up close and announced her success with a loud EEP! and popping up as tall as she could.
When she was done showing off her work, she actually moved the ice cream dish back to the corner I had put it in by shoving it along with her head, and took a sip in it before flitting back to admire her work at getting the ball in the crock.
This is an animal with a brain the size of a lima bean, and it is an insult to say some one is bird brained?

Metrosexual Lovebird??

Merlin&Aggie — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 17:15:47 GMT

My supposed "male" lovie up to this point had exhibited all behavioral signs of being a boy....with one exception. Since Spring is upon us my female lovie has been placing her concentration on one specific foraging toy - a replica of a small birdcage with paper inside that can be pulled out. She pulls them out and tucks them beneath her wings. At first the "male" observed and tried his best to imitate which was immensely entertaining for me :) lots of pieces made their way to the bottom of the cage...until it seemed he has mastered the art of tucking paper. "He" now proudly goes around the entire cage with threads of paper on his back..... could this accomplishment mean that in fact "he" is really a "she"? Has anyone else ever witnessed their own male lovie succeeding at this "tucking" behavior?

Mirrors

blad891996 — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 08:44:07 GMT

Are mirror okay for budhies to play with? why or why not

marley getting more stubborn

steptoe91 — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 16:11:10 GMT

marley has really gotten bold. i know caiques are known for being strong willed and very bold. BUT he has been getting after skittles' cage. to the point where he will fly to skittles' cage and try to defend it from skittles. of course i intervene or skittles would have a very expensive snack and i'd be left brokenhearted. marley is not responding to step-ups. he will actually attack us when we try to get him. this has happened 3 or 4 times in the last week and i'm getting worried. i don't leave them unattended for the most part but i do occasionally go to the bathroom. the first time it happened i had went out to put the dog on his run. i was gone literally 45 seconds. when i left marley was in the window looking outside. by the time i got back i heard skittles screaming and they were facing off on top of the cage. i had to get skittles to step up cause marley refused. the only thing i can think of is to clip marley's wings closer so he cant fly up and try to get back to basics with step-ups and stick training. (he also refuses to step up on a stick anymore) i have been putting him in his cage for time-out when he misbehaves but it is getting ineffective. (the cage is too much fun, lol!) any other options anyone? i imagine this is all related to him getting older and spring fever.

Can your bird dance? Cayenne can!

Cayenne — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:02:47 GMT

Cayenne loves dancing. Especially when I am singing (I am NOT singing on the video.. hahah).

Sometimes he is perfectly in sync with the beat, sometimes not. But he's a happy, silly guy.

Here's a video... http://www.birdchannel.com/bird-videos/watch-video-C52C7EDBB5C07141EF601BB68F1F996C.aspx?TagList=Cayenne

Does your parrot dance?

everyone learned new tricks...

steptoe91 — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 18:50:31 GMT

well, i have once again underestimated skittles. when i lock the combo lock on her door of her cage i only spin one dial. after apparently playing around with it, she managed to spin that one back to the right number and open the lock. i'm sure it was just luck...i think. but just incase, i've started putting the keys to my mustang in the bedroom at nite. (don't want her to go joy riding!) lol! anyway, i have also started spinning all three dials on the combo. so hopefully she won't open them again. she's getting pretty brave. if i dont come get her when she asks me to, she will climb down to the floor and come to me.

marley has found a new trick too. he has a platform in his cage right under his cozy hut. he has a toy (a pattati, for anyone who has ever been to dr fosters) with wooden planks hanging from cotton rope next to the platform. he now pulls the planks and hooks the end of it on his platform through the bars and uses it as a perch.

twiggy, not to be outdone, has taken a home made cotton rope and wood toy and tied the ropes around a 3 branch mantzilla perch to make some sort of creation. and it is worth your life to look at it let alone touch it.

if all that wasn't enough, tonight my son coughed and sktlles, as clear as you could ask, stopped playing, looked right at him and siad "god-bless-you".even ran it together as one word like i do. of course as usual twiggy coughed bach at him. she's in love w him. has been since the first day she saw him.

just had to share.