bed time?

[xreinx]

I was told by fanatic bird keepers that they need a structured enviroment, bedtime is at this time, and wake up time is at this time, and you need to cook for them because pellets/seeds dont cut it, and that you cant force a bird to take a bath, just put the water on the bottem of the cage and if they take a bath good, and they should have their cages in a diffrent room...ect ect. she was really pushy.

Though.. friends of my sisters have birds, and its compleatly the oppsite... one bird of a guy she knows, his Catalina Macaw Sleeps in bed with him, has her own pillow and everything. Another women whom I accually met, who has a amazon, a pink cockatoo and a african grey, all fully flighted, lets hers wander around outside with her all day while she tends her goats and horses. she says they dont sleep in the cage she has for them (apparently they all started out in the same cage and eventually didnt need it) and they sleep with/where/whenever.

I wanted my life to be an equil balance between the two, but the Idea of not forcing my bird to sleep in the cage at a certain is strange.

anyone have an opinion on this? Id like to hear ideas, I understand keeping a bird in a cage at night, its good practice and great if something happened and you needed to get the animals out fast, (like a dog trained in crate training) but is it really necessary? will it make them hard to handle? (just wondering, I will have two cages, a day and night cage for when im not there)

 

[suebee]

lol on sleepin with his bird?? whats gonna happen when he gets a human partner??

anyway nut, of i left her be near bed time, she will settle on curtain pole in main room and probably stay there all night, but we put her into her sleep cage anyway, the sleep cage goes upstairs in the spare bed room and covered

i really don't see it as forcing her to sleep as she naturally goes all sleepy, after 7pm

also if she is left to stay up late, she is more beaky the next day, and we need our own family time without the nut, doin her best to be a feathered wedge, lol

 

[xreinx]

I have no Idea, I got the impression that he was older and single and had been for quite a while. but yes, my sister said he would ask the bird to go poo, then brush his teeth, the bird got a last drink of water before bedtime (and a snack, not sure what it was and never asked) but he would go to bed and the bird would settle down on her own pillow, apparently shes a big bird so she needs a big pillow.

yea, thats what I thought, but up here, the women was all like 6 pm sharp, uncovered at 8 am, because thats what they need. I figured they could regulate their own bedtimes after a few months, but shes not gone on vacation in 15 years because she has birds and they "NEED" her. during the winter, we get maybe 4 and a half hours during the winter of light. Id provide a sunlamp for the winter, but let them sleep when they want during the summer, but I was told I was way out of line and it would be best if I did more resurch before even considering any bird. (ive had chickens, and I never needed to put them to bed, they did that on their own, and I was told chickens are stupid)

 

[merlinsmom13]

Merlin has a set bedtime, but when we were both working, we allowed him up alot later. He slept during the afternoon when we were gone & I wanted him to have more time outside of his cage. I do notice that he is better behaved now, so I think suebee is right, he was sometimes cross because he didn't get enough sleep. I would stilll do he same thing again, I believe that are more flexible than people give them credit for. He sometimes will put himself into his cage for a nap, its his safe place & he doesnt think of it as a punishment. As for forced bathing, I would bet that the lady who told you that did not have a "pee boy" sitting on her shoulder. I occasionally trick merlin into the shower w/me when I can no longer stand the smell. After he gets wet he enjoys himself & usually finishes his bath in his water bowl. I dont know why he has such a thing about not bathing, my attempts to mist him either go w/him flying away or beating himself against the bars of his cage. I pick the lesser of the 2 evils & snatch him into the shower.

 

[xreinx]

lol, yea I never smelled a smelly parrot before, I dubt she did either, but my bird will have to have baths, lary, the only one I was around for more then 8 months rarly drank water, his feet and tongue would get all dry and go dandruffy, and yes even his tongue, until one day while I was trying to mist him, he grabbed the squirtbottle nozzle and found that the water was drinkable.

then from that time on he was both horrified and attracted to the bottle, if he could get to it, he could drink all the water he wanted, if he couldent, he would get sprayed. it depened on how fast we both were.

 

[suebee]

lmao nut does that with misting bottle tries drinking water or destroying the nozzle but she tends to let us mist her more when she is on some1 an they too are getting wet

and lol @ being sneaky with merlin, gettin him in the shower

 

[darkling]

I put a cover on Pi's cage around 8pm and uncover her between 8 - 10 am. Earlier if she wakes me up. Later if I get to sleep in. She doesn't seem to mind one way or the other. Sometimes I hear her playing with her toys while she's covered. Sometimes not.

I bathe her by putting 2-3 inches of warm (not hot) water in the kitchen sink and letting her play in it. She loves it when I let drops of water fall from my fingertips onto her back and wings.

I'm not really structured with her. When I get up, I open the door of her cage and she can come out or not as she chooses. Her cage is close enough to my desk chair that she'll sometimes hop over to the back of the chair and then onto me. She loves to cuddle but she also loves to play and just be a bird so I don't restrict her much. If I go out I'll put her back into her cage but if I'm here, she pretty much has free run until 8 pm.

 

[Abzeez]

Mine don't have a set bed time. Its whenever around here. I also don't have a set routine. Everyday is different. They get let out at different times, eat fruits and veggies at different times. etc. It works for us.

 

[Bright Star]

Keats' bedtime is between 7:15 and 7:30 p.m. usually. That's because he quiets down quite a bit around 7. I once arrived home at 7:35, and he had already gone to sleep in his tent and wouldn't even greet me. I was crushed, though he seemed fine. Sometimes, he's still awake and playing with his toys at 7:30, so I wait until he quiets and then cover him and say goodnight.

Morning wake up is also between 7:15 and 7:30 a.m., except on weekends when we sleep in. He seems alert no matter when I uncover him, then we stretch together and start our day. I think it is important to ensure that birds get enough sleep. They need 10-12 hours, and will probably let you know when they're ready if you're paying attention. In the wild, birds flock and call to each other before settling in for the night. I can certainly see a similar pattern in my little birdie. He's extra-active just before settling down, and when he's ready for bed, he goes to his sleeping perch. He'll even chirp at me - soft, even-spaced chirps - as if he's asking to go to sleep. I also know he's ready for bed when he ducks his head to get under his 'covers.'