Need Behavior Help with Lovebird!
- Thread starter mimzy
- Start date
molamola
Member
My husband bought me a lovebird about four years ago. She has a vicious little beak and can sense fear, but only seems to enjoy chomping on the fingers and earlobes of adults. She does get noisy, but that's because we keep her in the tv room and she wants to participate in the conversation and interact with us, or to get some attention. If she screams when nobody is in the room, it's usually to find out where we are in relation to her. If you holler back, she usually quiets right down. They love to play and enjoy a wide variety of toys and treats in their cage. Ours also goes crazy when offered the opportunity to take a bath in the sink. They really are a riot and I kind of like the noisy chatter that comes out of their beak. If you have a lovebird that enjoys biting, you can try to keep them entertained with a small leather cord, or a scrap of paper. Sometimes they will take that over your finger. Good luck. They really are sweet little things
mimzy
Active Member
Thanx for the help everyone!! I actually dragged myself to the bookstore last night and spent almost 3 hours reading - found out a lot of good stuff, including some of your suggestions.
Mola - It's so cool how they think of you as a flock member and "Contact call" to make sure you're ok! I can't wait until the little guy is comfortable enough with us to take a bath. From the sound of it, he really didn't get much socialization. It'll take some time, but I'm hoping it'll work out.
Phixer, I also read that they love mirrors - once he feels comfy enough to have outside-the-cage playtime, I'll be sure to add them to the mix.
Thanx again for the help everyone - have a great weekend!
Mola - It's so cool how they think of you as a flock member and "Contact call" to make sure you're ok! I can't wait until the little guy is comfortable enough with us to take a bath. From the sound of it, he really didn't get much socialization. It'll take some time, but I'm hoping it'll work out.
Phixer, I also read that they love mirrors - once he feels comfy enough to have outside-the-cage playtime, I'll be sure to add them to the mix.
Thanx again for the help everyone - have a great weekend!
fishfryer
Member
i own a love bird and i can see why she is giving it away. one they will bite you with it sharp beak if you but your hand in the cage to feed or change water.
i have him trained using a oven mitten sio i dont get hurt
i just open the cage and he flys around ,he is ok, will land on you and not bite., and just fly back in cage when done or you bang the opening.
be aware
i have him trained using a oven mitten sio i dont get hurt
i just open the cage and he flys around ,he is ok, will land on you and not bite., and just fly back in cage when done or you bang the opening.
be aware
bs21
Member
my girlfriends parents got two lovebirds a little over a year ago...it ended up being a male and female. Now they have over 10 lovebirds and even when you take away their box they still won't stop breeding. they are noisy try to bite you when you try to handle them....and its not a bite like they are testing the strength of your finger as a perch its to hurt you and they do this even when you take the babies to another cage. IMO they are just not sociable birds unless they are handled from the youngest age possible multiple times a day otherwise most won't let you get near them.....at least thats the case with their birds and what it says in all the lovebird books they have. if you hadn't noticed i don't really like them, their Mcaw and african gray are 100x nicer.
birdy
Active Member
What specifically is the problem and what are you looking for it to become?
As someone stated, unles a lovebird is handled frequently from hatching, it will usually not become a sweet little bird.
There are some things you can do though.
1. DO NOT GIVE IT A MIRROR, this will make it more aggressive and loud, especially if it is a sexually mature male.
2. Take it to a Vet and have its wings and nails trimmed, if it cannot fly it will rely on you to for mobility (if you have cats this may not be a good idea FYI).
3. Stick train the bird, and have a seperate area for playtime (find a nice playgym for it). The cage is a area to be protected for most birds and if you stick your hand in the cage you will most likely get bitten, teach the bird to step on a perch with the command "up", remove from cage to playgym (preferably in room seperate from cage).
4. Lots of good toys, with rope, leather and beads and stuff to chew on, they make tons and tons of good bird toys these days.
5. There should be a very good schedule for the bird, wake up at the same time, breakfast at the same time, playtime out of cage at the same time, nap, dinner, and bedtime, a schedule will be very very helpful for cutting down bad behavior.
