|
dopaMEAN posted:We're starting to think harder about getting a budgie. But the idea still terrifies/excites me. Budgies are really adorable and sweet birds. Even when they're being hormonal little shits in "I hate the world and I'm going to be vocal about it" mode, they're still adorable. I would advise getting one that was hand-raised though, rather than one from the bin o' budgies at a local pet store.
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 06:20
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 7, 2024 21:51 |
|
|
Mr Wind Up Bird posted:I think realistically I enjoy the idea of bird ownership more than I would enjoy it for real. I actually gave myself a panic attack the other day thinking about what I would do if I accidentally hurt or killed a bird that I only owned in my imagination. I'm going through the exact same thing too! Lately I've been missing my budgies from when I was a kid (and didn't know anything about birds), and after lurking this thread and stalking an adorable pearly on youtube, I think I'd like a cuddly conure next. The noise and poop scare me though - budgie poop is so tiny and neat in comparison... then again I'm also considering to "just" get a budgie first, and if I still feel that I absolutely need a conure, I could maybe still get one later? Would budgies and conures get along? plasmoduck fucked around with this message at 13:17 on Mar 13, 2013 |
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 13:14
|
|
|
plasmoduck posted:I'm going through the exact same thing too! Lately I've been missing my budgies from when I was a kid (and didn't know anything about birds), and after lurking this thread and stalking an adorable pearly on youtube, I think I'd like a cuddly conure next. The noise and poop scare me though - budgie poop is so tiny and neat in comparison... then again I'm also considering to "just" get a budgie first, and if I still feel that I absolutely need a conure, I could maybe still get one later? Would budgies and conures get along? Even birds of the same species might not get along. I have a green cheek conure, cockatiel and a budgie. The cockatiel and budgie have been bros since they were babies, and I got the GCC about a year after the first two. The conure is really interested in the 'tiel and budgie but they want nothing to do with him. Also my budgie tries to start fights with him even though he is twice her size and his beak is way bigger  Sprite has some sort of Napoleon complex or something.  I don't think my conure has any interest in hurting the budgie, but I try to keep the separate because he could easily do so accidentally. Poor Ozzy has no bird bros However, I do think that the conure enjoys having other birds around as cage-neighbors when no people are home. Sometimes we hear them chattering back and forth to each other from the bedroom 
Pip pip pip fucked around with this message at 14:30 on Mar 13, 2013 |
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 14:27
|
|
|
Battle Pigeon posted:Pookie, this internet stranger thinks you are adorable. Pookie says "<lip-fart noise>". I think that's probably a positive reaction? And poor old Ohtori, I hope his toe is better
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 15:11
|
|
|
There is a little tame budgie for sale in the locals, and there are photos of it being held in someone's hand like an ice cream. Pookah posted:Pookie says "<lip-fart noise>". I think that's probably a positive reaction? And poor old Ohtori, I hope his toe is better I ended up giving him his hut to sleep in so he could take the weight off his foot overnight and not worry about wobbling on a perch, and he seems mostly okay this morning. He's using it, but I don't recall which foot he usually uses for eating so can't say if he's doing that, and it might just be my imagination that its grip is a little weaker. He let me touch and poke and squeeze it though without any complaint so I guess he's fine. Right now he's furious that he can't operate his foraging wheel, he can see the seeds right there dammit.
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 15:18
|
|
|
Pip pip pip posted:Also my budgie tries to start fights with him even though he is twice her size and his beak is way bigger
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 15:52
|
|
|
mikerock posted:We just put pellets in there one day instead of the regular food and went to work. I'm not sure we can do that, as the pellets are supposed to be a minority of his diet. We will probably try some experiments this weekend when we are home to make sure he's getting food. He's supposed to have a constant supply of food as the food->poop timeline is extremely short. Maybe we're just being over protective of, as my mother in law says, our "practice baby?"
