What does this mean??...irn acting strange!

[INDI]

Hi Everyone..just wondering if you can help me out..my new IRN whos name is INDI has been acting weird around my Kakariki Tiki...INDI is only 8 months old & has been with us for 6 days now, Tiki & Indi have been getting along fine, but today Indi has started bossing towards Tiki...what seems weird is that Indi's pupils go really tiny when staring at Tiki & being bossy to him...what does that mean when the pupils go small...is that like a death stare or something??... I have seperated them both & they are having time out in their cage (separate).
Thanks
Kristy

 

[Bright Star]

The activity with the eyes is called pinning and could be a sign of happiness, an invitation to be friends, or a form of intimidation. Parrots often pin their eyes when they're soliciting interaction AND before they attack. Indi's body language should tell you more of his/her intentions. It sounds like intimidation, so separate out-of-cage time is probably a good idea

 

[kerry]

When my male Yellow Naped Amazon would pin his eyes I learned from experience that I could not handle him at that time. He was very excited & he would bite me then if I tried to handle him. My YNA Perry would do it when company came over. He would go through his whole repertoire of what he could say, etc. but I could not touch him then.
Here is an explanation that I found of parrot eye "pinning" which means that the pupils (the inner black part) of the eyes get very small:

"Eye pinning (dilate/contract pupils): A parrot whose pupils are pinning in and out is excited and may be in bite mode. Some parrots do this when they're excited about something they like, such as a new toy or good food."

I think that your Ringneck is trying to show his dominance so for the safety of Tiki, you should probably keep them separated.

 

[JensFlock]

My irn will also pin like crazy when he's excited in a happy way. When I tell him to step up or he's playing with the conure, his best friend.
When i ask him if he wants a shower, he'll squeal and pin. (That's Cody's way of saying YES!!!)

 

[IolaniAviary]

As everyone has essentially said, "pinning" is usually a sign of strong emotion. This can be extreme excitement, or anger. I would keep an eye on their interactions, but unless you see any type of aggressive behavior they should be fine. You will learn to identify your birds actions and emotions the longer you have them. I can definitely tell when some of my buggers are about to cause issues xD

 

[INDI]

ok...thanks for the info...I thought it was maybe to do with their sex, like a Male thing, like being an Alpha male...now its Tiki bossing Indi, & vice versa, they are doing it (bossing) to eachother...I have had tiki for just on 3 years, Brought Indi home last thursday, had him for a week, so I guess its still the getting to know eachother phase...i noticed when the boss eachother, they try to bite eachothers tails, or scare eachother away from the food in the cage, as they hang out in eachothers cages....also Indi was an 8 month old avairy bird from a breeder...dont think he was handled at all, cos when the man went to put Indi in my transport cage, Indi bit his finger really bad, held on to it until he was in the cage...I could tell the man was in pain... I am worried Indi will never let me handle him, I cant even get close to him without him flying around,...how do I start to tame him...Tiki is tame...I dont want birds who will be the boss of me, & not listen & do as their told...like my skin kids....lol...
Thanks
Kristy

 

[australianaviculture]

My Indian Ringneck would display the same behaviour when he was angry and knew I was about to get bitten.

If Indi was not hand reared it will take some time to tame him. You need to develop trust between you and you bird, you will most likely get bitten a few times but once you are trusted all will be good. Try and handle your bird as much as possible, let him land on you to get used to you.

Your birds are developing a "pecking order". Who is th boss. Remember not all birds are compatible.

Hope it helps
Clint
australianaviculture

 

[lexilu]

You also need to put at least two feed dishes if they are together in the same cage. This will eliminate competition for the food.