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Post by aaron on Nov 10, 2015 18:28:51 GMT -5
By nature, I'm an anxious person as well, and I can assure you, these birds can tell when you are struggling. They can be understanding, but it can also seriously exacerbate any behavioral problems you may be having with them. As long as they aren't the source of your anxiety, it probably won't be an issue, but beware the spiral of letting bird behavior inspire your anxiety, because it almost always leads to an increase in whatever behavior is causing a problem. I've been through some rough patches as a result of this phenomenon, but it is manageable-- you just need to remember to breathe, and keep things in perspective.
At any rate, that doesn't sound like what you're going through right now, and I'm sorry to hear you're struggling with anxiety. It can be horrible. Breathing exercises have helped me more than I ever could have imagined they would. Worth a shot. Yoga and stretching too.
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Post by biteybird on Nov 12, 2015 2:45:58 GMT -5
Do you know definitely that it's anxiety you're experiencing (and not a physical cause)? Don't answer if you don't want to. It's just that, in my experience, there are many symptoms that doctors (at least here in Australia) seem keen to put down to 'anxiety' because a physical diagnosis is elusive.
It sounds as though you are doing very well with Byron and have developed a great rapport with each other. I hope you feel better soon. As Aaron says, anxiety can be horrible - it can even feel as though you're about to expire on the spot...so maybe try to trick your mind into switching off when it needs to, and try different breathing & mindfulness techniques (they can really help).
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Post by beccilouise on Nov 12, 2015 4:14:48 GMT -5
Thank you both for your advice. I've had depression and anxiety before now and have struggled with both ever since. I guess you can never be 100% sure it's a mental issue, but I have no other health symptoms and recognise the feelings that come with panic attacks from prior experience. I'm able to manage it, just sometimes it gets the better of me. Byron's behaviour is very much calming down. He has a loud shout for about 4 minutes on a weekend morning around 10 o'clock. (He may well do that on weekdays as well, but I'm at work by that time) but other than that, he just quacks and squeaks and is generally very good natured. He sits on my shoulder and walks with me around the house and is happy to sit on top of his cage or play with his toys while my partner and I are in the room.
The anxiety seems to be ebbing a little for the moment and I've been able to eat again. There are lots of things (all of them good) happening in my life right now, Byron is one of them, and I think I just get scared that I'm going to lose all the good things I have. I'm aware it's pointless and impractical to feel that way. I'm on medication, which is helping, and have started meditating to help calm the panic attacks. We are starting to try clicker training with Byron just for something fun for him to do and he's been quite happy to sit on my shoulder and preen his feathers while I write and read poetry. He has been a great source of inspiration for me!
I was wondering if any of you could give any advice on roughly what age your parrots have learned to talk? Is it worth actively trying to teach them or will they pick things up on their own?
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Post by biteybird on Nov 12, 2015 5:25:40 GMT -5
We brought Bonnie home at 8 weeks old, straight from the breeder. By 10 weeks of age she'd learnt to say "Good girl" and "Hello" shortly after, without too much effort from us. She is now nearly 2 and can say quite a few words/phrases, but since her hormones kicked in she doesn't seem to talk as much. But we never really set out to teach her to talk, particularly. These birds are very clever and many will just pick up words (but some others never do). It just depends on the bird and also on how much time you are willing to spend on a consistent basis. Byron is sure to provide a lot of poetic material for you...and there are LOTS of funny stories provided by forum members that could give you ideas for new material!  |
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Post by aaron on Nov 12, 2015 11:10:31 GMT -5
I can certainly relate to pointless and impractical worrying. At any rate, sounds like you and Byron are working through it together quite nicely!
Most QPs start talking quite early. Usually within a matter of months... and generally they pick the words up on their own, although I'm sure teaching them early often has a positive effect on future vocabulary. That said, some never talk. Our QP, Cupcake, is 4.5 years old and does not talk. I suspect she never will, as she just doesn't seem motivated to do so. She makes all kinds of other noises, and laughs enthusiastically and with appropriate timing... but no interest in words.
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Post by beccilouise on Nov 12, 2015 12:42:49 GMT -5
haha, ok. It doesn't bother me massively if he never talks, I just know that sometimes incessant talking can replace screaming. I was also wondering if anyone had problems with their birds during adolescence, or with sexual maturity and the behavior related to that? I've got a good book that gives me advice but was just wondering about the reactions of various individual birds and what I can expect? Thanks for the advice you've given me already |
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Post by rickygonzalez on Nov 12, 2015 13:03:08 GMT -5
I got Sonic at about one year old, he did not talk when I got him. I did try to get him to whistle first, which he did in a few weeks. Then I worked on saying hello, which took a week or two before I heard him say it. After that he just began picking up words on his own. As the others have said, not all Quakers talk, but most do. I'll bet within the next few months you'll be posting a Byron speaks thread.... Lol
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Post by julianna on Nov 12, 2015 14:35:47 GMT -5
When Oscar goes into heat he will first become more aggressive. Like attacking my hand for no reason. When I see these things, I simply distract him or put him down. He wants to hump a sock I put on his toy and that is fine with me. He seems to go into heat twice a year and of course will be extremely protective of his stuff. If anyone uses the bathroom he screams until I bring him in there to show him that no one touched his drawer of face cloths... lol. What a bird.
