Who the heck is this bird???

[Stubbs'sGirl]

Stubbs has become a different bird in the last week or so.

He was previously uber sweet and cuddly and now he's pissy and madder than all hell! I don't know what has crawled up his behind!

Nothing has changed.... cage position, food, treats, toys.... all the same (well other than toy rotation). His bedtime is strict and he's a late sleeper.

Behavior changes include - flying away from me when I go to "step up", flying down to the floor to avoid me picking him up, when holding him.... lots of noise, not squaking, not talking, more like a bird purring? Even though it sounds like a sweet noise, he just seems PISSED for lack of a better term, lol.

Before, he would love on me big time, lots of talking and singing, immediately coming to me, never this avoidance thing. All I am left thinking is..... JUST LIKE A MAN!!!! WHAT ON EARTH HAVE I DONE NOW? He puts his face and beak angled down now when I move in for kisses and the like, almost like a full on refusal.

He recently shed feathers, but that's over now. My brother told me that multing was painful for them.... I had no idea and had still been petting him as normal during this time. Could this have made him think I am a evil pain inflicting human being? I AM SO LOST!

Love me again dear Stubbs, I miss you!

[marie83]

Could it be breeding season where you are ?(don't know where you live) it's about quaker breeding time in England at any rate, a breeder I've been speaking to actually says some of his birds are going to nest a bit earlier than usual. If so it will pass and your bird will return to normal eventually.

All the birds I have ever had have always let me know if I've accidently caught a pin feather when scratching them so I should think that you would aslso know about it if you had hurt your bird accidently.

[Stubbs'sGirl]

Hi Marie!

I'm in Houston, TX. Could it be that it is mating season? How can I check that?

Also, if it is mating season, should I provide Stubbs with things to make a nest? Up until this point he just sleeps on a regular wooden perch and I cover his cage with a thick blanket. I had been checking out some of the fuzzy things our local pet shop has for birds to snuggle up in.... on looks semi-promising.... it's kinda like stuffed animal fur and hangs from the top in the shape of a triangle and is about six inches long (like a triangular sleeve made out of fuzzy material).

They also sell they shred stuff and stick like stuff if he was going to build his own..... I should also note that when I got Stubbs I was told he was a boy, but truth be told he could be a female (although he just seems more male). I am not against testing him, but I kinda wanted to wait until there was already a blood has been drawn situation..... instead of having to draw a little myself.

This morning, I made us breakfast and he sat on the TV tray to eat with me. I made his absolute favorite food (scrambled eggs) and he was STILL in jerk face mode.

In sum, do you think there is something I can add to his cage to give him some comfort? Can you tell me how to check mating season here? I found this article about Quaker Parakeets which says the mating season is starting right now.... http://www.parrotsociety.org.au/images/ ... ct09-1.pdf Man, side note.... Quaker Parakeet and Quaker Parrot.... different? The same?

[pennyandrocky]

don't make him a nest if he is a girl it may cause egg laying and that is not something you want to deal with.

[ValleyGreenCheeks]

I agree with the above posts, the most obvious answer to me is that the breeding season is responsible.
Is Stubbs DNA sexed? If not he may be a Stubbeta and just like human females, our seasons aren't the happiest times of our lives! As said above, do not make him a nest, male or female, making him a nest will only feed his behaviour and prolong it if not make it worse. And if he is a female it may cause him to lay eggs, which is just a situation you should try and avoid if possible. Easiest thing to do is to respect his space and just give him some time to come round, don't avoid or ignore him just only go as far as he wants to. If he just wants you to sit and chat to him by his cage then so be it
If this behaviour carries on for longer than nessessary it might be an idea just to whip him down to your local avian vet just to give him a clean bill of health so that you can tick that one off the list.
Quaker parrot and Quaker parakeet will be reference to the same bird.
Good luck! Keep us informed!

[marie83]

Agree with the others, don't provide Stubbs anything to nest with because as the others have said it can make the situation worse, prolong it or encourage egg laying. I'm afraid it's just a matter of riding it out. Regarding the happy huts/birdy tents it really is a matter of preference, Ollie has one and he only uses it to sleep in, it has caused us no problems whatsoever but a hormonal bird may regard it as a 'nest' so if your going to try it I would definitely wait a while. Some people have said they can increase territorial behaviour as well so that's something to bear in mind but then there are others who say the happy huts have decreased their quakers territorial streak. Some people also complain that their birds will mess in their huts too which leaves the issue of keeping it hygienic, though this is something I've never had an issue with as Ollie never messes in his.

Other advice I've read on other forum include restricting soft mushy type foods as this can encourage the bird to get into breeding mode if there is alot of access to what the bird deems as good chick rearing food but I think this was for the most severely hormonal birds. Also restricting access to shreddable toys, paper, cardboard etc is also supposed to help as these can be seen as nesting materials. I've never had to go down the route of restricting certain foods or items but I have heard of it helping in severe cases.

[Khaiqha]

How old is the bird? Because it could also be going through puberty.