Cockatoo Sleep Question

[TonyCagg]

So, here I am with another question, yet again.

We have Nic Nic's cage in our living room, center of action in our house.

I have read, time and time again, about how he needs 12 hours sleep or so.

Here is the daily schedule in our living room.

7am Wake up...open curtains, feed & water Nic Nic.

All day...kids come and go through the house. Nap time is from around 2pm to 3pm for everyone (my wife is at home but works nights and needs the rest as much as the boys do.) Usually for 2 hours a day Nic Nic plays on his playpen top, alone (we are in the room with him at all time when he is out) and entertains himself. He will nap on and off all day.

7pm Kids go to bed, I finish up chores and Nic Nic begins dancing wildly to get my attention.

7:30 - 8pm Nic Nic is our with me... training, cuddling, playing for an hour or two and then hangs on his playpen top, mostly relaxing or using his foraging toys. This is his most active time.

11pm My wife returns home, visits with Nic Nic for a few minutes and cages him for the night.

He naps through the day, is VERY VERY active come sundown and seems very happy. Rarely ever screams, seems to have already learned that talking gets more attention than bad behavior.

In an attempt to get him more sleep, I caged him early and spent time reading in the other room and he went ballistic...if we place him where he cannot watch the boys play, he LOSES HIS MIND.

If this schedule has him happy, quiet and playful...I can't see any reason to change again.

Is there a DOWN SIDE I am not seeing here? Is more sleep than 8 hours and naps necessary for his health?

The above schedule makes everyone happy. He is a pleasure to be with and has no problem retiring to his cage of his own accord to nap during the day.


Thanks.....

 

[Mayden]

You're giving him a good 8 hours sleep, and he's getting his naps throughout the day... as long as he's healthy and happy with this routine then I don't see any reason why you should change it!

Unless Nic Nic started showing hormonal behaviour because of the 'long days' then yeah, maybe change it for that... but if all is balanced and happy in the house, I say keep it. What a lovely 'too you seem to have!

 

[Auggie's Dad]

Birds *do* need their sleep - but it sounds like he's getting plenty.

But just because he is active at night doesn't mean he isn't tired. In my experience birds tend to 'nod-off' when they're comfortable, not when they are tired - when they are tired they just get cranky but are still very (or even more) active.

But again, A solid 8hrs a night plus some naps during the day should be good.

 

[TonyCagg]

We have been lucky. He has not been cranky as of yet. He joined the family about a month ago and has been even keeled the whole time, with the exception of when I tried to get him to sleep in the other room.

While I admit our schedule is less than ideal, it is unfortunately the way things are for us right now. I have worked with animals long enough to know he his well adjusted and happy, just want to be sure to keep his health in mind.

He always gets a minimum of 8 hours sleep, on my day off it is up to 9 hours.