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 16:32
|
|
|
DarkHorse posted:Budgies are a lot of bird packed into a tiny little body. I'm convinced they're not scared of humans either, and would pick a fight with them at the first opportunity. They have absolutely no idea of their relative size, or if they do they give absolutely no fucks about it. ^^^Tori should be fine if he's still moving the foot and it doesn't change color or anything, when I was carrying Cheeky in a carrier one day the base just suddenly dropped out and he hurt his foot in the process, I was kind of worried because he wasn't using that leg, but he went back to normal within a few days. If it hurts, being a conure, he WILL let you know, anyway. 
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 17:24
|
|
|
I give up!  I can't do it. Even if it takes me longer to tame them, I just can't bring myself to separate these two, especially since I'm away for school and work for most of the day. Even if they never learn to talk, I don't mind a single bit. 
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 17:25
|
|
|
Bioshuffle posted:I give up! That's the most adorable thing I've seen all day.
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 19:39
|
|
|
Those birdies look like sherbert cones. Sherbert cones that are in love. In other news my conure only has one perfectly centered foot please send help! 
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 21:13
|
|
|
Ohhhh man. My safe bird store is the best thing in the world, seriously. First off I had a problem with them being sold out of what I wanted, they responded really quickly and took care of the problem. Then, since I had ordered the bulk of my stuff first thinking that the sold out thing would be in stock in a few weeks, they emailed me and asked if I'd rather combine my orders and save on shipping. So I did that, awesome. THEN it came in just three days, everything all packaged nicely together! Also they gave us three of the chinese finger trap toys because we bought three harnesses and (I'm assuming) they figured we had three birds. The little bag also came with people treats and a really sweet thank you AND then there was a little box. Inside was a little decorative nick knack that says 'Bless this nest'. Which is cute in general, BUT IT HAD THREE BIRD HOUSES. IT'S PERFECT. Also if no one has travel cages yet I really recommend this: http://www.mysafebirdstore.com/product.cgi?group=902&product=7621 It folds up to be about two or three inches high (maybe) and is put together in about 30 seconds. It's also rather large so Zomo and I are going to use them as a sort of over night cage. Their current travel cages are really only good for going from house to car and lasting the car ride. It also comes with the bowls pictured and they screw into place really firmly which is great because before I had to be a bird feeder and hold bowls And the other thing I wanted to ask... Uh. Any one who has successfully gotten a harness on their bird.... how.... Even Finn the potato was basically screaming gently caress THIS poo poo and running around in frantic circles. They're not scared of them though, they just don't like having them on. Over all though, that website is easily the best I've ever bought anything bird related from. I am a huge stickler for good customer service and they are AMAZING.
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 22:05
|
|
|
You got an Aviator harness, right? There should have been an instructional DVD that came with it. It's actually worth watching, it shows you what little exercises you should do with the bird even before you try to put it on. I bought one a while ago but I still haven't been able to put it on my bird because he doesn't like me touching his wings. I don't want to push the issue because I don't want him to get freaked out.
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 22:31
|
|
|
Amaya posted:And the other thing I wanted to ask... Uh. Any one who has successfully gotten a harness on their bird.... how.... Even Finn the potato was basically screaming gently caress THIS poo poo and running around in frantic circles. They're not scared of them though, they just don't like having them on. Patience and bribery. Lots and lots of bribery.
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 23:11
|
|
|
Yeah, you should be using operant conditioning to get the bird comfortable with and then excited around the harness before you even try putting it on. By the time you do start putting it on, going outside with people becomes the reward and it gets easier, but until then you have to be very slow and careful to keep it from being traumatic and hated. Caveat: I have not harness trained a bird before. But I've read about it on the internet! 
|
|
#
?
Mar 13, 2013 23:17
|
|
|
So far Zippy lets me wrap the leash of the harness lightly around her and I can put it under her wings. It's slow going to say the least.
|
|
#
?
Mar 14, 2013 01:37
|
|
|
SquadronROE posted:That's the most adorable thing I've seen all day.
|
|
#
?
