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Post by luvsanimals2 on Nov 8, 2013 5:04:35 GMT
ty, when i took luna to her vet trip, they had cockatiels and one was whistling at me and kind of head bobbing and moving slowly on the perch, if i recall, the crest was the one of the gentle curve.
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Post by Sarah on Nov 8, 2013 5:08:37 GMT
Lol! Just give her some time, she will 're-calibrate' from preening birds to people. Pirate has become so gentle that he can clean my eyelashes and eyebrows one by one so delicately that it doesn't pinch at all. It actually feels so good and is almost as relaxing as a massage XD The birds in these pictures are not mine though: I found them on the internet to illustrate the emotions I was trying to explain
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Post by Emily on Nov 8, 2013 15:47:56 GMT
Pepper likes to clean my hair or play with it. Most of the time though, she demands that I give her scritches. Bangs her beak on my fingers and then puts her head down and waits haha.
Should I let Pepper be the 'boss' or is there something I should do to make her know I'm the ruler haha
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Post by roxhum on Nov 8, 2013 16:03:38 GMT
Oh my, pepper is a very good communicator. That sounds so very cute. I am interested in hearing the response to your question. I am wondering the same thing. I don't know if sweetie pie is demonstrating dominance with me or apprehension since she is new to me and had not been getting a lot of attention in her original home. I am a dog person, not a bird lady. I think, "for heaven sakes Roxanne she is just a little bird." Meanwhile I am letting her setting the pace and right now I get they impression she would like me to stop paying attention to the tablet in my lap and maybe more to her
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Post by Sarah on Nov 8, 2013 16:06:24 GMT
Asking for affection isn't really so much of a 'boss' thing - at least not in my experience. Pretty much every tame cockatiel I've met begs for scritches. Does she hurt you, when she taps your fingers?
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Post by roxhum on Nov 8, 2013 16:14:39 GMT
Another question I have on cockatiel behavior is... My budgies happily chatter throughput the day as they hop from perch to perch. Sweetie is very quite with only an occasional little chirp. She climbs the side and top of her cage to move around the cage. I wonder if I got her a different style cage that made it easier to hop would she hop or still climb? I suppose cockatiels are quieter less active birds then budgies. She also doesn't play with toys as much. Is that normal? Also she is new to me so that could explain her inactivity, and a lone senior opposed to a pair of adolescent budgies.
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Post by Sarah on Nov 8, 2013 16:23:22 GMT
Cockatiels are by nature calmer and quieter personalities than budgies. It is not that cockatiels are not disposed to play, it is that budgies are very very prone to play. Her climbing sounds pretty normal, although she may be feeling a little restricted in her cage. It may also be a bid for attention. She would likely hop a lot more if the cage were much larger and allowed for more room for bouncing, but climbing is not a bad thing.
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Post by roxhum on Nov 8, 2013 16:42:30 GMT
As always thank you Sarah. Your thoughtful responses are enormously helpful to this new bird owner.
Her cage is just big enough. I want to get her a larger cage but...wouldn't she be happier with a friend? I work full time and have a busy life. She has her budgie neighbors, she has lived alone in a cage for years, but that doesn't mean she doesn't yearn for a roommate companion. However I have no time for another bird. But maybe a less tame birds that didn't want human interaction. I think too much. I don't want another bird. However I do want the birds I have to be happy.
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Post by roxhum on Nov 8, 2013 17:04:18 GMT
Another question... Sweetie pie on my shoulder as I go about my day. I bring my coffee cup to my face and feel movement on my shoulder and a sqeek in my ear. I turn my head towards her and get a head bob a squeak and three steps back. Is she surprised at sudden movement? Is she mad? Am I being reprimanded? My gut tells me I have a bird on my shoulder that wants attention but is somewhat ill at ease.
Okay I just turned to her and talked to her. She looks around and backs away. Interestingly if I turn half way she either offers the olive Branch by nibbling at my glasses or face, or she bobs her head fast with a bump of her beak. I am getting mixed signals and a little annoyed. I mean that is MY shoulder she is so comfortable peached upon. Also as she attempts to remove every freckle, mole and skin tag from my neck and when I jump, squeak and bat her away with my hand she takes it instride as she searches for some other blemish to remove from my body.
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Post by Sarah on Nov 8, 2013 20:02:33 GMT
Rox, don't get another bird. Not only does it sound like you don't particularly have room in your life for another bird, there is every chance another bird won't help the situation. Your Sweetie has been alone for quite some time now, and is willing to make you her friend and companion, so let her do that. If you want her to have a bigger cage then go for it. You would be so surprised at the joy and increase in quality of life a big cage can bring to a parrot, lone or not. Sweetie is older, and set in her ways. Another bird might make a big change in her life and slightly tense relationship with you unbearable to her. You may just end up with another lone bird in another cage wondering if you are now ethically required to purchase yet another bird for THAT tiel to be friends with.
