I'm having all kinds of trouble with my laptop due to the fact that I am sitting in the Court House waiting to be called (or not) for jury duty (happy happy joy joy!
) so I cannot post any of the links that I had for new postings, as I usually do everyday - ergo, an update.
Everybody doing fine and the birds have already started 'changing' their seasons. The amazons are pretty much done with breeding and I know because they are no longer spending any time in the boxes, they started molt (found two feathers) and the old ladies are, as they do every year, allowing their plucked feathers to grow. On the other hand, the short day breeders are getting 'antsy', Linus Too has started vocalizing in the middle of the day and going down to ground and 'protecting' the boxes I always put in the corner for him and Sophia Gray. Curiosly, the IRNs seem to be molting... at least, Casper is because I found a couple of white feathers. Now, I've never had psittaculas before so I don't know if these birds molt into nuptial (I couldn't find anything about this anywhere) but they are short day breeders and should be getting ready to go into condition. Of course, these birds were kept at a bad light schedule and a terrible diet for many years so it's entirely possible that their bodies are only now beginning to 'catch up' and, because of this, their seasons are still a bit mixed up. One thing I've been thinking about is that I've always read that they have a terrible molt and I've seen pictures of them going through it and it is true that they looked as if they had been attacked by a mob of moths BUT another thing I've noticed is that every single psittacula I've read about has been fed the wrong diet (everybody free-feeds pellets or seeds!) so I am curious to see if their molt is really terrible per se or if it's a consequence of people feeding them wrong. I doubt I will be able to ascertain this one way or the other this year becasue it's too early to tell (it's going to take many more months for these birds to be beginning to get to a good shape) but it should give me a good indication of what is what and, when I figure it out, I'll let you know.
Like I said, everbody doing good. Canaries are all done with breeding, the hens have dismantled the nests and they will all be put back into the flight cage as soon as I can get my husband to power-wash them and repaint their room. I am still giving them sprouts but only once every three days or so.
Budgie doing wonderfully! Not a single egg in the entire season and everybody eating well and very happy if one goes by ther cheerful chirpings (first to start before dawn and last to shut up at night). A curious thing: Susan which is supposed to be three years old has never gotten a brown cere - neither did the two yellow double spangled sisters. Flora did though and she has been quite flirty with both Blue and Tweety but, apparently, she figured she did not need to make a commitment being that she did not get a nest.
Codee and Andy/Annie are doing great! Codee, as usual, the sweetest thing on this green earth, eating well, etc. Andy/Annie is also eating VERY well and behaving like a little champ, going into the cage all on its own when it's time. I've only had to wait him/her out twice and 'direct' him/her to the cage with a looong dowel I use for that purpose but it did not take more than a few minutes for him/her to go back inside. His/her feathers are growing and there are only two plucked patches left - I do think he/she might still be plucking a bit but it's OK, he/she was VERY anxious and nervous when he/she first came and, although he/she has calmed down a lot, we still have a ways to go.
Rajah and Rani doing real good! They are now bonded (roosting together) and get along famously. She has also come a long way but it will take much longer to get her to a point where she is not freaked out by people. She is obviously a parent-raised bird, bought as a baby by a couple who thought they could tame her and, in the process, messed her up something terrible by using flooding techniques. And I know because my husband told me that, when he picked her up, the man was holding her in his hand and caressing her non-stop when this bird reacts to hands near her as if they were a T rex coming after her! I do wish people would stop trying to tame the little ones... they do so much damage to them!
Zoey and Sweetpea Senegal doing well, as usual. There have been some fights lately between Zoey Senegal, Isis Redbelly and Condorito Caique but it's because Condorito is new and the season doesn't help, either. Nothing major but I have to keep vigilant so as to intervene when it happens.
Javi Caique would be doing great if it wasn't for Condorito Caique which, finishing his honeymoon period, started acting up and trying to pick a fight with the other birds that love me or my husband - and, of course, the other birds don't want to back down, either - hence, the fights betwen Condorito and Isis over my husband and Condorito and Javi over me (sigh). He also fell into bad graces with my husband because he started going after feet - not to bite them, he doesn't really even nip but he does use his beak to touch, touch, touch and my husband, who can be a real boobie about certain things, started screaming and jumping up and down like a maniac and trying to keep him away from his feet which started Condorito so much that he now really tries to bite him. I told him not to react, that he was NOT going to hurt him, to just talk to him, put his hand down and ask him to step up but he did not listen and now what I told him would happen did! He doesn't complain because I told him I don't want to hear it, that it was all his fault and that he should be thankful I am not super mad at him for messing up my lovely Condorito but he calls me on the phone to ask me where Condorito is before he comes downstairs or into the house because he is now afraid of him (he was jumping so violently that he dropped his glasses and broke them and now blames Condorito for it - men!). But I have no problem with him and he is doing very well otherwise. Oh, Condorito got a nice new cage and I have another one in the box for Javi, waiting to be put together when he has a chance.
Davy Redbelly and Keku Quaker are now in the same cage. They get along very well and the only problem I was having is that Davy would leave his bowl with their seed/nut dinner once he ate the nuts and climb up to eat from Keku's bowl and her, being the sweet thing she is, would allow it (not that she was going hungry because she is always steals food from the bins while I am serving everybody's dinner) so I've had to teach him the 'That's not yours!' command and direct him back to his own bowl (and it only took three nights of doing this for him to learn it - they are so smart!).
Now, to get ready for molt (I am also still giving them sprouts but not everyday and their gloop still has the higher protein from the quinoa I add during breeding season PLUS the sesame seed to prepare them for molt) and for the short day breeders season.