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Post by aaron on Nov 12, 2015 15:00:46 GMT -5
haha, ok. It doesn't bother me massively if he never talks, I just know that sometimes incessant talking can replace screaming. I was also wondering if anyone had problems with their birds during adolescence, or with sexual maturity and the behavior related to that? I've got a good book that gives me advice but was just wondering about the reactions of various individual birds and what I can expect? Thanks for the advice you've given me already Yes, it varies, but you can be sure you'll experience a change in personality when sexual maturity hits. They will become more aggressive, more possessive and/or jealous, more nesting-oriented, sexual behaviors will emerge, and they will be generally more intense, because they suddenly have a pressing biological agenda... They may also decide to pick a favorite individual and defend them against others. It will ebb and flow throughout the year, but they lose that anything-goes baby demeanor and it never fully returns, although in well managed (and lucky?) cases, it can be fairly low impact. It definitely varies in intensity from bird to bird, but in all cases there are certain things you can do to help. The most important thing is maintaining an appropriate sleep schedule-- they should get 10-12 hours of uninterrupted darkness every day, probably closer to 12, especially if you are trying to reduce hormonal behavior. Also, don't get in the habit of stroking the bird's back. Rubs below the neck can be misinterpreted as an advance  There are a number of threads on this subject around these parts as well. |
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Post by beccilouise on Nov 12, 2015 15:23:22 GMT -5
great, thanks for the advice! If I condition him early in terms of rules of household life, do you think that will reduce the intensity of mating behavior? I guess I'm just worried it'll last for ages and I won't be able to maintain a good relationship with him  I worry a ridiculous amount about totally pointless things. I've also been told feeding less protein and more raw veg is better, as well as making sure that rearrangement of toys in the cage happens frequently all year round to limit territorial displays. |
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Post by aaron on Nov 12, 2015 20:54:19 GMT -5
Early conditioning could help, but either way there's no need to worry. Just educate yourself as much as possible and be prepared, and you'll be fine. The key is not encouraging the wrong behavior in the first place-- if you handle things properly initially, there's a very good chance the whole thing will be pretty manageable. Going backwards is harder, but even that is very do-able. I'm certain your relationship with Byron will remain intact Another thing I would recommend is not allowing access to nest-like locations. Cupcake's hormones are quite mild at this point in time, but they used to be much worse when she had a tent. Personally, I don't allow the use of happy huts or anything like that for this reason, but some people find them to be okay. |
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Post by beccilouise on Nov 13, 2015 3:06:56 GMT -5
Ah, that makes sense. Byron has some chew toys and perches in his cage, but nothing next like or covered. He is very happy with his sleeping perch. I've also read that sometimes allowing a bird to perch on your shoulder, or higher than you, can give them the impression that they have achieved dominance. Has anyone else found shoulder perching to cause behaviour problems in their birds?
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Post by rickygonzalez on Nov 13, 2015 12:52:20 GMT -5
That's a great question... I don't know about all parrots, but quaker colonies have a very lose pecking order at best. I have had 3 quakers in my life, all of whom perched on my shoulder with no problems. Having said that, it is a problem for some individual quakers as they mature. In my opinion riding on my shoulder is a privilege, not a right... So, if Sonic was aggressive while riding on my shoulder he would lose shoulder privileges for a while, and if the aggression was severe enough maybe he'd lose them permanently.
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Post by beccilouise on Nov 13, 2015 13:41:10 GMT -5
ok, thanks I have been employing the 'earthquake' technique with Byron if he nibbles my ear or my nails and have been accompanying it with the word 'no' so that he learn what it means. He is not biting at the moment, but I know that nibbling is exploratory and can turn into biting later. I let him preen me, but tell him 'no' if he gets too close to my eyes. He is a very sweet, docile little bird and has fitted well into family life so far. I have started clicker training him today, just getting him used to the sound of the clicker and trying to get him to associate it with food. Even sat on my shoulder, he isn't higher than my line of sight and he's been very quick to learn that he's not in charge. I know he's a baby now, so he will more easily accept dominance than when he's older. All these tips have been so useful. Thanks so much! I have one other question. My partner and I also have a little pet bunny rabbit called Cleo. She is two years old. I know that mammals can carry diseases that are fatal to birds, so I am METICULOUS about cleaning my hands before and after I handle pets, and also changing my shirt if I've cuddled Cleo and want to cuddle Byron. They don't live in the same room. Cleo has a sofa that she is allowed to sit on with us in the evenings and Byron is not allowed on that sofa. I was just wondering what other people's mixed-pet routines are like and whether their pets interact/play/watch each other? I don't really want Byron and Cleo physically interacting because I think it would be stressful for them both, but I was wondering if, for example, Byron would be alright watching Cleo run around from his cage or something? |
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Post by aaron on Nov 13, 2015 13:51:30 GMT -5
Yeah, I don't think you need to worry about the height dominance thing too much. I have not observed that behavior at all in my time with Cupcake, and she rides around on shoulders all the time. I think this applies more to the bigger birds, whose eyes are actually above yours when they stand up straight on your shoulder. Even then, I think there is some debate as to whether the height-dominance connection is a real thing. I could be wrong though. At any rate, Ricky has the right idea -- shoulder time is a priviledge, and if they misbehave on the shoulder they should be immediately put back on their cage. The earthquake method works too.
I don't personally have any experience with mixed-pet environments... but perhaps the others can help. It sounds like you are being careful, and that's good.
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There are a number of threads on this subject around these parts as well.
I worry a ridiculous amount about totally pointless things. I've also been told feeding less protein and more raw veg is better, as well as making sure that rearrangement of toys in the cage happens frequently all year round to limit territorial displays.