Moody Emmett

[Fiwi]

Looks like Emmett woke up on the wrong side of his cage today. We are on vacation and it's been busy. I don't know if he's tired or upset that we left him for a while yesterday. He's been with us for most of the time, but we went out for the day yesterday and he had to stay home. This morning, he wouldn't step up to come out of his cage. When he finally did, I gave him breakfast. I put his bowls on top of his travel cage for him to eat. Twice he pushed the bowls off the top of the cage!

How should I handle this? Do you think he's tired or grumpy? Daylight savings has thrown us all off. Maybe Emmett too?

 

[roxynoodle]

He probably is tired. DST has thrown off everyone here as well. And vacations can be tiring, lol!

 

[Fiwi]

Do you think I should cover his cage for a while and encourage him to nap? Do birds nap? LOL

 

[roxynoodle]

My birds all nap every day.

You might put him into a quiet room so he can if he wants to. If you cover him though he might wonder why.

 

[Fiwi]

Thanks, RoxyNoodle & Pedro. BTW, Pedro, I did leave him in his cage when he didn't want to come out. I left his door open and he came out when he was ready. His mood improved with the day -- becoming his usual chirpy, talkative self!

 

[roxynoodle]

Parrots are moody; some more than others, and things like hormones or even molting can affect them more at different times of the year, and as they are different ages. Think 2 or 3 year old child as far as emotional stability goes.

 

[Remy]

Maybe he's stressed from being away from home.

 

[melbourned]

We,re planning to travel (travel Trailer) with Winston and Montego, two male Eclectus. Is this a wise thing to do? Of course travel in the truck with us, in cages.

 

[Fiwi]

Fiwi, I am a no nonsence sort of person & i don't tolorate any bad behavior from my parrots at all. I truly don't have issues with either hormones or molting, all my parrots sail through without as much as a moan.

And if your parrot is misbehaving take a step back & have a good look at what you are teaching it. IMO if you start positive reinforcement training from day 1. Your eclectus will grow up to be a well adjusted parrot.

Parrots bite because they learn to bite because humans don't know how to read body language.

Parrots scream because we yell back at them when we have had enough. We don't take the time to understand them.

Parrots are hormonal or grumpy during a molt because humans say so. I am afraid i am one of these parrot owners that have parrots as companions not little feathered parrot people that i make excuses, for any behavior i may deem undesireable.

I truly & honestly can not comphrend how so many carers complain about their poor birds.

No disrespect to you either Roxy. I know we all have different ideas of how we look after our parrots. IMO Eclectus are very much like us humans & i believe they really enjoy being treated with respect. Well iknow my eccies do.

Pedro, you many many good points. Emmett has only been with us 10 days, so I'm still learning his body language. I have been reading up on this online and am doing my best as a new bird owner to understand Emmett. He's also 5 years old and comes with who-knows-what baggage. We are doing positive reinforcement and I would never yell at him. That said, if we as humans are allowed to have a bad day, then so should our birds. One thing I have learned from yesterday's experience, is that if I give Emmett his space when he needs it, he'll come around.

Today 06:51 AM melbourned Re: Moody Emmett
We,re planning to travel (travel Trailer) with Winston and Montego, two male Eclectus. Is this a wise thing to do? Of course travel in the truck with us, in cages.

Today 01:33 AM Remy Re: Moody Emmett
Maybe he's stressed from being away from home. Yesterday 11:30 PM

Traveling with Emmett so soon after he joined our family was a hard decision. However, we travel a lot and I figured he should get used to it. All in all, it's been a very good experience and he's handled it better than I thought he would. He was great in the car (17 hours) and seemed to enjoy the drive -- very talkative. He slept well when it became dark. I have heard a lot from people who travel with their birds and they all say they and their birds enjoy the experience.

 

[roxynoodle]

When you bring a bird home that isn't a baby, you don't know what they've learned. A couple of weeks ago, I laid down because I had a migraine. As soon as I did, Pete yelled at me, "Wake up!"

He has never said that before, and I know I have never woken up my animals if they are napping, and certainly haven't said that to any of them. He hasn't said it again either.