murfchck Posted March 5, 2014 Author Share Posted March 5, 2014 Funny how the sweetest, cuddliest, most loveable bird are such pests! We can not keep Lilly on her stand anymore. When Gus did this to us, we did a slight wing clip and he stopped for the most part. Of course he was flying at us and biting my neck, she is just flying to the floor, or jumping at me when i walk by with Gus. Solved the jumping by not walking past her with Gus. Last night she whined her way into daddy bringing her into the kitchen with me to help get dinner going, she played so nice. We played with a towel, peek a boo, tug of war and then i got brave and tried to trim her nails. She was an angel and let me, i was shocked! I was so excited about it and Gus is so much calmer than she is i thought, why not give it a try with him. Yeah, he was not about to let me near his toes at all what so ever, so i did his head meds instead, he should have let me trim his toe nails!!! LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 We all have our limits, his is toenails. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted March 27, 2014 Author Share Posted March 27, 2014 It has been a while and i am sure you were thinking no news is good news, but this is a cockatoo we are talking about so still no good news. LOL Lily has been such a pill. She will not stay on her stand, or the second stand we put up for her, or the table or the chair. For that matter she will not stay in one place longer than 30 seconds. Getting anything done around here is impossible unless she is outside or in her cage. She fought with Gus, he lost and we are still doctoring his head, she drug our smallest chihuahua around the kitchen by her head and tried to get our other chihuahua last night when i walked outside for just one second. I don't think i even made it out the door before she was out of the bird room and into the living room in full attack mode. Later when we were cooking their dinner she jumped on Pat, like Gus use to do to me, and bit his head and then his hand when he reached for her. She got him right between the fingers. It seems she is only content when i have her swaddled like a baby and carry her around. Gus is now very happy and will play on his stand for hours on end, taking out all the eyehooks or destroying toys. Whats funny is that we thought bringing Lily into our home would help Gus with his antics, turns out Gus was a dream bird compared to Cujo, i mean Lily. lol Here is a typical day. I wake up feed the minpin so she can get her insulin shot, she also has an ulcer on her eye so she gets drops and then 5 minutes later an ointment, get everyone else fed and get ready for work. Come home get the birds out, pick Lily up, put her on the stand and reapeat this oh 20 times... Feed the dogs, do Daisys shot then drops then ointment. Then after the birds are in their cages, we bring Bubba out and clean his butt off and put on his preperation h, play with him a bit, then put him up and get Gus out. We clean his head, put on his ointment and play with him some. Take him back and give everyone their night night nuts and lower the lights and put them to bed for the night. Think we are done there? Nope, now i gotta cook us dinner, we eat and i go right to bed. Even with the extra daylight, there are not enough hours in the day!! And to think we have been offered to take over a bird sancuary that has several more birds, and the house we are looking at will come with several birds on its own...lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Embrace the crock pot, stuff some food in it before you leave and it will be done when you get back. I use it on those most hectic days, a chicken fits in just fine with some carrots & potato's,( don't be tempted to try Too in a pot). You can use it to make a bean & grain mix for the birds so their food is ready to go. Life with critters can be so much fun and so much work just like raising kids. Hope Gus heals faster and Lilly gets off her drama queen kick. Maybe a little time out for her would help? If you know she is going to look for trouble give her a soaking spray bath or shower before setting her out, a wet bird usually wants to groom for a while and is somewhat reduced in trouble seeking ability and interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 Yea, time out has been our only option. She loves baths, gets quite a few in our effort to stop the roaming, and her being wet doesn't stop her. The little dork dances when she is wet, then she gets on the floor and dances in circles ( it is hard not to laugh at her when she is doing this, we are trying to not say or do anything that would make her think it is okay. ) I don't think i even got to hold her yesterday except to put her back on her stand a few times before she went to her cage. I will say that i am 99% sure she is in "season", so keeping that in the back of the brain in hopes she will calm down again soooooon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Darn daylight legnth! