It may not seem like much of a reason to be excited, but ever since I brought home my newest flock member, 5 month old female Ash, I have been trying to get my male cockatiel Ember, 1.5 years old, to accept her companionship.
I couldn't blame her for becoming infatuated with him right away -- I put her cage right next to his for over 2 months and began letting them both out at the same time to interact.
But Ember does NOT like other birds very much, never has, and made it clear when she approached him too closely and lunged at her that he wasn't cool with her being so close. She backed off but she still continued to follow him around, though giving him more space after that.
It was more of an accident how it happened -- I wanted Ash to get used to being in Ember's large flight cage he lives in alone, so I put her inside of it while he was out on top hanging out and preening. That way she could fully explore his cage without bothering him.
Well, she liked exploring his cage so much -- the toys, the perches, the space -- that she didn't want to leave! She was having a lot of fun exploring and playing with toys. So I decided to put Ember back inside his cage with her, as a test to see what would happen, ready to intervene at any moment if it turned aggressive.
I gave them both millet on opposite sides of the cage and they happily enjoyed their treats. An hour went by, then two...I gave them more treats, this time a Sunchip, yum!! Each enjoyed a piece on opposite sides of the cage. Approaching bedtime, I put her food and water bowls in the cage so that they would now have 4 bowls and wouldn't be tempted to fight. The first night I was a little worried but it ended up being a quiet, peaceful one with no incidents. Both slept in different spots of the cage and were happy for breakfast time.
Since then, it's now been 3 + days and they are doing perfectly fine together!!!! The cage is so large that they both have enough room to be in their own separate areas and hang out in peace. Neither goes after the other. Ash still has moments she likes to follow Ember around the cage, but he just climbs away from her.
The only fighting I've seen was a slight bickering over who gets to sleep in the best sleep spot -- which Ember let Ash win. It's almost like watching an only child get used to a new sibling -- he's becoming less bratty and more accepting of sharing his space.
Every passing day they seem to be growing more comfortable with each other. I've watched Ember allow her to sit closer and closer, preening or sitting peacefully just a few inches apart, when a week ago Ember would've never allowed it.
Hopefully this is the start of a great companionship!
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMe4Dtrz57A&feature=youtu.be"]Ash and Ember[/ame]
I couldn't blame her for becoming infatuated with him right away -- I put her cage right next to his for over 2 months and began letting them both out at the same time to interact.
But Ember does NOT like other birds very much, never has, and made it clear when she approached him too closely and lunged at her that he wasn't cool with her being so close. She backed off but she still continued to follow him around, though giving him more space after that.
It was more of an accident how it happened -- I wanted Ash to get used to being in Ember's large flight cage he lives in alone, so I put her inside of it while he was out on top hanging out and preening. That way she could fully explore his cage without bothering him.
Well, she liked exploring his cage so much -- the toys, the perches, the space -- that she didn't want to leave! She was having a lot of fun exploring and playing with toys. So I decided to put Ember back inside his cage with her, as a test to see what would happen, ready to intervene at any moment if it turned aggressive.
I gave them both millet on opposite sides of the cage and they happily enjoyed their treats. An hour went by, then two...I gave them more treats, this time a Sunchip, yum!! Each enjoyed a piece on opposite sides of the cage. Approaching bedtime, I put her food and water bowls in the cage so that they would now have 4 bowls and wouldn't be tempted to fight. The first night I was a little worried but it ended up being a quiet, peaceful one with no incidents. Both slept in different spots of the cage and were happy for breakfast time.
Since then, it's now been 3 + days and they are doing perfectly fine together!!!! The cage is so large that they both have enough room to be in their own separate areas and hang out in peace. Neither goes after the other. Ash still has moments she likes to follow Ember around the cage, but he just climbs away from her.
The only fighting I've seen was a slight bickering over who gets to sleep in the best sleep spot -- which Ember let Ash win. It's almost like watching an only child get used to a new sibling -- he's becoming less bratty and more accepting of sharing his space.
Every passing day they seem to be growing more comfortable with each other. I've watched Ember allow her to sit closer and closer, preening or sitting peacefully just a few inches apart, when a week ago Ember would've never allowed it.
Hopefully this is the start of a great companionship!
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMe4Dtrz57A&feature=youtu.be"]Ash and Ember[/ame]
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