The watery poop appeared again...

[sphinxface]

I think this must mean stress...
He did it the most when he first got home with me, then he did it again after the vet visit...

Today he didn't want to step up on his swing for me so I decided to try to scoop him up, there was a short chase but I'm pretty quick at grabbing birds thanks to working at the pet store... he had little watery poops when I put him on my lap... he seemed confused and unsure for about half an hour, then he played fairly well on my lap (playing means chewing on everything and doing a little swinging on his swing).

Then I decided to manipulate him with my hands by making him step up and trying to pet him(which he refuses), I tried to grab his wings to see how many of his feathers had been clipped but he didn't understand that so I stopped.. he seemed pretty good about stepping up he knew what I wanted to do but I could tell he didn't want to. Eventually something spooked him onto the floor and after asking him why he did that I decided to put him back in his cage. The whole session was about an hour and a half. :P

I want to say I figure that's enough time to spend with him in one day but I really don't know... I try to peek in there several times a day and talk to him in his cage for about 10 minutes or so. I don't know if I should take him out several times a day at this point.

[gigi]

no big deal, probably just drinking more water than eating food. poop isnt very consistent. gigi does this after a bath. its fine, wouldnt worry about it. i would be more worried about taking him out more often... gigi is out of her cage for at least four hours a day. theyre very independent little birds but with tons of energy. youre bird will go nuts being in there alone all day.

[sphinxface]

He just seems to get scared after a while... I will lengthen the time out of his cage after a while, but I've only had him out a few times... :P

[michael]

You may want to try taking him/her out in one hour intervals and just keep everything as usual. If you prefer to try to get him to step up on your finger or maybe a stick, I would try to be consistent with one or the other or whichever you feel is more successful. I think instead of one lengthly session two or three a day may be better. If he doesn't want to step up, close his cage and come back after a few minutes and try again. That would likely be less stressful than grabbing him........Say...Do you know if Beezles a male or female yet?

[sphinxface]

You may want to try taking him/her out in one hour intervals and just keep everything as usual. If you prefer to try to get him to step up on your finger or maybe a stick, I would try to be consistent with one or the other or whichever you feel is more successful. I think instead of one lengthly session two or three a day may be better. If he doesn't want to step up, close his cage and come back after a few minutes and try again. That would likely be less stressful than grabbing him........Say...Do you know if Beezles a male or female yet? My birdy will only step up on my finger if he is already in my hands, otherwise he will run away from my finger or a dowl. I have to wait till he is outside his cage and then I make him step up on his swing then I make him step on my finger from the swing :rofl: That seems the least stressful!

I should take him to the vet again I guess, it would really knowing huh? I've seen him slightly cage territorial, if my hand is on the top of the cage he will try to bite it, and I tried to put something new inside his cage today that he/she seemed unsure of... I just don't want MORE stress to happen by taking him all the way to the vet :(

[michael]

I have to wait till he is outside his cage and then I make him step up on his swing then I make him step on my finger from the swing :rofl: That seems the least stressful!
I should take him to the vet again I guess, it would really knowing huh? I've seen him slightly cage territorial, if my hand is on the top of the cage he will try to bite it, and I tried to put something new inside his cage today that he/she seemed unsure of... I just don't want MORE stress to happen by taking him all the way to the vet :(

Yeah. You know, I think whatever way Beezle is the most comfortable with is whats best to go along with, especially if he gets playtime and is still willing to interact with you. This give and take situation is still a wonderful experience to be able to share with a lovebird and may open the door to any number of interesting possibilities. I should add though, if Beezle is by chance a female this could explain some of the territorial behavior. But, as you know there's really only one way to tell.

Also, I understand what your saying about MORE stress happening by taking him all the way to the vet again. My lovebird has been there one too many times himself. Honestly though, if its necessary we really don't have much choice as often the alternative can be MORE stressful or even fatal. So we do what we gotta do and make the best of it. Give that Beezlebird a scritch or two for me...if you can :).

[sphinxface]

okay, well lets assume he IS a girl... should my approach be any different??

[michael]

okay, well lets assume he IS a girl... should my approach be any different??

Perhaps a bit more cautious :)! Honestly, I've only dealt hands on with a handful of female lovebirds and none were being kept by myself. One in particular though could not be handled at all even after 4 years. Most other larger species I've handled, even so much as one bite could leave you without a finger. So in a way, given these situations along with compared to what I've read throughout the forums here, I feel you've made good progress with Beezle and how he/she responds to you. And in a fairly short period too!... As to whether your approach should be any different? I'm really not sure, but in your case I'm leaning more towards no it shouldn't, as long as it works and you don't get bit. I think too, if you understand why females/hens act the way they do it may help to circumvent any issues that might lead to any aggressive or territorial behavior. For one thing hens are usually more protective of their cage simply because thats where they plan on laying their eggs. Another would be anything that resembles any nest building materials that are in or around their cage. They consider all of that stuff theirs regardless of how you feel about it. Besides, they know your not going to build a nest anyways :rolleyes:.

[sphinxface]

Hey Michael, I think Beezle really liked your skritches, his eyes were closing all contented like, I might just be making progress yet!