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted March 30, 2014 Author Share Posted March 30, 2014 It was in nice out yesterday so Lilly went out to play, alllll day. She just loved it and didn't want to come back in. If the aviary had a roof and some protection, we would have left her outside. Because we only have two aviaries, we had to rotate the others. She bites the toes of the greys so until we make a space between the cages, they can't go out when she is out but the macaws backed her down when she came after them and she doesn't bother Gus's toes ( just his head). It got to both Toos out and the macaws running amuck all around the back yard, with Pat and i chasing them around. Bubba found the grill and decided the igniter switch wire is a great place to hang on, we told him "no" just once when he did it and now thats his game. Good times. Pat also took the hose and made it "rain" on them, first time i ever saw Lilly try to bathe in her water bowl. The tops of the cages are covered with bamboo so it dripped for a while and they both just loved it. Gus was grooming and wiggling his butt for the remainder of his time outside. Today, the greys get to go out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acappella Posted March 30, 2014 Share Posted March 30, 2014 It's funny, the day before you posted the Gus & Lilly update, I almost posted on this thread asking for one, but then, knowing how busy you are with the flock, I didn't. The next day I log on and there is the update I'd been longing for. I'm sorry Lilly has been such a pill lately. I don't know much about Too's, only what I learn here (and enough to know I'll never own one), but I think you are both wonderful for the time, attention, and love you lavish on your flock. If I lived closer I'd happily help. Also, I'm jealous of your weather. At the risk of re-inforcing Canadian stereotypes, we're still well covered in snow and it will be weeks yet until I can take Dorian outside in his travel cage for some sunlight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted March 31, 2014 Author Share Posted March 31, 2014 It was a beautiful sunny warm day again (sorry), then the winds kicked in but the birds didn't mind it. Lilly of course was outside and the greys were in the other one from noon until 5. Pat and i took the day off yesterday and did nothing but what laundry needed to be done for the work day today. Gus was out on his leash and the macaws were just running around getting into everything! Lilly is our hawk alarm and trust me when i say she hasn't missed one yet, in fact she tells the entire town. Who needs the storm alarms when you have a Lilly to guide the way? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 I am thinking that Gus just needs a helmet, would he select a Cowboys or a Texans logo on his? We do have to frag on our Texas Weather this time of year it has been very nice. More rain coming for my area mid week, we can use it. Love it when the birds all get into bathing a sprinkler works great as do those little fine misters you can attach to your hose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted April 1, 2014 Author Share Posted April 1, 2014 Yeah, rain heading here too, tomorrow thru Thursday. That kinda sucks for the birds, Lilly the most. She WILL not stay on her stand and when it is her or my ankles, the ankles win and she ends up in the cage. Time for tuff love, she was only out for maybe 20 minutes today, i kept bringing her out but she wouldn't stay put for longer than 2 seconds and so we would do a time out, i couldn't keep up so her time outs went longer than 10 minutes. Pat got home and the same thing, he would put her in time out and once back out, down she went and trust me, no one is safe when she is on the floor. My poor chihuahua has the scar to prove that. Even poor Bongo is suffering, he flew to me when my back was turned, normally i would just raise my arm some what for him to land but all i heard was the flutter and then flash backs of my neck getting bit and i jumped, scared him and he went straight to dad...He NEVER goes to Pat ever, three years and this was his first time to fly to Pat. Broke my heart but was happy he felt safe enough to land on him. Starting to get that overwhelming feeling again, last time was Gus, now he is pretty much a gem.... How long does this season thing last anyway? I heard 4 months, God help me if thats true. I will be in a looney bin soon if that is true!!!!! Pat said if she ever did get a mate, she would pluck his head bald just to show him who is in charge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted April 1, 2014 Share Posted April 1, 2014 Some helpful ideas, can you shorten her daylight length? Early to bed & covered to make it dark changing the hormone levels she is dealing with. this link should be helpful and on Cockatoo the petting on the under wing body is also stimulating. Triggers of Breeding Behavior: Extended hours of light. Lengthening days and increased amounts of artificial light will cause a bird's reproductive organs to increase in size which in turn triggers a significant increase in hormonal activity. The availability of a suitable nest site and nesting materials. A suitable nest sites may, in your pet's eyes, include ordinary household items like cardboard boxes, areas behind cushions on the couch, even shoes. It is best to discourage them from claiming those as nests. Nesting material can be paper or a favorite blanket. Availability of a mate (can be you, another bird or an object, such as a favorite toy) Diet: Levels of fat and/or protein, as well as starches in the diet. Warm, wet food (nestling food) also encourages breeding behavior. Perceived sexual petting (i.e., stroking the bird's backside or near the vent) - See more at: http://www.avianweb.com/sexualbehaviorinbirds.html#sthash.cuCFkMzL.dpuf'>http://www.avianweb.com/sexualbehaviorinbirds.html#sthash.cuCFkMzL.dpuf'>http://www.avianweb.com/sexualbehaviorinbirds.html#sthash.cuCFkMzL.dpuf http://www.avianweb.com/sexualbehaviorinbirds.html Triggers of Breeding Behavior: Extended hours of light. Lengthening days and increased amounts of artificial light will cause a bird's reproductive organs to increase in size which in turn triggers a significant increase in hormonal activity. The availability of a suitable nest site and nesting materials. A suitable nest sites may, in your pet's eyes, include ordinary household items like cardboard boxes, areas behind cushions on the couch, even shoes. It is best to discourage them from claiming those as nests. Nesting material can be paper or a favorite blanket. Availability of a mate (can be you, another bird or an object, such as a favorite toy) Diet: Levels of fat and/or protein, as well as starches in the