6. it should have a good balanced diet of pellets and fresh fruits and veggies, feed fruit and veggies in a seperate dish in the morning and evening and have pellets available all
day long. NO SEED, seeds are bad bad bad for birds.
7. have a cage cover it the bird is being too loud cover it up, and you can use the cover for bedtime also, but be aware that they are birds and it is normal for a bird to vocalize, especially in the morning and the evenings.
Those are my suggestions from about 20yrs of keeping birds and 5 yrs of being a zookeeper working with birds.
As someone stated, unles a lovebird is handled frequently from hatching, it will usually not become a sweet little bird.
There are some things you can do though.
1. DO NOT GIVE IT A MIRROR, this will make it more aggressive and loud, especially if it is a sexually mature male.
2. Take it to a Vet and have its wings and nails trimmed, if it cannot fly it will rely on you to for mobility (if you have cats this may not be a good idea FYI).
3. Stick train the bird, and have a seperate area for playtime (find a nice playgym for it). The cage is a area to be protected for most birds and if you stick your hand in the cage you will most likely get bitten, teach the bird to step on a perch with the command "up", remove from cage to playgym (preferably in room seperate from cage).
4. Lots of good toys, with rope, leather and beads and stuff to chew on, they make tons and tons of good bird toys these days.
5. There should be a very good schedule for the bird, wake up at the same time, breakfast at the same time, playtime out of cage at the same time, nap, dinner, and bedtime, a schedule will be very very helpful for cutting down bad behavior.
6. it should have a good balanced diet of pellets and fresh fruits and veggies, feed fruit and veggies in a seperate dish in the morning and evening and have pellets available all
day long. NO SEED, seeds are bad bad bad for birds.
7. have a cage cover it the bird is being too loud cover it up, and you can use the cover for bedtime also, but be aware that they are birds and it is normal for a bird to vocalize, especially in the morning and the evenings.
Those are my suggestions from about 20yrs of keeping birds and 5 yrs of being a zookeeper working with birds.
mimzy
Active Member
Birdy, many thanx for all the excellent info! I've had my nose in the "Parrots for Dummies" book for the past 2 days, and Nikki Moustaki (the author) says many of the things that you do.
I have had birds in the past, so I am going into this with at least a little experience - but this is the first time I'll be taking on a bird that hasn't been handled much. It's around 8 months old, and my in-laws have basically kept it thus far as "living art." I know I've got my work cut out for me, but I work in an animal hospital and my boss is really great with birds, so at least I'll have resources.
As for clipping wings, I have mixed feelings about this. I used to clip all my birds, but recently I've been reading that it actually might be better to leave a frightened bird flighted, as it will feel more in control of itself and will be less likely to bite.
I will clip his wings for the first few weeks, surely - until he is settled enough in the house and has become acustomed to the presence of myself and my husband. During the first few weeks or months, clipping is a matter of safety - but as for keeping him that way, I think I'm going to wait and see what his temperament is like before I make a long-term decision.
As far as mirrors go, I wouldn't put one in his cage, but might think of adding one to his playpen. Some of my birdy patients are very fond of their mirrors, and are easier to handle when they get to see their "buddies." I've already begun to amass huge amounts of toys for the little guy - and you are definitly correct, there are bajillions of awesome things out there for birds!
My boss agrees with you about the diet. He says that too many people starve their birds to death without realizing it. Parrots can eat almost everything we can - and they should. With the obvious exception of Avocados, Chocolate, and anything sugary or fatty - things we shouldn't be eating anyhow. It goes far beyond greens, too - he even encourages our clients to feed their parrots chicken and other meats as long as they are well cooked and not overspiced.
Again, thank you for your input - I'm glad to know you're an avid birdkeeper. Perhaps I'll pop in to pick your brain every once in a while, if you don't mind! :happyfish
I have had birds in the past, so I am going into this with at least a little experience - but this is the first time I'll be taking on a bird that hasn't been handled much. It's around 8 months old, and my in-laws have basically kept it thus far as "living art." I know I've got my work cut out for me, but I work in an animal hospital and my boss is really great with birds, so at least I'll have resources.
