Hey guys!
So, I have acquire a baby lovebird on the weekend.
She/He is super sweet little one and a heck of a smart cookie! (Let's per say it's a she to make this easier Lol)
I got her DNA tested, nail trimmed and just a reclip on the wing feathers that had become very long.
She was a nipper when I got her. But I saw the old owner and he would move away and squeak when she nipped. I giggled when I saw that! LOL Shes done this three times with me, with decent strength, and i never budged a bit and since the third time which was on the first day I got her, she never even offered a opened beak at me! I think we might have that understanding now that actual biting isnt going to work with me.
She is scared of hands a bit. She will willingly step up and not bite at all but sometimes you have to move around with her to get her to do it. If she is on the ground, I can be a foot away and tell her Up UP and she comes right on! She seems EXTRA comfy on my shoulder. She loves car rides, she likes to go outside and will willingly sit on my shoulder/hoodie for a long time. After a couple days of working with her I manage being able to get her to take a treat from my hand. Which is fantastic! Tho, she will not take it unless shes in or on her cage or on my shoulder.
What gets to me is all the confusing information I find on the internet...
1 - She appears to be extra comfy on my shoulder. She will sit happy, will take her favorite treat from my hand and I can get her to step up on my hand when I want her down. I seem to read everywhere that I may run into trouble later on by letting her do that?? Is it really a dominance behavior or is she honestly just comfy? She has not offered to nibble at my neck, face or ears either. Plus I dont encourage her either to do so, meaning I dont give her kisses and carry around something else to munch on if she decides to try to munch on me to deviate her attention.
2 - With her cage, I put my hand in and offer to step up and she seems just fine with it. I seem to read that I should teach her to come to the door. I do have a perch that extends to the outside of the cage so she can come out as she please when I am home. Would you recommend to keep going inside her cage or teach her to come out on her own? I hear Lovebird gets very territorial aswell. Would me keeping up 'intruding' her cage might avoid the territorial behavior down the road as she will accept me or actually make it worst??
3 - I get very confused on the 'time to spend' with her. what th extent of that? I read as much as I can read on hand taming and seem t be heading in the right direction but some places tell you to back her and let her be throughout the day and some places tell you as a baby to never leave er alone..??? How much is too much??
4 - Light. I get so confused!!! People say 10-12, some say 14, some people say too much creates hormones problems, not enough creates agitated and grumpy birds.. Honneslty, I know I have to go along what my little one tells me and to also create a routine but there again, whats too much and whats not enough? What if she falls alseep on me around 7? Does that mean shes ready for bed? What If she moves around crazy at 9 pm after I put her to bed??
5 - She itches A LOT and chews her nails kinda. She grabbs her nail and rub it on the inside part of her top beak. And like all the time. When she is in her cage, she paces on the bottom back and forward like a crazy person when Im not home...?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?
Some insight would be highly appreciat3ed!!
For the curious..
- She was on a seed diet, Hagen stuff, and I am slowly conversing her into pellets. She only ever had apples and now shes been exposed to a ton of different fruits and veggies already and LOVES it! I pick the sunflower seeds out of the seed mix and keep them to give it to her as a treat
- She has a decent cage. 25x17x14 which is getting upgraded to a huge Kings cage Fly economy one. She also has a bunch of toys in there. NO MIRROR or NO BEDDING material and NO NEST box/hutt
-I work 730- to 5 pm and come home for lunch for one hour. In the morning I open her cage and have her on my shoulder while getting her breakfast ready. At lunch she out munching with me and at night shes out again with me or playing n her own on the window seal. On the weekend so far shes out almost all the time
- I attempted a bath.. BAD idea. We had a mini draw back. I havent yet tried a mist or the shower thing yet. Thinking she needs it but isnt yet comfy with that it looks like
Help?!