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Help  Marceline has started plucking at her chest feathers and I don't know what to do about it. Nothing has changed in her routine, nothing's different, same amount of sleep and light and food and stuff. She has lots of toys that she never plays with and stuff. I don't know what happened or how to fix it
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Apr 4, 2013 12:12
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| # ? Jun 8, 2024 21:40 |
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Has she been doing it a few times/for a while, or has it only just started? Maybe it could be related to Marshal harassing her a bit, from your last post? Has anything in her environment changed, from new furniture to new haircuts to new curtains or whatever?
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Apr 4, 2013 16:18
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQIc01onTNY&hd=1 El birdo playing with my hoody. Originally he was doing his death shake thing they use to break up fruit and murder smaller birds to the fabric. The second he heard the camera click on though he had no interest. Took 5 minutes of coaxing to get him to play with it. And just after I was thinking how well he's been doing flying back to the cage to poop he took a big juicy blueberry turd on the seat.
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Apr 4, 2013 17:37
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Amaya posted:Help Perhaps Marshall has something to do with it? A new bird in the mix is a big environment changer. Could also be a skin issue vs. feather plucking. Might want to have the vet take a look at her skin and perhaps to some sort of biopsy to rule out any kind of skin affliction.
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Apr 4, 2013 17:54
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H110Hawk posted:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQIc01onTNY&hd=1 The "double tap" of bird pooping. This literally happened to me last night. Edit: Except I was the seat. Marshmallow Blue fucked around with this message at 18:26 on Apr 4, 2013 |
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Apr 4, 2013 18:01
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It could also be an awkward molting and she's looking absolutely hideous because of it. It's when they pick the new feathers out as they're still growing that I'd start being concerned.
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Apr 4, 2013 18:23
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Battle Pigeon posted:Has she been doing it a few times/for a while, or has it only just started? Maybe it could be related to Marshal harassing her a bit, from your last post? Has anything in her environment changed, from new furniture to new haircuts to new curtains or whatever? She's plucked once before but it was just a feather or two and I shifted all of her toys around and stuff and she stopped. All three of them go back and forth of hating each other and loving each other. The past while they've been friendly to each other. He doesn't rub against her so much anymore, she gave him a squawk and nip a few days ago and he settled down. Before I forced them apart myself but it seems like all he needed was a good STOP THAT nip from Marci to quit it. No new furniture, no new hair or curtains or anything. No new diet, no new wake up time, nothing. SaNChEzZ posted:Perhaps Marshall has something to do with it? A new bird in the mix is a big environment changer. Could also be a skin issue vs. feather plucking. Might want to have the vet take a look at her skin and perhaps to some sort of biopsy to rule out any kind of skin affliction. He could but we've had him for two months now and I feel like if there was any problem with OMG A NEW BIRD gently caress THIS it would have happened earlier than now. I'm also not going to rush to the vet right away and eat a 200+ bill for something that might not be right. Official Bizness posted:It could also be an awkward molting and she's looking absolutely hideous because of it. It's when they pick the new feathers out as they're still growing that I'd start being concerned. The only reason I'm worried about it as plucking as opposed to molting is that she's not ripping them out all at once, she's ripping them out in chunks. Like shredding them. Also she plucked a small spot on her chest bare. I can't remember her ever having a real proper 'molt' though. She'll lose a tail feather or flight feather or two at once but that's the most I've ever noticed at one time. I've been reading around and saw that humidity might have something to do with it and that giving your bird a bath every day will help keep them cool and moist and that it also gives them something to preen instead of pluck. I also made/rearranged toys in her cage and shifted her to get some more sunlight. I'm curious if it could be related to hormones or something? She's three years old, went through a two month period of being a huge bitch and has been being really clingy to Zomo lately. I read that sometimes birds pluck out their feathers to make nests? Could she be trying to do that since there's no nesting material in her cage? I feel really bad that she's not happy with something and is plucking because of it
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Apr 4, 2013 19:05
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I wondered about the nesting material idea too but thought if she's not showing any other nesty behaviours, then probably not. Does she play with anything at all, in or out of her cage, even if it's not strictly a toy? Especially shreddable things like kitchen roll, brown paper/newspaper, a toilet roll tube, popsicle stick, straw still in paper wrapping, a book... basically things that could redirect her damaging feathers to damaging other materials. Maybe if she's food motivated then foraging toys she'd have to work at, either through chewing though them or working them out.