As for clipping wings, I have mixed feelings about this. I used to clip all my birds, but recently I've been reading that it actually might be better to leave a frightened bird flighted, as it will feel more in control of itself and will be less likely to bite.
I will clip his wings for the first few weeks, surely - until he is settled enough in the house and has become acustomed to the presence of myself and my husband. During the first few weeks or months, clipping is a matter of safety - but as for keeping him that way, I think I'm going to wait and see what his temperament is like before I make a long-term decision.
As far as mirrors go, I wouldn't put one in his cage, but might think of adding one to his playpen. Some of my birdy patients are very fond of their mirrors, and are easier to handle when they get to see their "buddies." I've already begun to amass huge amounts of toys for the little guy - and you are definitly correct, there are bajillions of awesome things out there for birds!
My boss agrees with you about the diet. He says that too many people starve their birds to death without realizing it. Parrots can eat almost everything we can - and they should. With the obvious exception of Avocados, Chocolate, and anything sugary or fatty - things we shouldn't be eating anyhow. It goes far beyond greens, too - he even encourages our clients to feed their parrots chicken and other meats as long as they are well cooked and not overspiced.
Again, thank you for your input - I'm glad to know you're an avid birdkeeper. Perhaps I'll pop in to pick your brain every once in a while, if you don't mind! :happyfish
birdy
Active Member
no problem, :joy:
Clipping wings is somewhat of a delima, one of the things I have been reading about is not clipping the wings to early on a weanling, that a parrot needs to learn to fly for a few month before any clipping is done, this helps the bird with confidence and balance. I have done both, and of course learning the personality of the bird first is very important in detemining if it is necessary or not, I just have personally seen a VAST difference in the personality of birds who have been wild and clipped and wild and winged, the nice thing about wing clipping is that it obviously grows back, you can use the time of not being clipped to train and establish a bond, then when the feathers grow back you may not have to reclip them. It may be one of those things where you want to earn the birds trust before you clip the wings then wind of clipping them if you are having dominance issues. If you don't then clipping may not be necessary. I certainly don't think all birds should be clipped across the board, but it certainly can help in a lot of situations.
One thing I forgot to mention, and one you might already know is to keep the bird below your shoulders, it is a dominance thing, don't put the bird on your shoulder and don't hold it higher that tan your shoulders this helps the bird "know" who is "alpha".
Clipping wings is somewhat of a delima, one of the things I have been reading about is not clipping the wings to early on a weanling, that a parrot needs to learn to fly for a few month before any clipping is done, this helps the bird with confidence and balance. I have done both, and of course learning the personality of the bird first is very important in detemining if it is necessary or not, I just have personally seen a VAST difference in the personality of birds who have been wild and clipped and wild and winged, the nice thing about wing clipping is that it obviously grows back, you can use the time of not being clipped to train and establish a bond, then when the feathers grow back you may not have to reclip them. It may be one of those things where you want to earn the birds trust before you clip the wings then wind of clipping them if you are having dominance issues. If you don't then clipping may not be necessary. I certainly don't think all birds should be clipped across the board, but it certainly can help in a lot of situations.
One thing I forgot to mention, and one you might already know is to keep the bird below your shoulders, it is a dominance thing, don't put the bird on your shoulder and don't hold it higher that tan your shoulders this helps the bird "know" who is "alpha".
mimzy
Active Member
Well, we got him home tonight and named him "Franklin." He's just the CUTEST fisher's. Very active and healthy looking - but my sister in law did have him on a seed-only diet, so I'll probably take him in for an A,D&E injection this week and start changing him over to pellets and fresh foods.
He's also in an excrutiatingly small cage...it must be 12x12x20 inches. I'll have to move him over to a bigger place ASAP. I am afraid that I'm going to overload him though... do you think it would be wise to wait until he's on better food before attempting the move?