Mar 14, 2013 02:13
|
|
|
It looks like one has a more solid definition on the chest between the green and the yellow, the one on the right in your photo. The left one is more faded with a little patch of yellow in the middle, and the colouring is less straight across.
|
|
#
?
Mar 14, 2013 03:07
|
|
|
I had a conversation with Frodo today. Got home from my hospital with more Pepper Coarse Harrison's and Nutri-cakes for Frodo. He greeted me with a "HIIIYAAAAAA pretty buuuuuurrrrrrrrrrrrrrd beep beep" when I got back, danced a bit and was begging heavily (probably for food). As it was not "distract the bird with high end food while we eat so he leaves us the gently caress alone" time, I put some fresh Harrison's in his bowl and went to put the rest away. He waddled over to it looked in the bowl said "NO" and waddled to the other side of his play top. "Well you're gunna have to deal with it until dinner time" "NO" "Sorry, but that's the deal" "*fart noise*" "Don't take that tone with me!" "grumble grumble grumble" "I heard that!" "*fart noise*" He has no respect for authority.
|
|
#
?
Mar 14, 2013 08:43
|
|
tra la la
|
AltruisticNemesis posted:I had a conversation with Frodo today. Oh my god, this might be the most amazing and adorable thing I've heard all day. Take more videos of Frodo tia
|
|
#
?
Mar 14, 2013 15:35
|
|
|
I almost had a heart attack just now. Zomo woke up for class and walked into the birds' room and all I hear is "Uh oh." Then he calls me in because Marshal's cage is open but he isn't there. After a few seconds of heart pounding we find him hiding under marceline's cage. It doesn't look like he ate anything and he was just really thirsty but holy poo poo if that didn't scare me half to death. We put one of the little spinny locks on there to keep him caged. :oh dear: I'm just glad that everything's mostly clean in there.
|
|
#
?
Mar 14, 2013 19:28
|
|
|
Birdball is soft. (Not pictured: the wounds on my fingers from 10 seconds before this when he was being a shitlord)
|
|
#
?
Mar 15, 2013 02:17
|
|
|
Tries to remove a digit - fails - enters cuddle mode
|
|
#
?
Mar 15, 2013 05:06
|
|
|
What the hell is it with birds and their flippant moods? Iro has her good days every now and then where she's chilled out, happy to be alive and happy to sit with you. Then for days on end she'll be a horrid ball of nervous energy, her quacks turning to loud, jittery sharp edged squeaks that culminate in awful, awful screams that sound like a harsher equivalent of just opening your face and bellowing "AUGH! AUGH! AUGH!" For an hour in as piercing a fashion as possible. (I want to draw this.) Nothing about the environment or routine is different, some days its just Birdy Bitch days. I particularly hate Birdy Bitch days because I have to remove her cage and put it in the bedroom so it isn't right next to my head and I can try to work. I have to do this for hours at a time, sometimes and this leaves her all alone. I know she'd be alone during that time anyway if I didn't work from home, but she can hear my music or whatever from the bedroom and screams for hours on end if I so much as move. When she's being uppity, I warn her. "Do you want WORKTIME?" She seems to understand this, because if she's feeling agreeable at the mention of the word she will quiet down. If she does I tell her how good she is and give her a nibble if something if I can. More often than not though she quiets for about 30 seconds, then starts AUGH-ing again. Then I tell her WORKTIME, and without looking at her I take the cage into the bedroom, place it near the windowsill where she can see outside, then tell her Byebye and close the door. Sometimes she quiets down right away but most of the time she continues screaming. She also doesn't sleep much at night still, crying and whining and crowing for hours before shutting up. Then at 7am despite there being 0 light in the hallway she starts it up again. I keep her covered anyways though, until around 11 since I put her to bed at 11. She's so lovely when she's nice. I keep trying to narrow it down what I'm doing wrong that's setting off her weird bird brain. She's made tremendous progress on not screaming for me when I leave to use the washroom. On Birdy Bitch days, she regresses a bit but it still isn't as bad as before. She's also stopped being an utter wanker to my boyfriend, and though she isn't as nice with him as she is with me, she will sit with him without issue, and if I'm not there, she even lets him rub her head sometimes. Her bites have gotten a lot better, they're now just gentle pinches more than anything else and I distinctly get the impression she does it for communication, just to let me know she doesn't want head rubs right now or whatever. Even when she's really mad, when she bites she seems to quickly realise if she's gone too far, and drops her beak to the ground right after in what seems like apology. I love Iro so much and I really want to make sure she's okay. She's just a big fat brat sometimes and it makes me so frustrated that I kind if want to kick her right to the moon. She can scream and nip there all she wants! Thanks for listening to MY Birdy Bitchings!
