Skittles bedtime diversion tactic

[Skittys_Daddy]

So Skittles has had his very own separate sleep cage for over a year now and we had a pretty good system in place. But it seems someone has decided to shake things up a bit.

Normally, when Skitty wants to go to bed, he'll tell me (screech like a storm) and then I'll walk into the bedroom with him on my shoulder and he'll fly over to his sleep cage and I'll let him in. The end.

But lately, the little stinker is trying something new. When he tells me he wants to go to bed and I go to put him to bed he doesn't fly over to the cage anymore- instead he waits until I am right at the cage door and then just as I am about to open it, he climbs inside my shirt.

 

[plumsmum2005]

Think he is telling you something, don't you? This change of bedtime venue would not be a good idea as you will be aware. Perhaps one more snuggles before bed might cut the mustard and he agrees to go in voluntarily wdyt?

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

As much as I'd love to have him snuggle with me through the night its something I will NEVER do. I accidentally fell asleep one afternoon on top of my bed and got woken up to screaming. Skittles had been chewing on my pillow case and got his foot caught in the threading. Luckily, I was RIGHT there.

He's too much of a burrower to even consider letting him sleep with me. I move around a LOT during the night. I just think its adorable how he'd rather sleep with me.

But to answer your question, what I usually do when he wants to do that is just walk out of the bedroom and come back in the living room and give him some more snuggle time and then eventually he'll go to bed on his own.

 

[wrench13]

I'm a little envious of you conure owners, with all this snuggling and stuff. If I tried to stuff Salty down my shirt, he'd probably clip off a nipple or something. And he grows another set of feet and claws when its bed time.

 

[LeaKP]

Nigel's been messing with bedtime too. He climbs all over the cage and seems to enjoy the new game. Once in, he climbs to his preferred perch, fluffs and chatters for a few minutes. Lights out.

 

[BoomBoom]

Sounds like a conure! Skittles is such a character. I love reading your stories of him.

Boomer also shoots down my shirt right when I get to his cage for bedtime. Then, as soon as I have him perched on my finger, he leans back the opposite way like a backwards Michael Jackson. It's like one of those trust falls, he keeps on going till his head and back lands on my chest. And he stays there. He does this all while the room is dark, with no lights but the reflected street lamp. He is the most 'talkative' at this time too. He mumbles incoherently just to buy himself a few more minutes.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

@wrench Thats actually how I got Skittles to start doing it. It wasn't an intentional training exercise- not what I was aiming for- its just sometimes he gets really needy and it can be irritating, so I'd grab him and shove him down my shirt to shut him up. lol. Now, he goes on his own. Its super sweet.

@BoomBoom lol- thats a sunnie for ya!

The great thing about it is now he doesn't chew up my tshirts like he used to- now he uses them for snuggling.

Its so rewarding to see how much they trust us.