Plucking sennie experiment

[Pajarita]

Sweetpea (or Sweet, as he calls himself) has been plucking for about three years now. He is the only bird that started plucking and did not stop under my care and it happened right after he lost his second mate two years after losing his first, his beloved Tobita. I know it's not medical, diet, lack of flight, entertainment, bad light or spending too much time in a cage so it has to be from loneliness and I hope not because he has not gotten addicted to it. So I brought him out of the birdroom and placed a cage for him a few feet away from Zoey's, my female Senegal, in the hopes that they will like each other and become a couple. I did this the night before last, right after he had eaten his dinner and started him on a new schedule (mostly because he had not been in a cage for 9 years). So far, there has been no aggression from Zoey. Pretty Boy ignores him and, although Isis Redbelly has been kamikazing him, he is a real smart little fellow quite used to living with bigger and meaner birds and, as soon as he sees her coming straight at him, he just takes off to the other end of the room. He doesn't seem to miss the birdroom much, he is eating, drinking and talking up a storm to the point that, for the first time, I heard him say: "Come on, come on" which I did not even know he knew how to say (he is, by far, my best talker). He has also behaved like a little gentleman, going into his cage for his meals and sleep without a single problem so, so far, so good but still no news on them bonding with each other -not that it's worrying me as it has only been a day or so.

[Wolf]

Sure hope that this works out.

[Pajarita]

So far, so good. He is now perching on the top of the screen of my lap top talking to me and Zoey has been flying between my shoulder/head and different places in the dining room and living room. He even went inside her cage and started eating from her bowl and she did not react (she wasn't in the cage at the time but she knew he was there because she saw him).

I also really, really hope this works. It would be wonderful for them to have each other...

[Wolf]

Got my fingers crossed!

[Pajarita]

Well, he definitely has an interest because, this morning, he was wooing in earnest... only problem is he is doing it in English He climbed all over her cage (she can't be let out when Codee is out because she attacks her) all fluffed up and was saying" "Aaaaaaw, you are such a pretty bird! Come here... come oooooon, come here. Tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk, sweet baby bird" And, when she tried to bite his toes, he said: 'Stop it - stop it..... OK" I tell you, this bird is a genius when it comes to cognitive speech! Now he is in his cage and has been 'coughing' and laughing and talking up a storm at her. I had to put him in because he insisted in doing the mating dance on my hand and I needed it to type.

[Wolf]

That will do it despite his speaking English.

[Pajarita]

Well, he is definitely in love and tries every trick he knows to get her to like him.... he laughs at her with a delighted sort of laugh, he praises her (You are such a pretty bird! Sweet bird! Sweet baby bird!, etc), he tells her he loves her (I love you - Awwww - I love you), he worries about her (Are you OK? Aaaah?) offers her food (Lookalookalook - MMMMMM - eat it, eat it!), follows her around (flies wherever she happens to be and climbs all over her cage), dances and coos to her in Senegalish and although he tells her to : Stop it! when she bites him (bit his toe and his beak) he always adds an: OK? to it But, so far, no cigar from Zoey's part. It's OK, some ladies play real hard to get but he doesn't seem to be discouraged and I haven't seen him plucking once -not that I saw him ever pluck before, either- and have not found a single feather at the bottom of his cage so maybe he is so interested in her that he is finally stopping. Will keep on trying... he is certainly willing.

And, as a bonus, I discovered other things he says that I did not realize he did. The Lookalookalook and Mmmmmmm (I started saying this when I serve their food about 3 years ago because Precie says it at that time), the I love you (which I say to them when I say nite nite), he calls for JOHN! JOHN!, he says Peekabird but not in a peekaboo context, he does it when it's dark and I cover his cage for the night, says "What you got? Ah? What you got?" and imitates my asthmatic cough PERFECTLY so, in the mornings when I always have a bit of a cough, you can hear it in stereo

[Wolf]

I guess that she wants both of them to be very sure of this before giving her consent.

[Pajarita]

Or maybe there is no chemistry there for her which would be real sad for Sweet.

[Pajarita]

He continues his wooing of her and she continues to rebuff him to the point that she now flies off my shoulder to perch somewhere else farther off so as to distance herself from him. But he has also become a closer companion to me (he is now perching on my leg grinding his beak while I type this) and has adjusted fabulously to is 'new' life in the human areas. As an added bonus, I've been able to hear much more of his vocabulary (it's hard in the birdroom with everybody vying for my attention and vocalizing out of sheer excitement while I am in there). And, although I've always known he had a large one, I was flabbergasted by the HUGE number of words and phrases he knows so I started writing them down every time I heard a new one and here is the list so far (there are more because I hear him saying other stuff but he usually does it in the evening and using a soft voice which I cannot quite hear):
Note: not all are in context so I am putting an asterisk next to the ones that always are and whether I could tell for a fact that he had learned it from me -some I know for a fact he came here already knowing but some I am not sure.

- Good morning (*)
- Hello (*)
- Hi (*)
- Good night (*) -sometimes followed by 'bye-bye, see you'
- Nite-nite (*)
- What you doing?
- What you got?
- What's going on? sometimes combined with a 'Baby' at the end
- John!
- You OK? - sometimes followed by "Yeah, you OK" after a pause (got this from me)
- Who did that? (I think he also says 'Who said that?' but I am not 100% sure, yet)
- What's your name? - sometimes followed by "Sweetpea!" after a pause
- Sweet (the name he gives himself) (*)
- Sweet bird- Sweet baby - Sweet baby bird (me)
- What? This is said with different tones of voice from inquisitive to annoyed
- Peek-a-bird
- Eat it! (*) but he doesn't only use it as a command or suggestion but also to indicate he wants food
- Lookalookalooka (me and Precie)
- Shut up! (*) he says this to the dogs when they bark and could have learned it from me
- Stop it!
- Pica pica pica (me)
- Ok? and Ok as in agreement
- Here, right here!
- Come here - this is combined with baby, sweet baby, and 'Come on' or by itself
- Pretty bird
- You're such a pretty bird!
- Cutie! - sometimes followed by 'come here' or 'eat it'
- What's the matter?
- Ready? - sometimes combined with a 'No, wait' or just a 'Wait' after a pause (he knew the 'ready? from before and learned the 'wait' from me)
- Quick, quick, quick!
- Be niiiice (me)
- Let's be nice
- That's not nice!
- Yep, yep, yep
- Come in
- Come on in!
- Riiight
- Alright!
- Dear me! (I love this one! he sounds like a little old lady when he says it )
- Kiss the bird - sometimes with a 'now' at the end, sometimes preceded by 'John'

He also has several different whistles, something that sounds like some type of beeping alarm, the usual kissy noises and tsk tsk tsk and two different types of laughter, a delighted one that goes Ha Ha Ha with a uuuuu at the end, sometimes - and a Hee Hee Hee one and, one of my favorites, the 'Huh?' which he combines with questions.