Tweedle Posted August 10, 2010 Share Posted August 10, 2010 aaaargh little panic here. I've just seen Pippa carefully rip off a section of newspaper, slowly carry it to her water bowl, dunk it several times, and then eat and swallow it. ?!?!?!?! Dietary inadequacy?? Making paper mache for nest building?? ?!?!?!?! I've never noticed her do this before. I imagine this could cause problems (impaction?), should I remove all newspaper? What could she be wanting to eat? Bearing in mind today I have given her sprouts, walnuts, pine nuts, but she won't touch anything other than the Harrisons. *bemused* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave007 Posted August 10, 2010 Share Posted August 10, 2010 If your cage has a grating, it's best to use it in the cage. Many birds will go to the tray and eat many different things, some good, some bad such as food that's stuck to feces. If the newspaper was in the cage above the grating area, then the newspaper should be removed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweedle Posted August 10, 2010 Author Share Posted August 10, 2010 There is a grating for this cage, which I haven't used for some time as she seems to do better (poorly feet) on the flat surface, and I thought foraging on the bottom was a natural behaviour to encourage (as long as v.clean). When the grate was down there, she was still able to pull the paper through if she wanted to......I've just never seen her eat it before :eek: Guess I may have to reconsider.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birdnut Posted August 10, 2010 Share Posted August 10, 2010 Could you leave the paper off the bottom tray and just keep it cleaned off as well as possible? I wonder if that would work. I can imagine the grating would be a problem for Pippa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave007 Posted August 10, 2010 Share Posted August 10, 2010 Feces of all types contain ingredients that will eat into the finish of any metal it lingers on. On some cages it causes eventual rust when the paint is very thin. That also applies to fecal matter that's gets on clothes, furniture. If feces isn't taken off of those items instantly, a permanent bleached out stain will remain for good. Birds excrete fecal matter all day long which is one of the reasons that a cover/catcher is needed. Other things also fall into the tray. Many things cause bacteria to develop. A bird who's splashing around in a bowl will soak the tray and there needs to be something there to partially absorb it. You can try something other than newspaper if that makes you feel better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted August 11, 2010 Share Posted August 11, 2010 Are you sure she is actually eating it for Josey will tear up paper and sometimes roll a piece of it around in her beak for a while before she drops it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave007 Posted August 11, 2010 Share Posted August 11, 2010 (edited) I agree with Judy as far as the actual eating. I don't think I ever saw a bird eat newspaper but I have seen birds who put things in their mouth and after a while, it seems like they've swallowed it. One of my greys likes to take a feather, partially grey, partially fluffy white. He puts in his mouth and wets it up and starts to roll it in the upper beak. Sometimes I don;t see it for a long time. The only thing I see is the upper and lower beaks slightly moving and I see a tiny part of his tongue but no feather. Much later on, I see a very tiny ball at the tip of the beak and just like that it's gone. He's dropped it although I don't see him doing that. So just maybe, he didn't swallow it. Parrots rarely eat foreign objects with the intention of swallowing them. The only other possiblity is that he came across some very exciting news on that paper and simply didn't wanna let you in on it. Maybe concealing the evidence? Lottery numbers? Edited August 11, 2010 by Dave007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted August 11, 2010 Share Posted August 11, 2010 LOL Dave! Loved the "Concealment Theory". You hit on something I see Dayo do all the time. After he has finished eating something that I assume left some residual matter in the beaks upper cavity like a soft food. He will rip a piece of paper plate off if I have one, chew on it until it fits in that beak area as a little ball and I suppose after the "Matter" has been dislodged, I see him at some point let that little paper ball drop. I thought he was eating the paper plate at first until watching long enough a few times to see that little ball drop. If that didn't clean it, I also watch him use a talon and jam it up into that cavity and flick at it. I can only imagine what it feels like to them, to have something stuck in that cavity. Probably similar to something stuck in our teeth. I know...... always anthropomorphizing ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janfromboone Posted August 13, 2010 Share Posted August 13, 2010 I've seen Tobie do the something similar with the roll of paper I put in his cage for him to shred. He tears off a peice. Dips it in water and then seems to make a ball of it and squeeze the water out of it in his beak almost like he is drinking the water from the paper wad. He then drops the paper in his water dish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweedle Posted August 13, 2010 Author Share Posted August 13, 2010 I shall keep looking for any dollops of newspaper deposited around the cage.....and perhaps unroll them for the lottery numbers or whatever she's trying to hide Simon is convinced she's eating it, so the grating has gone back on. I'll get more time to watch her again this weekend. Other than that, her crop is filling and emptying (though she has plucked it a bit, grrrrr) and she's pooping normally, so I shall stop flapping now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweedle Posted August 13, 2010 Author Share Posted August 13, 2010 She's still pulling the newspaper through the grating...hmmm. New tactic - have provided rice paper! Something to shred and swallow. What do you reckon? Will have to wait and see what she makes of it..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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