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Apr 5, 2013 00:05
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I definitely don't have the ability to bake bread out of pellets, so that's not an option. They generally only eat crunchy food too, so I don't think mush will work. I just ran a mix of 50/50 Zupreem and Harrison's through the food processor so at least they are all the same tiny pulverized size, making it a lot harder for them to dig out what was the much larger and visually attractive Zupreem pellets. Let's hope this works. I've been supplementing with a tablespoon of fresh minced vegetables daily so they are at least guaranteed to be getting something to eat, but I'm not sure how long I should let this go before giving up and calling it a loss. Since they were already on pellets, I didn't expect the transition to be this difficult. Even Bruce, who normally eats almost anything, spits the Harrison's out when I hand feed it to him.
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Apr 5, 2013 00:49
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Pellet conversation is making me think I'm a bad bird parent. I just refused to give Rosy and Amadeus anything else (including plate scraps, which is where they get fruits and veggies and bits of protein) until they began eating the pellets. Now both cockatiel and conure delve into bowls of pellets when they're hungry -- they still beg and steal (it's more fun for them that way  ) bits of supper, and adore millet, but they certainly have the "whoo, dinner-time" attitude to ZuPreem.
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Apr 5, 2013 01:51
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Actually yeah, can you give a more specific recipe about your pellet bread? Did you use a bread machine or just roll some dough with a bunch of pellets and fruit and stuff and plop it in the oven.
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Apr 5, 2013 03:09
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LITERALLY A BIRD posted:Pellet conversation is making me think I'm a bad bird parent. I just refused to give Rosy and Amadeus anything else (including plate scraps, which is where they get fruits and veggies and bits of protein) until they began eating the pellets. Now both cockatiel and conure delve into bowls of pellets when they're hungry -- they still beg and steal (it's more fun for them that way This is exactly what I did with mickey. I was Britain to his Gandhi. He came around to pellets after a bit.
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Apr 5, 2013 04:52
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Huh, my standard routine is that the bird gets big pellets overnight, oatmeal for breakfast, then a daytime bowl of smaller pellets with fresh fruit, and peas or corn at dinner. Wouldn't think to give him pellets for dinner. In the process of probably getting some foraging toys, but we'll see if he actually touches those. Also he is completely unfazed by seeds or millet. He'll eat a few sunflower seeds if we throw them in the dish, but he really is not a food-motivated bird. Which of course means that even if we wanted to try teaching Parkinson's the Parrot to do tricks, we'd have to do it through reward with physical contact. But I actually saw him take a nap on one foot the other day! I haven't seen him do that since he got sick. It's been amazing to see how much he's recovered over the past 11-12ish years since he survived a bout with wasting disease.
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Apr 5, 2013 05:00
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Marshmallow Blue posted:Actually yeah, can you give a more specific recipe about your pellet bread? Did you use a bread machine or just roll some dough with a bunch of pellets and fruit and stuff and plop it in the oven. No need for a bread machine, just the oven. Most birdie bread uses cornbread as a base. This is the recipe I use: quote:Basic Birdie Bread I make a couple modifications to this recipe, though. Instead of using baby cereal I use pellets. You can either try to crush them up, or moisten them and then blend into the baby food. And you can add a lot more veggies then just a cup and a half. I'll puree some of the veggies and chop up the rest. Also, I skip the spirulina because I'm too lazy to find where to buy it.