diet. Warm, wet food (nestling food) also encourages breeding behavior. Perceived sexual petting (i.e., stroking the bird's backside or near the vent) - See more at: http://www.avianweb.com/sexualbehaviorinbirds.html#sthash.cuCFkMzL.dpuf Triggers of Breeding Behavior: Extended hours of light. Lengthening days and increased amounts of artificial light will cause a bird's reproductive organs to increase in size which in turn triggers a significant increase in hormonal activity. The availability of a suitable nest site and nesting materials. A suitable nest sites may, in your pet's eyes, include ordinary household items like cardboard boxes, areas behind cushions on the couch, even shoes. It is best to discourage them from claiming those as nests. Nesting material can be paper or a favorite blanket. Availability of a mate (can be you, another bird or an object, such as a favorite toy) Diet: Levels of fat and/or protein, as well as starches in the diet. Warm, wet food (nestling food) also encourages breeding behavior. Perceived sexual petting (i.e., stroking the bird's backside or near the vent) - See more at: http://www.avianweb.com/sexualbehaviorinbirds.html#sthash.cuCFkMzL.dpuf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted April 2, 2014 Author Share Posted April 2, 2014 Ahh, that explains her being so happy under a towel on the kitchen table or her on the floor darting to the toe kick area under the cabinets. I only wish i had a web cam to show what happened yesterday, i do not think words will really show the whole picture but i will try. I am in the kitchen, 2 greys on the hanging stand in the bay window, one grey on a chair just as you enter the kitchen but in the living room ( open concept) a macaw one each side of the chair. Lilly on the table in the kitchen and Gus on the other side of the living room on his stand. Gus decided it was time to join us in the kitchen and took flight, lost altitude and knocked Gabby from the chair sending her for a flight, Bongo in the window got scared to took flight. Lilly saw Gus and jumped on the floor to join him and engage in a fight. Gus is freaked out as Lilly is charging him, i push him off to the side sending him sliding on the tile floor Lilly is still charging so i offer my brand new tennis shoe on my foot for sacrifice, she grabs it and i lift my leg in the air until she is now focused on this and not Gus. All the while i am shouting to hubby who is outside in the blissfulness of nature. Gus makes it to the baby gate and climbs up, Gabby is back on the chair and Bongo was back on his stand, i am still standing there with my leg in the air because now if i set my foot down, i will crush her. I manage to coax her to my knee where she can step up and she did perfectly, got her into her cage and went outside to tell Pat what had happened. I mentioned that Gus was on the baby stand and he could say was "thats not good, he will chew the wall".. UMMMMM? My heart is beating 90 to nothing and he is worried about a wall? Poor Gus is so scared he will not unwrap his feet from the bars and i didn't want to upset him by forcing him to step up, let him calm down was my thought. Pat walked in and asked him if he was ok, put his arm out and the booger stepped right up and all was right with the world again. He asked me why i have so much trouble handling the birds? If he had seen how i just handled them he wouldn't be asking such a silly question!!! I need to move to the country! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted April 4, 2014 Author Share Posted April 4, 2014 Okay, so the post i wrote this morning is not here but thats okay as the tides have changed. Just like the Texas weather, Gus and Lilly hit a turning point. Today while Gus wouldn't come out of the bird room, Lilly had been in time out so they were in the same room. Gus came out to the baby gate and sat there, i guess Lilly wanted too also. She managed to get out her food dish door and joined Gus. There they sat, very peaceful. We, out of fear, seperated them. Later on tonight, Pat just said what the heck and put Lilly on Gus's stand since she wouldn't stay anywhere else. She groomed him and he loved it. Talk about your puppy dog eyes, Gus had em. All was going very good until he nudged her to the edge and she stumbled and grabbed him for support. He kinda got defensive and the foot went up to ward her away so we seperated them again. But what a difference in Lilly getting to be with Gus. My post this morning was about getting baby formula and feeding Gus. He is showing a loss of weight since his injury so we want to be sure he is getting what he needs. He must need alot, he ate 90 cc's... Poor guy was hungry. Lilly ate about 60 cc's. Skipped tonight as we don't want him dependent on it but will do it again tomorrow. He did eat some cottage cheese and peaches tonight, peanut butter this morning. Yes, they are spoiled. lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 You can give them some Salmon or Tuna as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted April 4, 2014 Author Share Posted April 4, 2014 Tried salmon and no go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdhouse Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Way back when Phenix was recovering, Tufts had me feeding him a smoothie of beef baby food, plain active culture yogurt, broccoli, cantaloupe & baby rice cereal. But Dee pointed out that now they're adding so much iron to the cereal it might add to the problems. So maybe quinoa would be better. Any way, Phenix loved loved loved the stuff. Thought maybe I'd pass that on if you wanted to try it for Gus (or anyone) in between formula days? Kinda huge day for Gus & Lilly. Maybe she's finally coming out the other side of all the stuff she's been dealing with. It really was a lot of stuff, even w/o the hormones. But they're so beautiful together how can anyone