|
|
#
?
Mar 15, 2013 05:18
|
|
|
I moved the perch stand thing (what do you call them?) into the computer room where we all live and on to the window sill, both birds seem pretty happy with it. They were both on it playing with their balls (heh heh) for a while until Ohtori decided to be a dick and steal Steve's jingly ball, so Steve flew away and 'Tori played for a while. Now 'Tori is in his cage and Steve is on the stand, seemingly happy, preening and watching cars go by.uglynoodles posted:She's made tremendous progress on not screaming for me when I leave to use the washroom. Puberty is awesome, isn't it? And it's been over a year, and Ohtori/Steve will still both yell if I leave the room or their sight. If I call back "C'MERE" or "WHERE ARE YOU?" they get confused or something and instead of screaming will mostly just call loudly. It's a very rare occasion where I can walk out and come back without them complaining.
|
|
#
?
Mar 15, 2013 17:26
|
|
|
It's natural for birds to want to be with their flock and to call when they aren't visible- it's a safety thing in the wild. How you deal with the flock call is up to your tolerance levels and situation. Zippy used to cry and scream for us at the drop of a hat, but we are happy to let her be with us most of the time so we make an effort to have her with us when we're home. Battle Pidgeon is right about calling back to the birds to let them hear where you are. Some people have whistles they trade with their birds to reassure them when they are out of sight. We enable Zippy to come find us when she wants us so she does not have to scream when we go to the kitchen. It took her a while, but she eventually figured out coming to us was the fastest, happiest solution. Obviously if you live in a situation where the bird can't be free roaming for safety reasons this won't work. You can modify the contact call they use by being firm about what sounds you will respond to- this has extended the length of time zippy will make her polite calls before she goes nuts. We also have encouraged her to go find her own corner of the house we designated as the "screaming room," because sometimes she really does want to just scream. She can have her fun without bothering us and comes back on her own when she's done.
|
|
#
?
Mar 15, 2013 19:27
|
|
|
I can't leave to use the bathroom without MASS BIRD HYSTERIA erupting. But! After teaching them the difference between "be right back" and "I'll see you later," they've learned how long I'll be gone and quiet down when I leave for work.
|
|
#
?
Mar 16, 2013 00:16
|
|
|
The Tidy Seed food bowls just arrived today. Toots (  ) wouldn't go near it for the better part of the day. After I gently placed Toots on the perch about four times until she realized how it works, she's now getting used to the idea, even if she hasn't totally warmed up to it yet. The smaller one is a good size for her, and she's pretty big as far as 'tiels go. I can definitely see it cutting down on the mess she makes.Bruce (GCC) on the other hand, hates it and has figured out that he can grab food out of it and carry it wherever he wants without having to ever step foot inside the thing. He cranes his neck in from the entrance, grabs a pellet, and hauls rear end. I'm not sure that it will accomplish anything for him. However, since their cages are connected most of the time, it's necessary to have one in both to at least eliminate half the mess. In short, if you have a 'tiel, get one now.
|
|
#
?
