Desperate for help with bedtime!!! Please!

[CrayZbirdlady]

Hello! We have been having this trouble for a few weeks now and its not getting any better. Actually last night it was getting much worse. I'm so afraid our little KC (YSGCC) is not getting enough sleep.
SO.......ever since we got KC in July when she was 4 months old, bed time was in our livingroom and we would cover her late at night because my husband has late shift hours and we would have to remind her that its bed time a few times but she would go to bed in about an hour or so. Now its much worse and this started when she started showing signs of entering her first hormonal phase. Several weeks ago we started to take her cage and put her in our room at bed time and that seemed to be working. We had a short weekend trip where we had someone come and check in on her but her cage cover was left half on so she could go to sleep with the day light and when we got back the routine of going into our bedroom no longer works. She now puts up a fuss several times and its taking hours to get her to sleep. Then when we get in the bedroom she is up several times, hour after hour, fussing and squeeling to the point where I dont think she is getting any sleep now. I'm sure our trip and not having someone here to keep her to a schedule has messed up her internal clock and now she is NOT willing to go to bed at all. I'm terrified that we are going to get complaints from our neighbors as we live in an apartment and have to get rid of her. I'm SOOO scared that might happen. We are trying everything to help. We have given her some camomile tea before bed time that she seemed to like but it had little to no effect. Also we purchased some Avicalm supplement to give her before bed time and that is not giving us the results we need. Last night I tried to put on a dim light in our room for a half hour before she was covered completely and that didn't help. She eats really good, is out of her cage A LOT, and doesnt seem to be having any health issues at all just wants to be nocturnal and that cant happen!
PLEASE !!!! Any suggestions would be welcomed! I'll try anything to help my poor baby! We all love her sooo much and would be horrified if we ever had to get rid of her!

 

[Kiwibird]

Kiwi's covers go on at 9pm, whether he likes it or not. It took no time at all for him to figure out he could sit under there making noise, but it wouldn't get the covers taken off. Occasionally, I hear him cracking seeds after the cover goes on, but he's usually out cold within a few minutes. Every time you run and lift the covers and try to calm her, you are only inadvertently training her that if she's not tired, she can holler and mommy will come play a game of peekaboo with her. If I were you, I would figure out a time you can constantly put her to bed each night, and at that time, covers go on. If she wants to make a fuss, ignore her. If your concerned about the neighbors, turn the TV up a little, apologize that you didn't realize how loud it was and blame it on that (the TV).

 

[crimson]

chances are you are working against her internal clock.
sun up //sun down is what works best, again working with mother nature.
have her settle in 1-1.5 hours with dim lights before fully covering the cage.

I have 15 birds in our bedroom, all of them know when bedtime is, some go in their cage on their own, others we have to put in.

should I come to bed after they have been asleep and start chirping/squawking again, I just go SHHHHH!....and they return to being quiet.

 

[WannaBeAParrot]

Like Beth said...regular schedule.
Also, u could try to wear her out with activity before bedtime,, see if she'll eat and fill her crop. Might be more sleepy and satisfied after play and full "belly".

 

[CrayZbirdlady]

chances are you are working against her internal clock.
sun up //sun down is what works best, again working with mother nature.
have her settle in 1-1.5 hours with dim lights before fully covering the cage.

I have 15 birds in our bedroom, all of them know when bedtime is, some go in their cage on their own, others we have to put in.

should I come to bed after they have been asleep and start chirping/squawking again, I just go SHHHHH!....and they return to being quiet.

Thanks I will keep at it and try to be persistant. When I put her in the bedroom with her cage I do not open her covers up but when she lets out a loud squak or screech I go in and say "hushhhhh bed time" and if she does it too loadly I say firmly "Bed Time!" and walk away.
I'm trying to make 8 pm be her bed time. I would really like to have her be used to some noise and make the kitchen her spot for bed but she will have to get used to my husband going in the fridge and other small noises. Right now she seems VERY reactive to any noise when she is trying to go to bed. Its like she takes any noise as a reason to cause a fuss. Do you think I should get her used to going to bed, like I'm doing now, at a certain time (8pm)and once that is done with little fuss then start to try and get her used to going to bed in the kitchen? Or should I start trying to get her used to going to bed in the kitchen right away?

 

[Kalidasa]

When you go by and say "hush" or anything, you are reinforcing the behavior. Just try to ignore it. If you give any feedback when she's doing it, then you're giving her the green light to do more. This will subside in time.

 

[CrayZbirdlady]

When you go by and say "hush" or anything, you are reinforcing the behavior. Just try to ignore it. If you give any feedback when she's doing it, then you're giving her the green light to do more. This will subside in time.