help but want to see them end up happily ever after? Fingers crossed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted April 5, 2014 Author Share Posted April 5, 2014 Gus and Lilly were out in the aviaries yesterday, seperated of course, and Gus was actually flying around in it. Since we have built them, no one has really done any flying. The greys will on occasion, but that is mostly when it is time to come in and they don't want to and they take a shot flight to another area. Pat has been depressed about it but after watching Gus, he is excited again to start building the others! However that is on hold until July ish. We have found a house in the country that is perfect for our family, but until they get an apprasial we are in limbo. We are starting to get our ready for the market, baseboards, door frames and scraping the unknown food particals off the windows and ceiling ( boy we got new lightbulbs and they really are bright, i am seeing things that i can not believe i missed! Going to be a spokesman for Cree daylight bulbs for a second. These bulbs are led and are wonderful. Swapping out all our CFL's for them, i did not know that the CFL's had a flicker to them that the birds can see and was told that they can drive a bird batty. We have done the ones in the bird room and the evening screamfest has calmed down some. I can not say it is from the bulbs but hey, i can not say it isn't either. They are $13 a bulb so hubby keeps moving the other 4 we have from room to room until we can get more.lol) Back to selling our house, it will be a hard task, having a realitor showing the house with 7 parrots in it, we are trying to see what we can do with them while it is showing. The house we want is 45 minutes away or i would move them in with them since she has oh 60 or so of her own birds! lol She is a well know breeder and her hubs got a new job out of state so we are looking at a perfect house with ourdoor flights and training flight cages to teach recall and such. There is a nursery, and sick room and holding room for newbees. Best thing, all the window sills are granite, lol. They got tired of replacing the wood! lol Fingers are crossed this works out! Gus and Lilly would be in heaven, not to mention the macaws. The grey's, eh, as long as they are with us they are happy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdhouse Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 Oh wow! How great is that! Sounds perfect!! Granite window sills & all. lol Good luck w/everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 Ah the beginnings of a Parrot multi family compound! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted April 7, 2014 Author Share Posted April 7, 2014 All are invited!! Miss Lilly, who we thought flew poorly, had us fooled. She was on the kitchen table and something startled her. She flew though the living room and did 2 sharp turns to get to the bird room and landed on her cage. This was over the macaws who were playing on the table in the living room. I guess her jumping and flying low and landing with a slide is just fun for her because that is all we have ever seen her do. Now we know better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted April 7, 2014 Share Posted April 7, 2014 She blew her cover, or received the required motivation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted April 8, 2014 Author Share Posted April 8, 2014 Poor cockatoos, they didn't get to come out of their cages yesterday at all. I spent over 3 hours in their room cleaning cages but neither would step up to move to their stand and because i was in the room I couldn't just open the cage door so they had to stay in. I kept trying but nope, they didn't want out. I guess it was okay, atleast i could focus on cleaning and not stopping every second to see where Lilly went or who she was harrassing. lol I think that was her first time since comng here that she didn't get to come out and she did not like it at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katana600 Posted April 8, 2014 Share Posted April 8, 2014 Just getting caught up on your madhouse, I mean bird house. You put me to shame, I have only two and can't get a fraction done in a day that you manage to accomplish. I don't have a little toe biter at my feet either. Lilly is campaigning for a hall of fame record for her antics. Then I think of carrying her in a blanket and that she is in her sweetness and glory for that activity which melts my heart. Your house in the country sounds like it is meant for you. Hoping that all just falls into place for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted April 10, 2014 Author Share Posted April 10, 2014 We tried , okay hubby tried, something new with her today. Again, she will not stay where we set her down and flys to where ever we are so after learning how well she flys Pat would scoop her up after she landed and toss he back in the direction of her stand, she would fly to it and land perfectly. ( she really had us fooled about her flights and landing ) He figured one of two things would happen, she would hate it and stop jumping off or he would wear her out where she would be too tired to keep jumping. Again, she had us fooled, she loved the new game and Pat got tired of bending over and tossing her LONG before she got tired... Now what???? Positive reinforcement is not even making a dent with this girl, time out provides nothing so short of clipping her wings some like we did Gus, which for her wouldn't do anything since she jumps way more than flys, we are lost. I can't/won't keep her locked up and with Texas summers she couldn't be outside as much as she is now in the 80 degree temps. I am starting to panic about what we are going to do. I do still have that laundry basket... lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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