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We just got a female Marine Linnie about 1 week ago. Her name is Gyspy and she is a sweetie. She's very comfortable with eating from our hand and fingers and is easing up on our finger as well as letting us scritch her--she appears ot be quite tame as she was hand fed. The thing is she is a biter. You can lean towards her to give her nudges and kisses and she'll be gentle, then just lunge and grab whatever peice of skin she can. Hard. She will go upon the finger, then look down and nip very hard. We also have an English budgie Ziggy (male), and two American budgies, Duey (male/blue) and Willow (female-we think-Albino). The 3 budgies are in one big cage and Gypsy has her own cage right next to eachother. They have ladders and toys connecting the cages on the top and they come out to play together and prett much go about their own business but whenever any of the budgies try to go close to Gypsy, she lunges at them. And once in a while, if one of the budgies are preening themselves, she will move, almost stealth like, to them and lunge at, appearing to want to bite them. They have shared, hesitantly I may add, some spray millet all together and sat beside eachother until one makes a move then theres the lunging and attempting to bite. I am just worried because I know how hard she can bite, that she may injure on of the budgies, even though no contact has been made yet. Gypsy is not frightened of us, She will follow us as we walk by from one side of the cages to the other and call out to us. So we go and say our hellos and kisses but she just bites so hard, out of the blue!! Are there any tips on training her NOT to bite, and any further advise on how to treat the situations with our budgies. I would love for them all to get along, if I can. Please help! :-) |
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Oh, my goodness, Tainted. I'm so sorry that I've overlooked your post for so long. You must think that we've all gone to sleep around here. My first suggestion would be that you keep the budgies as far away from Gypsy as possible. She can do them grievous harm ~ and will, if she ever gets a chance. I'd give up the notion of them all getting along together. It isn't worth the risk of injury and a vet bill, in my opinion. It sounds as though Gypsy likes you all but just hasn't been trained to curb the impulse to bite. Biting is a form of communication. She could be saying, "I want you all to myself. Get away from these other people/birds." or "I think that person/bird/object/situation is dangerous. Get away." or "Pay attention to me, and only me, right this second." or "Don't stop scratching!". The situation itself will give you a clue as to what she is trying to communicate. There are several acceptable methods of curbing the biting. Click on or key in http://www3.upatsix.com/liz/articles/biting.html . That's a good article. And you could get a copy of Mattie Sue Athan's little book Guide to a Well Behaved Parrot. It's full of information on the same subject. Hope this helps a bit. And again, sorry a reply was so slow in coming!! |
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I hope you didn't give up and go away without getting any help at all, Tainted. |
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Thanks so much for the response. I actually was unable to get to my computer fixed until today so we were using a few tips I heard to try to curb Gyspy's biting. As soon as she bites, we warn with a stern 'No Bite'. The if she does it again we gently pick her up (which is not a struggle), repeat the stern "No Bite!' and place her back in her cage for 15 minutes. When we let her out, we give her an oat and kisses. She seems to have curbed the biting, at least it is a little less painful and seems to understand 'No Bite'. Also to update the situation with the Budgies, Gypsy has taken a liking to Ziggy (the english budgie) and waddles up to him and bends her head down, feathers all puffed up asking for a scratch. He sits contently singing like always, but has taken no interest in scratching her. He gives her a once over, as if saying "You don't look like my type" and closes his eyes and keeps singing. lol. She tries to nudge closer to him, as if to hug him and generally flies to the other side of the cage. He has no interest in her and she always is left standing there, big eyes blinking at me as if to say "Am I not beautiful enough for him??" lol. Duey and Willow are in thier own world, I think they have fallen in love. Willow turns upside down (so she is lying on the stick) and shows Duey her underside and he's singing and putting on a show. It has escalated since we have seperated Ziggy (he's on meds for a suspected crop infection---vet not sure), so Duey and Willow have the big cage Ziggy and Gyspy each have their own. I'm sure she's a female now. HMMMM I have heard that they will only breed if there is a nest in the cage. Is it as simple as not putting a nest in the cage ot prevent egg laying, or is this something that is not preventable? |
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If a male and a female bird of the same species are confined to the same cage for any length of time, they will generally end up reproducing, whether they have a nest box, or not. It's instinct -- survival of the species. And any female bird that lays eggs runs the risk of becoming egg-bound. Many females lay eggs whether a male is present, or not. This gives you something new to worry about. Personally, I would separate Duey and Willow. I happen to feel very strongly about indiscriminate breeding of birds. There are enough birds already that cannot find loving, forever homes without adding to those numbers. What you decide to do about this problem is your business, of course. I am surprised that your vet has put Ziggy on meds without first testing to determine precisely what the problem is. Is this an avian vet? I think you need to shop around, today, for an avian vet who knows what you're up against. Medicating without knowing what you're dealing with can cause as many problems as it will cure, and a crop infection is dangerous. It calls for precise and accurate diagnosis and treatment. It sounds as though you are making progress with the biting. Did you check out the website that I suggested? Do keep us posted, please. |
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I agree with Birdlady about medicating when testing hasn't been conclusive. I just took out an album of a bird I had that mutilated after being given meds, prescribed, and the lab work did show the possibility of the meds being the culprit... Too2 |
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