Eccentric depressive behavior?

[sunshinemama91]

Gracie hasnt gotten out of her cage but for maybe 5 minutes today. The last couple of days she has hardly said a word, which is very unlike her from the short time I've known her... and around bed time 2 nights in a row, she goes to the opposite side of her cage and spins in circles.... idk what to make of it, she seems like really depressed or something and idk what I can do. I cant touch her or get her out. Do I just give it time? Is there anything I can do? Idk what to do.

 

[Owlet]

Sounds like a vet visit to me. If a bird is usually really vocal and interactive and now just, isn't, then there's a good chance they're not feeling well.

 

[sunshinemama91]

Sounds like a vet visit to me. If a bird is usually really vocal and interactive and now just, isn't, then there's a good chance they're not feeling well.

She's only just moved in 8 days ago so I dont know her "normal" all that well yet. The previous owner said she isnt a super noisey bird, but still, this is unusual. A vet visit unfortunately isn't an option right now. The closest thing I can do for now is get a hold of the bird rehab lady that lives up the street and see if she knows anything of value here. Probably about as much as half of the people on here honestly.

 

[sunshinemama91]

I honestly think shes home sick as heck and cant stand having the cage door closed at all. I think shes severely depressed and going through a really hard time. She might think shes in trouble because she got the door closed every night and covered now 2 nights in a row because shes had trouble settling down. So many factors that have made things harder for her to transition. Shes use to dogs and a mess, not kids and CONSTANT cleaning with noisey items. Endless attention and attempts at affection.

She is still eating and drinking and pooping normally it seems. Although she hasnt seemed to eat as much as I expected since I got her.

 

[SailBoat]

Sounds like a vet visit to me. If a bird is usually really vocal and interactive and now just, isn't, then there's a good chance they're not feeling well.

Fully agree!

 

[sunshinemama91]

I talked to her owner last night, the spinning is 100% normal for her, shes just being a goober before bed.
Again, vet isn't an option for us at the moment.

 

[sunshinemama91]

This is day 3 of her staying quiet and in her cage. Shes eating more than she had been and we have her scheduled for the soonest possible time to get her to the vet. She seems to want her cage door closed and has been sleeping most of the day the last couple of days. Over all she seems fine, but definitely not feeling her best.

 

[18WheelsOfSteel]

Birds generally do not handle major changes well, 8 days is a really brief period of observation, stay vigilant, research signs that indicate a sick bird, there is no telling what a stressed bird will do in new environs, do your best to minimize the amount of stress introduced into the environment.

I am also assuming given your posts that you are bird sitting? Do not expect the bird to behave the same in your home as they did at home where they re familiar and comfortable.

 

[18WheelsOfSteel]

Also worth noting, birds and humans do not share all that many emotional cues, that which in a human may indicate a partifular emotion, condition or behavior oughtnt to be tken for granted to be translating identically to birds...even an owner saying "this is normal" may be inadvertently missing warning signs, vet is obviously best, but as you say this is not an option, a bit of individual research specific to the breed from reputable, community approved sources would be a safe solution...or at least as safe as options appear to indicate.

 

[sunshinemama91]

Thanks for the reply! We are her new owners, her previous ones I dont think had a clue what they were doing and she was rather neglected. Which was why she was for sale, they recognized that they could no longer care for her. We put some aloe, grapefruit seed extract, and colloidal silver in her water yesterday and at least her appetite has perked back up. Lately it seems like all I do is research Amazons haha. Shes still grumpy, but loves when we talk to her. 8 more days until she sees her vet, more than 2 hours away.