George and Sam

[BarbieH]

We have progress! It's not what I would have predicted, but when have lovies ever been totally predictable? (Except for Gracie's biting, of course!) :rotfl

Sam is turning into a feeding machine. A lot of the time he tries to feed the other birds (via the bars of George's cage), but often I see him on a dominant perch to George, and George prompting Sam to feed him. The attraction seems irresistible!

They are not spending nights together yet. Sam still comes out with me for sleeve cuddles in the evening. But he also really seems to enjoy his time with George, and it's best for George not to be so alone. Still not preening each other, but I have little doubt that will come.

[NickyBeth]

Yay for the boys getting along!!

[BarbieH]

I tell them how proud I am, every chance I get. :) And Sam gets positive reinforcement with extra cage attention from anyone walking by whenever he's in George's cage.

[linda040899]

That's wonderful, Barb!

I'm so happy that the relationship between them is growing in a positive direction! :)

[Pips mom]

That's great.....I wish I was experiencing the same kind of thing here. Pip and Rudy are still keeping distance and one time while out together, they started really going at it and were fighting, so I'm not sure if these two will are going to get along. They do good sometimes while out together, but never any close contact that's friendly. They do talk to each other in their little lovie language and Pip will immitate what Rudy chirps exactly back to him, like they are communicating,.....it almost sounds like they are friends, but for now they're not getting along too great sometimes, and I'm on the fence about whether that could change over time or not. I guess time will tell!

[BarbieH]

How long have they been together? It took my male pairs (Sam and George, Bosco and Didgit) several weeks, months even, before they started looking anything like friends. If they can be indifferent to each other in the cage, it can grow. I would not put two birds together that were very aggressive in the cage. For instance, if one bird never seemed to like anything the other bird did, and was always chasing it around, I probably wouldn't keep them together.

If they are indifferent, all you need is time. We have all the time in the world. :) Bosco and Didgit are now very sweet to each other, preening, feeding, cuddling, but not acting sexually toward each other.

When your birds are out of the cage, it sounds like there is something they are not happy about sharing -- maybe you? I can never take Sam and George out together, as Sam is very territorial about me. George doesn't come out as often as Sam, but when he does, it's by himself.

[Janie]

I love it when they get along! :D Good boys!

[BarbieH]

Today we saw George feeding Sam. :D That's what I was hoping for!

[FuzzyAga]

Good for George!

[NickyBeth]

Good for George!

LOL, more like...FOOD FOR GEORGE.

Nice to see that they can learn to get along!! You must be so proud.

[BarbieH]

I'm proud of Sammy for learning how to be a bird. :) Tim and I had to feed him by hand from day one, and he never lived with his parents or any other bird. He's like Pinnochio learning how to be a real boy!

[michael]

I'm proud of Sammy for learning how to be a bird. :).......

Awww....:p.....He'll be shredding his diploma in no time!....:D

[FuzzyAga]

Now it's clear to me. If Sam was raised by you from day-one, then of course, in his mind, he's a person, not a parrot, and he's very attached to and territorial about you. You are all he's known in his life; you are the constant in his life and Tim and George are ancillary.

And along comes George, feathered George. What, no bare skin?, Sam must be wondering.

I can't help but feel saddened when a smart creature like a parrot grows up ignorant of his parrotness.

I sincerely hope that Sam and George become very best buddies. :) I cheer for them with every report.

[Pips mom]

Pip and Rudy don't spend tons of time together.....I let them have time together in the living room and it doesn't matter where they are because one day they'll seem fine in the same area, when another day they will fight. How much time together they get depends on how well they get along.....if they start fighting, I usually separate them after that! It's hard to even see who is more responsible for the fighting.....it almost looks like a mutual thing. I try to give them time out together each day, if not every other day. I can leave Rudy in his cage in the bird room and Pip usually doesn't bother with him....every once in a while he'll go to him and land on his cage and Rudy doesn't go after feet, but mostly when Pip is with Ivy in there, he ignores Rudy when he's in his cage. I only let Rudy out of cage in another room because otherwise I'm afraid of problems and wouldn't be able to catch him in there. When he's out in the living room he goes back to his cage on his own for me, I just put the others back in the bird room and I can get him back in cage easily. I've had Rudy now since July.

[FuzzyAga]

You and Tim are to be lauded for taking care of day-one Sam. (In case you misunderstood.) I equate that to operating on myself for appendicitis, or something equally stressful.

I know choices are handed to us and all too often the option to walk away is not there morally. In the end, we don't know what we can handle until we come face-to-face with it.

Happy for you that George and Sam are getting along.

[BarbieH]

Oh, I understood. :) We did our best to always keep his cage close to the other birds in our flock, so he could at least learn how to act like a bird, and I think it was fairly successful. Sometimes he seems mystified that I'm not more like a bird.

These have been his first opportunities to interact directly with another bird for longer periods of time. I'm happy to report that he is learning how to feed George, much to George's delight! And he now goes directly into George's cage in the morning without flying away. :) He is still very much in love with his long-term companion Fuzzy Frog, but he's not quite so anxious to return to her in the evening.

Keeping his anxiety down has been a major consideration throughout all this. I've never wanted him to feel that he's losing something, only that he's winning more new things in his life. And George's quality of life is enriched too, of course.

[linda040899]

The definitely sounds like a win-win situation! I've hand fed many day-1 babies and I try to encourage all of them to form relationships with other birds. It's much easier for them to be pets after they know they are parrots. :)

[BarbieH]

Here's the latest Sam-George update. I think they must be preening each other. When Sam comes out with me in the evening, I always check him for keratin, so I can remove it, and for a week or so it hasn't been there. I was also helping George in that regard, and he has had no visible keratin either.

When they are close in George's cage, Sam is usually on a lower (non-dominant) perch, so he can be fed. :) And today I noticed them on the same perch, same level, and Sam kind of sidling up to George. I would love to see them cuddle! I would be so happy for the both of them.

Sam still goes back into his own cage in the evening. If he's ever ready to give it up, I'm sure he will let me know. Either he won't want to come out of George's cage, or he will fly back to it, or refuse to go into his cage.

We have all the time in the world. :)

[CompassionAk]

I'm so happy they are getting along so great,way to go boys!

[BarbieH]

I saw Sam feeding George ... yes! I think he does it so he can be the tall bird. They still spend the nights apart, but they are doing so well during the day!

[linda040899]

Have you considered letting them sleep in the same cage yet?

[jen]

I'm so proud of them!!! That is great they are getting along so well! Hooray!