New Behaviour

[Tesla]

Hi there
Last night Oscar decided that he would go investigate the noise being made by my grandson jumping on the bed in our bedroom. Upon arriving in the room he discovered out walk in closet, Oscar immediately started muttering up a storm and pulled some clothes off the lower shelf. He seemed very pleased with himself and perched himself upon the fallen clothes. Now my 16 year old son walked in and got on his knees and peeked around the corner of the closet, well Oscar charged him, wigs out and beak open. he then did the same to my wife when she walked into the closet as well as the cat when it walked by. Now I was the only one able to walk in and pick him up.
I'm not sure what he was doing but he sure seemed to like the corner of the closet. any ideas what this was all about?

 

[4dugnlee]

Nesting? Just my first thought...

 

[Amanda_Bennett]

My first thought was nesting...

 

[getwozzy]

Nesting! I would keep oscar out of the closet or any other place sought out as a nest- I've heard of birds trying to nest behind throw pillows, in people's laps, laundry, cupboards- anything that could remotely resemble a nest.

 

[Birdman666]

Nah. I ABSOLUTELY disagree... MACAW BLUFFING.

First of all, we get down on the floor with Maggie and play the "chase me" game all the time. It doesn't necessarily mean attack mode. It could be play.

Woodie had a favorite blanket, that he would defend to the death if you tried to take it from him. The blanket wasn't always his. It became his when he took it, and was determined not to give it back. (By then, it had several holes in it anyway, and it became a tug of war/peek e boo/ macaw toy.)

Maggie burrows under the covers, and towels, and clothes all the time... tosses them in the air. chews on them. THESE ARE TOYS! In fact, there are very few things that ARE NOT TOYS to a big mac!!!

If it isn't play - THEN that's macaw for "I don't wanna. I'm playing. Who's gonna make me! (Backs you off. Back to playing. Backs you off. Back to playing. Fun game for a big mac! We can keep this up all day!) "Oh, wait... he will! Okay. I'll stop this game now!" Lap time anyone?!

They know who will. And who won't. And they behave accordingly.

If you run. They will chase. If they can back you off, they'll keep doing it. If they can't... well, they know that too! (Stop me if I sound like a broken record on this issue! Macaws require a firm hand!)

If other family members did the pillow, backing the bird up into the corner, now knock it off and step up....

Okay we're done playing now. Lap time!

 

[Birdman666]

Macaw nesting usually has some sexual overtones. (Not as overt as an amazon, but then, what is?!) And they lure a favorite person into the nest, accompanied by mating displays and feeding behaviors...

I'm guessing the favorite person here was not your son, or your wife. That makes the clothes closet, a "target of opportunity..." so to speak. THIS IS NEW! Look at all these wonderful toys! He wasn't done playing with them or exploring the closet when your son, and your wife "interrupted" him. He wanted to keep playing. That's all this is.

And I'm guessing since he stepped up for you, and wasn't trying to lure you into the nest, and it wasn't accompanied by "the usual" sexual displays that this is simply more of the normal MACAW EXUBERANCE...

Normal, of course, being a relative concept.

They're goofy. Anything but normal. That's why we love them!

 

[JerseyWendy]

Sounds like nesting to me as well. We have several threads on here with similar behavior, and it was indeed nesting, and not 'playing'.

Let me try and find some of these threads...

http://www.parrotforums.com/macaws/34190-nesting.html

http://www.parrotforums.com/macaws/35613-excessive-nesting.html

There are more threads, but these are 2 that I've found.

 

[Birdman666]

I'd have to see it, I guess... It is breeding season. But I stick with my answer absent displays. Intelligent minds can disagree.

You know your bird. Is he acting overtly hormonal? Or is he just a bit wound up?

Bottom line:

If it's nesting, he'll be back, and he'll be building a nest in that corner with what ever is handy. (i.e. shredded clothes.)

If it's play, he'll be back if he gets an opportunity to go back and throw clothes around and chew them up. (i.e. clothes with lots of holes in them.)

Either way, the result is the same, and the "remedy" is also the same.

Pick him up, and put him back on the playstand.

If it IS nesting, give him a box in the corner, and some paper to shred... let him get it out of his system with something you don't mind being shredded.