I clipped his wings as soon as we got home, to get that little trauma out of the way. I want the next few changes to be as positive as possible for him. I'm wondering when you think it would be appropriate to get him on to stick-training? Should I do that right away, or should I hold off 'till he's in his larger cage?
At the moment, he seems more trusting of my cats than he is of me. He calls out to them and cranes his neck around to see them. He even rattles the bars of his cage to get their attention. (Fear not, he is well out of their reach, his cage is mounted on a pole designed to thwart squirrels). My sister in law also had two cats, so he must feel like they are a pretty common part of the "flock."
I'll post some pictures tommorrow.... again, thank you for all your help - and yes, I'll be sure to keep him off my shoulder - at least until I'm CERTAIN he won't make a meal of my earlobe :thinking:
He's also in an excrutiatingly small cage...it must be 12x12x20 inches. I'll have to move him over to a bigger place ASAP. I am afraid that I'm going to overload him though... do you think it would be wise to wait until he's on better food before attempting the move?
I clipped his wings as soon as we got home, to get that little trauma out of the way. I want the next few changes to be as positive as possible for him. I'm wondering when you think it would be appropriate to get him on to stick-training? Should I do that right away, or should I hold off 'till he's in his larger cage?
At the moment, he seems more trusting of my cats than he is of me. He calls out to them and cranes his neck around to see them. He even rattles the bars of his cage to get their attention. (Fear not, he is well out of their reach, his cage is mounted on a pole designed to thwart squirrels). My sister in law also had two cats, so he must feel like they are a pretty common part of the "flock."
I'll post some pictures tommorrow.... again, thank you for all your help - and yes, I'll be sure to keep him off my shoulder - at least until I'm CERTAIN he won't make a meal of my earlobe :thinking:
sweetpea11
New Member
hi! i have a pair of blue blacked-masked lovebirds that are less than a year that i got out of rescue. also birds that had been purchased for living art. i think that initially clipping the wings is a good idea. you don't have to be really aggressive about it. just clip them enough that you will be able to catch him if he manages to take off. my guys also started off as really bad biters. it has taken months of just backing off and slowly gaining their trust to overcome that. i would caution you about using gloves as this can do more to traumatize and set you back. the thing that i found works the best to build trust is to whistle to them. i try to do it with them for a few minutes several times a day (just a little repetitive tune). they both seems to really like it. enzo is especially responsive and gets really bashful and starts blinking like mad, sophie is a little more stand-offish but is also showing signs of trust. they both ate out of my hand for the first time the other day in the 5 months that i've had them. before that they used to bite my hands until they bled! good luck!
molamola
Member
It sounds like Franklin is going to enjoy his new home. Neither of our birds has clipped wings, and our lovebird especially enjoys stretching and taking off for a quick trip around the living room.
Our lovebird really likes dried hot peppers. She can't get enough... Our scarlet is a major carnivore and eats chicken like it's a piece of string cheese. They both also enjoy ice cubes, although they are never quite sure what to do with them.
I think the more time you spend with Franklin early on the better...and transferring him to his new cage shouldn't be a problem. Just put the old toys and whatnot in the new cage to make it seem more like home.
Our lovebird really likes dried hot peppers. She can't get enough... Our scarlet is a major carnivore and eats chicken like it's a piece of string cheese. They both also enjoy ice cubes, although they are never quite sure what to do with them.
I think the more time you spend with Franklin early on the better...and transferring him to his new cage shouldn't be a problem. Just put the old toys and whatnot in the new cage to make it seem more like home.
cowfishrule
Active Member
all those toys
give it an empty toilet paper roll
give it an empty toilet paper roll
danedodger
Member
Sounds like between Birdy and Mimzy you guys have it all figured out, great job!!! I can only second what's been said! The only thing I'll add is that you train ANY animal, even people
, the very same way: use that big ole human brain and opposable thumb to make doing what you want the animal to do more fun, pleasurable, and rewarding than doing anything else!