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Apr 5, 2013 08:50
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This morning, the cockatiels were like, "Oh, daddy has a hangover? No fucks are given..."  Birds. AvianPundit fucked around with this message at 16:26 on Apr 5, 2013 |
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Apr 5, 2013 16:22
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Oh my god a friend just posted this in a local group:  They're like two tiny potatoes aaa.  I was lucky, both Sunny and Cheeky are greedy bastards (which is a good thing for birds), and the moment I dumped all the seeds out and replaced them with pellets they chowed down like nothing changed. Now I use sunflower seeds and walnuts for training, and millet I bring out on bird outings when we're outdoors because holy poo poo is that a messy food. Also now when I'm using my computer and my hand is on my mouse and Sunny is on my shoulder, he will sort of inch down my arm until he reaches the table, then nibble my hand/rest his head on my hand depending on his mood until I stop holding the mouse and give him scritches and he becomes super fluffy and does the whole conure satisfied head turn and yawn thing, oh god he is adorable. Ever since there was a day where I basically put Cheeky on my shoulder and played with him for hours, now he will keep flying down and walking around the house until he finds me, he used to be pretty content on his cage and the window grills. That means I have to close his cage door when we're busy now for his safety, although on the bright side he loves me more and lets other people pet him without doing the male cockatiel WREEEEEE thing at them.
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Apr 5, 2013 17:52
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My friend has a soda machine. Her grey Kinshasa likes the fizzy water. She gets excited when she sees my friend leaning towards it and make the 'pffft' sound it makes when she sees this. The soda stream is next to the kitchen table. The sum of all these details is a bird that makes fart noises whenever guests lean over during dinner.
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Apr 5, 2013 20:00
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I tried to teach my Grey that. Not quite there yet. He does however give the raspberry, which sounds like a fart, in the right context most of the time. His favorite bodily function noise is the burp. He does these long deep beer belches. Then he mimics exhaling. BUUUUUUUUURP. Whew! He also does, in proper sequence, a bad cough, a sneeze, and then the honking noise of someone blowing their nose. *cough cough cough couuuugh* *achoooo* *honnnnnk*
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Apr 6, 2013 01:02
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Charlie's cage is next to the bathroom so his noises of choice are farts and running water. He also does sneezes and hacking coughs. He also knows some bird calls from the sparrows and other birds that chill in the big tree in back of my apartment but of course he never does those when company is over.
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Apr 6, 2013 02:38
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This happened the other week. This is the reason why Iro isn't allowed on the bed when I'm asleep. Stupid loving bird. uglynoodles fucked around with this message at 03:50 on Apr 6, 2013 |
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Apr 6, 2013 03:45
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uglynoodles posted:This happened the other week. This is the reason why Iro isn't allowed on the bed when I'm asleep.
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Apr 6, 2013 03:48
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uglynoodles posted:This happened the other week. This is the reason why Iro isn't allowed on the bed when I'm asleep.
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Apr 6, 2013 03:48
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I'm sorry for your trauma, but that comic is excellent. 
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Apr 6, 2013 04:28
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Oh my god. I wish I could hand out gold stars. Wait, I totally can.
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Apr 6, 2013 07:47
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Maybe that answers your question about whether Marshall's randiness is normal for baby birds, Amaya. 
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Apr 6, 2013 13:46
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LITERALLY A BIRD posted:Maybe that answers your question about whether Marshall's randiness is normal for baby birds, Amaya. Yeah if ONLY it was just when I was sleeping. My comic would be more like "oh you're typing? HOLYSHIT THAT'S THE HOTTEST THING LIKE EVER. You're watching tv? I'M SO WET RIGHT NOW. washing your hands? TAKE IT TAKE IT TAKE IT TAKE IT." He's a tiny bird rapist that strikes when you least expect him to :I
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Apr 6, 2013 13:52
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uglynoodles posted:This happened the other week. This is the reason why Iro isn't allowed on the bed when I'm asleep. This is wonderful. I'm glad Ohtori isn't interested in either of us anymore... just Steve on occasion, and my partner's mother.
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Apr 6, 2013 14:13
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One of those rare sunny days in Manchester. Windows were open for sun and fresh air. Forgot windows were open. Iro spooked at something insignificant. Iro flew out. Iro kept flying. She's a lot stronger of a flier than I thought. At first she flew up to the second storey balconies, then launched off over the parking lot and disappeared from view behind a building, where I heard two sharp shrieks, then nothing. I figured a cat had got her. Boyfriend and I ran round the other side of the block to where she'd got to, expecting the worst. She was plopped on the sidewalk, shuddering and wings drooping, but completely unharmed. She was all too happy to come up onto our arms, and has spent the past half hour glued to my neck and trembling once we got back inside. She won't stop rubbing her head all over my neck and hands. Iro, I promise not to be such a loving moron ever again.  She seems to be OK now. She went home for a snack and is now stuffing her fat face full of fruit and broccoli. Christ. Phew. Also just saw the avatar, hahahaha, thanks guys. uglynoodles fucked around with this message at 18:06 on Apr 6, 2013 |
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Apr 6, 2013 18:01
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Why don't you have any screens in your windows?
