OutlawedSpirit
New member
- Apr 12, 2016
- 1,020
- 21
- Parrots
- Bo - DYH ~ Gus - CAG ~ Twitch - Linnie ~ Apple - Pineapple GCC ~ Goliath - Quaker ~ Squish - Peach face Lovebird
I think Tiki might be feeling a bit hormonal. Not entirely sure though, I haven't dealt with it before. The chicken is still young enough that she hasn't hit puberty yet. He's been much more vocal, i.e. screaming, the past few days. He's also been much more liberal with his use of the beak. After I've had him out for a while, when I go to put him back in the cage, he grabs on to the glove and growls and chomps pretty viciously. Definitely makes me glad I use gloves with him.
He's never been like that before, usually when I tell him we're going back home and ask him to step down, he just steps onto his perch and that's the end of it. Not this week. He's been pacing on the bottom of his cage quite a bit too, reminds me of the video Chris posted of Parker when he was being hormonal, which is why I think that is the issue with Tiki.
Not that it's a big deal, it's just a bird being a bird. I just wonder if I'm right, or if I'm missing something. Except for the extra aggression and screaming, he's acting just fine. He's eating and drinking well, at least he's still washing his face off in his water bowl.
He is looking really good now, too. More baths and a better diet seem to be doing wonders for him. His chest feathers still look a little wonky, but I don't know if they'll ever look like they should. I found out that he was quite the plucker before he went to the rescue, but his previous owner had been feeding him exclusively colored pellets, so I think that was a lot of his issue. Especially since when I moved him here, he didn't pluck a single feather. That really makes me think his plucking was a dietary issue, and not a behavioral one. I actually got to see a picture of him before he was switched to dye-free pellets, and his chest was bare. I really am proud of how far we've come together. Maybe since even the dye-free pellets are gone (he gets veggie chop and fruits during the day, and a couple nutriberries as a bed time snack) his chest feathers will come in even better next time he molts. I hope they do, but I'm not counting on it since I don't know if he did any permanent damage when he plucked before I got him. The feathers on his back and wings are excellent looking, however, I'll see if I can get a couple decent pictures and post them as a comment in a little bit.
He's never been like that before, usually when I tell him we're going back home and ask him to step down, he just steps onto his perch and that's the end of it. Not this week. He's been pacing on the bottom of his cage quite a bit too, reminds me of the video Chris posted of Parker when he was being hormonal, which is why I think that is the issue with Tiki.
Not that it's a big deal, it's just a bird being a bird. I just wonder if I'm right, or if I'm missing something. Except for the extra aggression and screaming, he's acting just fine. He's eating and drinking well, at least he's still washing his face off in his water bowl.
He is looking really good now, too. More baths and a better diet seem to be doing wonders for him. His chest feathers still look a little wonky, but I don't know if they'll ever look like they should. I found out that he was quite the plucker before he went to the rescue, but his previous owner had been feeding him exclusively colored pellets, so I think that was a lot of his issue. Especially since when I moved him here, he didn't pluck a single feather. That really makes me think his plucking was a dietary issue, and not a behavioral one. I actually got to see a picture of him before he was switched to dye-free pellets, and his chest was bare. I really am proud of how far we've come together. Maybe since even the dye-free pellets are gone (he gets veggie chop and fruits during the day, and a couple nutriberries as a bed time snack) his chest feathers will come in even better next time he molts. I hope they do, but I'm not counting on it since I don't know if he did any permanent damage when he plucked before I got him. The feathers on his back and wings are excellent looking, however, I'll see if I can get a couple decent pictures and post them as a comment in a little bit.
