By the clock

[JamesC]

Couple of questions concerning time.

What time do you usually put your birds to bed?

I stay up until 10 or 11 every night so the change in time has been a little hard on my new Senegal, Sidney. The store that was hosting him for adoption closes at 6 and after daily cleanup I'm sure that it was lights out by 7. So he starts getting grumpy and tired about then. My blue crown conures are well adjusted to my schedule. I would like to put him someplace quiet but I do not have a bird room currently though I will when I find a new place that I like. I'm trying to gently urge him into a later schedule so that we can have some time together in the evenings though I still cover him, turn the lights down and turn off the tv by 8 to 9. But I still make noise and the blue crowns squabble occasionally so he is not getting undisturbed rest. I've adjusted my lights out time to about 9 out of consideration to him.


Second timing question is how often do you notice your Senegals going poop?

I don't know if it is his normal pattern or if he is holding it until he goes back to his cage but Sid can go an hour or two between drops. He starts getting restless when he has to go, I think. When I take him back to the cage he goes immediately. My first Senegal would go for hours between drops but she was never all that healthy after she was rescued from a bad situation. With that history and losing her, it makes me a little cautious about Sid because I would expect him to be on a 20-30 minute schedule like most birds that I have known. He is going for his first birdie checkup next Monday and that is one of the questions I'll have for the vet while there.

Thanks!

 

[suncon97]

I would think that if it isn't changing his behavior for the worse,he should be fine. I put my bird to bed at 9 or 10 but it's because she gets up at 630 am with us.And I don't have a Senegal but Pearl seems to go whenever she pleases.She has a normal number but she won't go when she's on us she gets restless when she has to go.

 

[Mitchell]

Don't make him hold his poop too long, it can cause problems for him. I was told let them go back about every 15 minutes or so to poop. Mine usually poops immediatly when I give him his potty break and then I get him right back. I put mine to bed at 10 being we dont get up until 9, so he gets his 10 hours of recommended sleep time.

 

[JamesC]

Don't make him hold his poop too long, it can cause problems for him.

That is what I was worried about. When I first got him, I kept a towel on me that he could go on when he needed to. He has been with me less than 2 weeks but I've found he is a very observant bird and has already picked up my patterns like knowing I'm about to leave if I pick up my keys. I don't know if he picked it up from my tone of voice if he missed the towel but I would say something along the lines of "Whoops!" to him if he did and clean up. I'll make it a point to take him back to his cage more often from now on until I get a playstand to sit next to my chair so that he can go freely whenever needed.

 

[Mitchell]

Most parrots don't like to go poop on their owners so they hold it until brought back to a familiar area. You can teach them to poop on command too. My friend has one that when she knows he has to go she holds him over a trash can or something and says go poop. Its really cool.

 

[JamesC]

My BCC Tootsie is trained like that. She will go when I say "Go poop!" With as clever as Sid seems to be so far, I will try the same technique with him.

 

[Mayden]

Most parrots don't like to go poop on their owners so they hold it until brought back to a familiar area. You can teach them to poop on command too. My friend has one that when she knows he has to go she holds him over a trash can or something and says go poop. Its really cool.

I wish Merlin never pooped on me, but I'm pretty certain I'm his personal potty!

 

[Spiritbird]

What every time schedule you decide on be sure your bird is getting a quality sleep for 12 hrs. No conversations, music, tv or other sounds. this is natural for birds and keeps them healthy and happy.

 

[mtdoramike]

Tiki my Sennie poops about every 30 minutes or so depending on how much she is eating. I put her to bed at Sun Down.

Mac my Eclectus is an adoptee which I received about 6 months ago and is a bit older than Tiki. The previous owners allowed him to stay up till about 7:00-8:00pm. I put him to bed at 7:00p. But I leave the door to his room open until 9:00pm so that he can hear the goings on in the rest of the house and I can hear him rustling around and then by 9:00pm he settles down so I close off his room for the night.

 

[Karigan]

Hmm... my girl usually goes to sleep around 10, with or without people in the room and wakes up whenever the first person in the house does, around 7. She also naps during the day.

She'll use the bathroom every 20 min or so on her own, but she'll hold it forever if I'm holding her, so I make sure to send her to her cage when the time come.

Haha, my husband may be her favourite person, but it's me she's polite with. She will not poop on me for anything, so one night us three were on the couch, and after 20 min or so she hoped off my shoulder, walked over to my husband, and laid an enormous poop on him and skipped back to me. You should have seen his face!