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Post by siobhan on Nov 2, 2015 11:03:42 GMT -5
Found Benjy on Clyde's "front porch" lying down on his tummy. He flew over and landed on my hand, awkwardly, and immediately laid on his tummy again. So I examined him and sure enough, he has a bitten foot. He was holding it up so it was almost entirely concealed in his feathers and wouldn't let me look at it other than what I could see pushing feathers aside. He refuses to put that foot down. He has a shelf in his cage and after I looked him over -- and of course, it was a Sunday night -- I put him in his cage on his shelf and shut his door so he could rest without having to contend with the others bothering him, particularly Maggie, who for some reason thinks his cage is her fort. I went out to the storeroom where poor Trixie's empty cage is, and I got the flat platform perch out of it that I bought for her and I put that in Benjy's cage in case he wanted to use it instead of his wire shelf. He didn't. He stayed on that shelf all evening and at bedtime, he tried to go sleep on his usual sleeping perch and couldn't balance and ended up clinging to his cage, so I put him back on his shelf. He was there this morning, but he's a little perkier. He chirped at me and sat up a little more than yesterday. I don't KNOW it was Jade, but biting toes is her favorite mean thing to do. Benjy already has a couple of crippled toes from previous events, and I tried moving him into Ringo's room once because he won't stay away from Jade, like all the others have learned to do. But that upset Ringo AND Benjy and they were so unhappy that I put him back into the Birdcage. The good news is that in previous events, Benjy healed fast and was back to his old self in a day or so. I left his cage door locked this morning when I let the others out so that he could have today to rest, too. If he's up to it, I'll let him out this evening when I can be there to supervise. Poor little guy. I moved his food and water dishes so he can reach them more easily from his shelf.
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Post by aaron on Nov 2, 2015 13:13:17 GMT -5
Aww, poor little guy. Darn it Jade! It's so sad to think of him lying there on his tummy  |
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Post by siobhan on Nov 2, 2015 14:51:39 GMT -5
I know that Jade's behavior is a manifestation of her troubled past. There's no point in getting annoyed with her over it. And she's much improved from when she first joined the family. I just wish I could get it through that thick budgie skull that he must stay out of reach. Nobody else, even Maggie -- and Maggie is a dear sweet pidgie but not very bright -- will get within Jade's reach. She defers to Clyde alone, and even Clyde won't sit on her cage. He has occasionally stepped off onto her outside perch when I'm cleaning and he's on my shoulder, but he immediately flies off to the boing or his own cage. Yet in spite of all the times Jade has bitten Benjy's toes and pulled out his tail feathers and even sometimes holds him upside down by the tail and shakes him (I've caught her at that, and when I say "JADE!" she lets him go), still he won't stay away from her.
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Post by aaron on Nov 2, 2015 15:06:37 GMT -5
That really is suprising that he doesn't learn. Where is his prey-instinct? Stay away from the malicious bird, Benjy!  |
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Post by Jan and Shah on Nov 2, 2015 15:24:17 GMT -5
Poor little Benjy. He must be in love with her to put himself through this time and time again. I cant blame Jade. I see the cockatiels on Shah's cage and, if he is in the cage, the first thing he does is try to bite their toes. They do the same back to him when he is on their cage (that is, if their screaming doesn't chase him away). Hope he recovers soon and that damage is minimal.
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Post by siobhan on Nov 2, 2015 16:00:08 GMT -5
Clyde is his hero and he follows him around like a puppy, but he also worships Jade. The tiels and Maggie are inconsequential, though he does buzz Maggie like a tiny blue fighter jet if she's on my lap. If she's not, he ignores her existence.
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Post by siobhan on Nov 5, 2015 11:16:52 GMT -5
Benjy's doing better, though still not using that leg. He had to spend most of his time in his cage the last few days when I wasn't home, but this morning I let him out when I let the rest out. We'll see how he does. Not getting any exercise is probably not good for him, either, and he does like to buzz around the room.
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Post by aaron on Nov 5, 2015 11:25:45 GMT -5
Poor little guy. Glad he's doing better.
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Post by biteybird on Nov 6, 2015 1:22:40 GMT -5
Poor Benjy, we hope his foot gets better soon...tell him 'personal space' is a must!
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Post by Jan and Shah on Nov 6, 2015 3:11:36 GMT -5
How's he going now?
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Post by siobhan on Nov 6, 2015 12:05:15 GMT -5
He's lots better. I told you he heals fast. He was using his foot in a limited way last night and felt froggy enough to buzz Maggie when she wanted to sit on my lap. It'll be a couple of weeks, probably, before he's back to his version of normal, but he's coming along nicely.
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