Mar 16, 2013 00:49
|
|
|
How does it fit sizewise? Like...one size fits all cages type deal?? My little door opens are on the bottom of the cage..but theres also a seed catcher base so I dont think itll fit mine... I admit, Im like SUPER SUPER lazy with changing water. Daily fresh h20? yea, no. however, green cheeks seem to be the most notorious soupmakers... I ended up putting 3 different cups of water, 2 on the bottom, 1 hanging, then a smaller hanging water cup- all in different spots of the cage. Ayep, pelletsoup in all of them. I hate birds need to switch to water bottles. V theres just sooo many pellets in the water I think... BIRD. YOURE NOT EVEN EATING THEM, YOU JUST PUT THEM IN THERE TO BE A DOUCHEBIRD. I tried petting my cockatiel, and he saw, and came over and tried to bite the crap outta him. got a beakful of tiel crest. Bad conure. Bart didnt seem to take it too bad, he just continued singing like nothing happened. whatever. Malalol fucked around with this message at 01:05 on Mar 16, 2013 |
|
#
?
Mar 16, 2013 01:00
|
|
|
Malalol posted:How does it fit sizewise? Like...one size fits all cages type deal?? My little door opens are on the bottom of the cage..but theres also a seed catcher base so I dont think itll fit mine... Yeah, we change ritz's water probably 5 times in a day if we're home. Most of the time if it's fresh food I'll leave it, sure you want bell pepper flavored water, awesome. But pellets or poop I change it, because.. gross. He's become quite the water pooper, maybe I can train him to poop in the toilet?
|
|
#
?
Mar 16, 2013 01:02
|
|
|
Malalol posted:How does it fit sizewise? Like...one size fits all cages type deal?? My little door opens are on the bottom of the cage..but theres also a seed catcher base so I dont think itll fit mine...
|
|
#
?
Mar 16, 2013 01:22
|
|
|
Thanks to this post: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3537719&userid=0&perpage=40&pagenumber=11#post413467558 , the replies, and some googling around, I just now discovered that cutting the tails of (pet) birds is a thing Thankfully my short search indicated it's more of an outdated thing, and most results were recommending against it or telling people they were idiots for doing it, but... who does that in the first place?
|
|
#
?
Mar 16, 2013 03:15
|
|
|
Cutting tails...what is the point?  The parrot store in the next town over had Aviator Harnesses! Ozzy is gonna hate me 
|
|
#
?
Mar 16, 2013 22:45
|
|
|
My username, and my bottle of Chardonnay, just inspired me to start an A/T thread -- [ASK] Me about being a bird! Like, a thread about parrots and bird ownership, from the perspective of a green cheek conure. I'm not going to do it but I'm pretty sure it is loving brilliant.
|
|
#
?
Mar 16, 2013 23:36
|
|
|
every answer: FK YOU IM A CONURE I DO WUT I WANT POOP IN WATER PELLET SOUP BITE THE HELL OUTTA YA WRECK YO EARDRUMS FK YOU IM A CONURE now cuddle me
|
|
#
?
Mar 17, 2013 00:47
|
|
|
I'm betting most of you here have heard of Hatoful Boyfriend, the pigeon dating sim. If you haven't, here you go. Anyway, apparently the author is doing some kind of sequel and has put out a call asking for bird photos. So if any of you would like to try and get your birds into a bird dating sim, have at it. The first one was a pretty funny game.
|
|
#
?
Mar 17, 2013 03:44
|
|
|
OH MY GOD YES
|
|
#
?
Mar 17, 2013 04:01
|
|
|
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKHidGibr1E Jack taking a bath
|
|
#
?
Mar 17, 2013 06:16
|
|
|
Corgi posted:I'm betting most of you here have heard of Hatoful Boyfriend, the pigeon dating sim. If you haven't, here you go. OMG WHO WANTS A QUAKER HATOFUL FINN?!?! I DO I DO I DO! 
|
|
#
?
Mar 17, 2013 10:09
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 7, 2024 21:51 |
|
|
Oh my god I'm going to send them all the parrot pictures, ESPECIALLY conures and cockatiels. Also a hornbill and/or toucan because no game is complete without those.
|
|
#
?
Mar 17, 2013 11:10
|
|