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Apr 6, 2013 18:37
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Oh drat, you're lucky. Losing a bird out the window is one of my worst fears, they have to be definitely in their cages before any windows are allowed to be opened-especially since when Ohtori spooks, he flies up, towards the tilted opening. I forget, is Iro clipped? And yeah, screens would be good. We're waiting on some ourselves. Glad nothing happened to her though and that she's okay.
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Apr 6, 2013 19:04
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Are screens not a thing in Europe? I don't think I've lived anywhere that didn't have them in the US.
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Apr 6, 2013 19:12
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Joe Don Baker posted:Why don't you have any screens in your windows? I don't know, they're not designed that way? Also it's Manchester. You open the windows maybe... ... Twice a year or something. Also yes, Iro IS clipped and she still managed to get that high and far. I've resolved never to make that mistake again. It just won't happen. Pre-window bird checks must now be made. I'm not going to be that dumb again. uglynoodles fucked around with this message at 19:28 on Apr 6, 2013 |
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Apr 6, 2013 19:24
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Slaughterhouse-Ive posted:Are screens not a thing in Europe? I don't think I've lived anywhere that didn't have them in the US. Not really in the UK, in my experience.
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Apr 6, 2013 19:38
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Oh lordie that's terrifying.  Count me as another in the bird-out-window-worst-fear camp. I'm glad nothing permanent came of it... I'm at work and can't snuggle Ama, so give Iro another cuddle on my behalf.
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Apr 6, 2013 19:43
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Well of course she made a break for it. You weren't satisfying her NEEDS. 
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Apr 7, 2013 00:10
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 Repost from the PYF gif thread. Thought it would be appreciated here.
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Apr 7, 2013 03:40
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Oh. My. Derpatiel :3
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Apr 7, 2013 03:48
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Marshall does that poo poo all the time now. Front flips all over the goddamn place haha. I'm glad Iro wasn't hurt but be way more careful next time :x No birds being eaten by cats in this thread! I've already almost running kicked someone out of our house because he was leaving and wasn't closing the door fast enough (There's kind of a straight shot from the living room where the day cage is to the front door) pfff. Birds flying and stuff.
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Apr 7, 2013 07:47
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My upstairs neighbor has several noisy birds; I haven't seen them, but it sounds like African Greys, Cockatiels, etc. I'm guessing he has about 5 or 6 up there. They scream and make a huge racket all day, which sucks for us since he's almost never home to shush them. On weekends, when he is around, he sometimes gets really angry at them when they start making noise - screams at them, hits their cages, throws things, then eventually runs downstairs and leaves the apartment. This has been getting more and more frequent over the past few months. Should I be worried about the safety for these birds, and consider calling Animal Welfare?
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Apr 7, 2013 16:46
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| # ? Jun 8, 2024 21:40 |
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Toebone posted:My upstairs neighbor has several noisy birds; I haven't seen them, but it sounds like African Greys, Cockatiels, etc. I'm guessing he has about 5 or 6 up there. They scream and make a huge racket all day, which sucks for us since he's almost never home to shush them. On weekends, when he is around, he sometimes gets really angry at them when they start making noise - screams at them, hits their cages, throws things, then eventually runs downstairs and leaves the apartment. This has been getting more and more frequent over the past few months. Should I be worried about the safety for these birds, and consider calling Animal Welfare?  Frankly though, you can try placing an anonymous call/tip to Animal Welfare, but I really doubt that they can do anything, they're usually don't take pets away unless there've been really serious cases of abuse, like if he's literally causing open wounds on his pet birds. Then again depends where you live, they might be a bit on the ball down there.Wtf why would anyone keep a parrot if they're that short tempered and not willing to take care of them. 
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Apr 7, 2013 17:19
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