Sweetie reacts badly when you move objects towards your face (And indeed towards her if she is on your shoulder) simply because she is afraid. She isn't sure whats happening - but she knows she is uncomfortable and expects the worst. Just talk to her and move slowly when she gets like this, perhaps repeating the motion a few times while speaking to her comfortingly. She probably had a negative experience once with something vaguely resembling a cup. For a time with Pirate, this was a crochet hook. It must have looked like some veterinary implement to him. Every time I took it out to do a little work, Pirate would make that breathy, squeaky cry of terror and/or hatred and lunge at my hand and the hook. Slowly over time (and probably making a big fool out of myself)I showed Pirate it was safe, by speaking in a happy voice when touching it, rubbing it on my face and gently offering it to him. I didn't punish him when he tried to attack it, and after a while, he realized it wasn't attacking back and it wasn't coming after him either. Now I have the opposite problem. He thinks its shiny and it feels cool on his tongue, and he likes to play with them. He throws them and manipulates them around in his mouth: even ones that are taller than him! Which is a sight let me tell you. The fact that Sweetie Pie is staying on your shoulder and not catapulting off to fly around the room like a nut when she is so frightened is pretty gratifying actually. She wants so badly to be with you, but she is also so scared. The life of a breeder is typically not an easy one. Even with the nicest owner in the world, accidents, vet trips and distance from people are kind of inevitable. Just give it some time. Two weeks is nothing to a bird. She's still barely getting to know you.
As for the neck preening, I'm not sure what to tell you about that. It's obvious it causes you distress. I have explained that it is a gesture of love and tenderness, but I know that doesn't make it pinch less or upset less. I would simply pick her up and move her to some perch away from you when you begin to feel irritated and see if she realizes that it isn't being well received all the time.
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Post by Emily on Nov 8, 2013 20:49:33 GMT
Roxum I definitely think once the two of you have figured each other out, it will be much easier to go about your day Pepper doesn't hurt me when she bangs her beak. This morning she was cleaning my eyelashes and it hurt so bad! I made that squak of pain like you said to do and eventually she stopped. My husband also laughed because of my sounds haha. Not to take over Roxums diary for Sweetie Pie, but I would just like to gloat and say how happy I am that Pepper really does see me as 'the one'. As soon as I'm home from work she goes crazy even though my husband had the say off and has been handling her. Also when I took a nap I woke up with her on my shoulder, head cocked to the side! Roxum I know once the quarks are out, you'll love Sweetie pies company and it sounds like she really does love you.
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Post by dianapalmer on Nov 8, 2013 21:05:10 GMT
Even though I don't have a cockatiel, these posts are very interesting. It's possible there might be a cockatiel in my future.
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Post by roxhum on Nov 8, 2013 21:06:46 GMT
Emily and Sarah, Thank you both so much. I am mostly complaining tongue in cheek about Sweetie trying to remove my many little moles. But it does hurt. I think I need some sort of removable bib to wear, it will help with any poo droppings too. I am actually very pleased with Sweetie and think we will be great friends. I don't think I am naturally a bird person. I move fast and I am not long on patience. I think this lonely old bird is actually a very good fit for me, she isn't too demanding of me and comes pre-tamed. She clearly is used to a family life. She manages well with house noise, vacuum cleaners, barking dogs, etc
Sarah your advice is so good. Really, it is still less than three weeks so of course she is unsure about this new world she landed in. I do think she is happy to be getting out of her cage and some human attention. I think I was wanting someone to say, don't get another bird.
I am off to work for a few hours and will over think the possibility of starving Sweetie to death. I mixed some chopped chard, lettuce and carrots into her seed. I haven't given her a seed only option and she is avoiding her bowl like the plague. I found her searching the bottom of her cage for seed but I just changed the paper. I suppose she can live a few hours without food, and if she gets too hungry there are seeds mixed with those veggies.
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Post by Emily on Nov 9, 2013 5:13:36 GMT
The only way I've been able to get Pepper to eat veggies or fruits is if I use baby food or mush up the veggie until it's unrecognizable.
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Post by Sarah on Nov 9, 2013 5:40:23 GMT
I'm glad I could make you feel a little better in any event. I hope you and Sweetie Pie have many happy years together She will not starve in a few hours even if she had no food, and she isn't very likely to allow herself to get very hungry without begrudgingly sorting through her food cup. I wouldn't be surprised if you returned home to find some picked at veggies on the cage floor
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