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View Full Version : Moving to a new home, hormones?



Thornapple
09-24-2011, 12:00 AM
I have a lovebird, Gypsy. She is a female who is a rescue bird and in the past has been very nippy and distrustful due to the extreme neglect she experienced before me. Recently, my fiancé and I moved to a new apartment 3300 km away from our old home and as such, Gypsy came with us, for the whole trip. She was well behaved the whole way. When we got to our apartment however she started acting up. We have a walk in closet that is currently serving as her "bedroom", a nice quiet, dark place to put her to bed. However, she will not sleep. Our routine hasn't changed so I assumed it was the new surroundings but it has been a month and not only does she not sleep, ever. I often hear her playing and squawking long into the middle of the night when we have gone to bed, and squawking for attention VERY early in the morning, before the sun is even up! She is also molting and giving me displays-sticking her tail up in the air and positioning herself under sticks and toys Im holding and begging me to rub her, then sticking her wings out and making "tutt tutt tutt" noises.
I'm assuming this is hormonal and it will pass, but it seems to be going on for quite a long time. She is not making nests or laying eggs. Her eating hasn't changed, though she has been begging for dried fruits consistently lately-a thing she only recently decided she liked, after being on a snowpea bender for months.
Frankly, it is impossible to get anything done as she is propositioning me and screaming constantly when I am not within sight. She is in the living room or on the deck most days while we go about doing things and is only quiet when she doesn't think we're within hearing range.
I guess she's just horny? She does need to calm down though, so ALL of us can sleep and we dont have grumpy birds yelling at grumpy people.

michael
09-24-2011, 01:04 PM
It does sound like Gypsy is a bit hormonal. .. And who really knows how much the move may have affected her security. .. You certainly DON'T want to pet her. .. For now, my only thoughts would be to assess what she has in her cage, and her diet. If there's anything like a cozy, toy, something new perhaps, then maybe try removing it at night. Does she have a cage cover? . If so, do you cover her cage partially, or all the way? ..Have you tried limiting or completely eliminating her fruit intake (which may be too high in carbohydrates)? ... Unfortunately, it can be difficult to figure out exactly whats making her so anxious. .. Depending on age, and all the above factors, this could very well be any number of things. .... I'm hoping some other members here with more "hen experience" can share their thoughts. .............:)

Thornapple
01-27-2012, 10:57 AM
I usually cover her cage all the way at night for bed time, and she has her own room as well. She has since calmed down. She was hormonal and had tried "presenting herself" to my fiancé several times. Moving her toys was of no use because she would just use the bars of the cage. I never thought about fruit. She has never liked it but recently took an interest in the dried apricots in her tropimix and will go wild enough to fly out of her cage to steal them when I'm trying to fill her bowl with fresh food.