Agreed! I think I'm probably the problem! What do you think about me trying to get her to sleep in the kitchen and get used to the noise that will happen when she is in there? Is that a bad idea all together or is it possible for a bird to get used to being in a room where you have to enter off and on when they are trying to sleep? Should I get her used to a regular bed time in our bedroom that is quieter for her first and then adjust her to the kitchen or should I scratch the kitchen idea all together?

 

[CrayZbirdlady]

Also does anyone use a back ground noise for their birds like a fan or anything at bed time and if so does that seem to be helpful?

 

[Kalidasa]

I don't know what room would be best, but you might try using white noise (a fan, recording of a bubbling brook, whatever) to muffle some of the sounds. My birds can hear someone goes in the kitchen, but we just try to be quiet. Even if its dead silent, they wake up from time to time. As long as she has the dark and quiet time, a few disturbances won't matter. In the wild, there are disturbances (of a dangerous kind) going on all night. Probably she's getting the most sleep when everyone else is as well. She's hormonal, so is apt to sleep less. It will pass
I might add, since I've been using a humidifier at night, the quiet whisper of it seems to provide just enough white noise to keep them sleeping without being loud. Kumar is the same way as yours. I've been giving him tons of stuff to shred which he does at the bottom when he's feeling hormonal. That also helps tremendously, as it keeps him busy.

 

[CrayZbirdlady]

Thank you for your words of encouragement! I apreciate it, as I've been feeling hopeless about this issue for sometime now. As my husband tells me, I need to just stop worrying about our neighbors. If we had a baby they would have to deal with late noises then too. Tonight I will try a fan in our room to help buffer some noise for her and when she is much better about that and hopefully less hormonal I will try to adjust her to the kitchen as I intend to have that be her place. Fingers crossed, I'm desperate for some sleep myself.

 

[crimson]

we understand how frustrating and nerve wracking it can be when a bird is not ready to settle in for the night, especially when we are!

it could be a simple case of a temper tantrum...."I don't want to go to bed!"....just like a 2 year old does.

one thing I struggled with my Kahlua, she is a pinapple conure. she was just terrible at going to bed, flatly refused to go in it, unless I put her in. then she would sit there and cling to the bars wanting out....talk about a guilt trip.

One day I put this really soft baby blanket on top of her cage, the very first night she climbed under this blanket and slept there all night, and quiet.

this went on for months, I wasn't really keen on it, due to safety issues, but she seemed to stay put, so I went with it.

now that she has Flare her GCC, flare goes in the cage first, and Kahlua follows.
I could have never got her to do that, but it works out well.

try the blanket, they love hiding under things.

 

[Kalidasa]

Oh yes, definately a cover. If I didn't cover my birds at night, they would think it's party night and keep each other up.

 

[Kiwibird]

I've never really gotten why people put them to bed in a different room than where they normally are. The jungle isn't dead silent at night, and they manage to sleep through the night in nature. Kiwi's cage is in the living room and while we aren't throwing excessively loud parties, theres often background noise (conversation, radio, tv) after his covers are on. He sleeps through it. I'm not sure if he actually wakes up or not, but he does ruffle his feathers when the heater switches on or my husband gets in from the night shift, but thats about it for what "disturbs" him in the night. One thing I thought of that might help is a little "hut" to snuggle up in. It's like a little blanket for them, and many birds enjoy having one. Kiwi sleeps in his every night. If you're good with sewing, they are super easy to make, or just get one of the "birdie buddies" Not sure what kind of bird you have, but here is a link for a medium birdie buddy, though they make them in all sizes and colors (just google it)- Prevue Pet Products Pve Blanket Cozy Corner Medium 8 in. - Pet Supplies - Bird Supplies - Toys

 

[CrayZbirdlady]

I've never really gotten why people put them to bed in a different room than where they normally are. The jungle isn't dead silent at night, and they manage to sleep through the night in nature. Kiwi's cage is in the living room and while we aren't throwing excessively loud parties, theres often background noise (conversation, radio, tv) after his covers are on. He sleeps through it. I'm not sure if he actually wakes up or not, but he does ruffle his feathers when the heater switches on or my husband gets in from the night shift, but thats about it for what "disturbs" him in the night. One thing I thought of that might help is a little "hut" to snuggle up in. It's like a little blanket for them, and many birds enjoy having one. Kiwi sleeps in his every night. If you're good with sewing, they are super easy to make, or just get one of the "birdie buddies" Not sure what kind of bird you have, but here is a link for a medium birdie buddy, though they make them in all sizes and colors (just google it)- Prevue Pet Products Pve Blanket Cozy Corner Medium 8 in. - Pet Supplies - Bird Supplies - Toys

Thanks for the helpful ideas but I had to take her hut out of her cage as she was getting too hormonal and using that to rub her back against and get all excited. Its now on her play tower so she can still use it. She used to sleep in our living room but then her hormones started in and she became overly sensitive to sounds and thats when this whole issue started. I'm hoping to get through this and either get her back to sleeping in the living room or in the kitchen.