Petrie and his cozy corner

[LMack1489]

Hi everyone,

I feel a little weird writing about this situation but I need some advice :blush:. I've had my male lovebird Petrie for about 8 months now and about 2 months ago I bought him a cozy corner. He seems to be really bonded to his cozy corner and sleeps next to it every night. However, he humps his cozy corner frequently :rotfl and within the last couple of weeks it seems that he does this non-stop. He has also started making a nest in the back of his cage and has become very protective of his cage and cozy corner. This doesn't really bother me, however, I've noticed yesterday that his bottom now looks almost swollen from humping his cozy corner so much and this is starting to worry me.

I've talked to my family about it and they suggest that I remove the cozy corner from the cage, however, this breaks my heart to do because he is so bonded to the cozy corner and it keeps him company when I'm at work. I just don't want him to be devastated if I remove it. I'm just wondering what the best thing for Petrie is at this point.

Thank you so much for reading my post and all of your help! :happy:

[linda040899]

What's happened is that Petrie is now sexually mature and the behavior you are seeing is associated with that. For lack of a mate, Petrie has chosen the cozy corner as a substitute, which is also very common.

If Petrie's vent area appears to be swollen, I'm going to ask if you are sure of gender. Petrie could very easily be a hen and she's in laying condition which, again, is not uncommon is single hens.

[LMack1489]

Before I got Petrie I had the breeder do DNA test with his blood that confirmed he was a male. I haven't found any eggs yet and this has been going on for a couple weeks now. Do you think that it is possible that he is just aggravating the area and causing it to be swollen?

[linda040899]

Could be he's aggravating the area from all the self satisfaction but what males don't do is build nests.

DNA is usually accurate, unless the blood sample that's submitted is contaminated. In that case, female can return as male, even though you really have a hen. You can check to see if there's an egg in the swollen area just by gently touching. A hen in laying condition will have her pelvic bones spread about the width of your pinky finger in order to allow the egg to pass. If the egg is down far enough, you can actually feel the hard shell.

[LMack1489]

Ok I'll try to feel Petrie then to see if I feel an egg. Should I take the cozy corner out of the cage? Or will this cause Petrie anxiety?

[linda040899]

Let's deal with the cozy corner once you see if Petrie is a hen or not. If yes, I'd leave it alone. If not, you can remove it but males usually find substitute objects for affection so it could also be an exercise in futility. :)

[Bernadette N]

Poor little Petrie. I hope he gets better soon. He must be quite uncomfortable.

:'(

[LMack1489]

Linda- I tried feeling Petrie's pelvic area and wasn't really able to feel his pelvic bone (might have been feeling too low). I might take him into his vet and get him checked out and maybe they can give me more insight on whether or not Petrie is male or female and where I should go from here. I also took a pic of his bottom area. If you want maybe I can send it to you and get your opinion on it. (I feel weird posting the picture for everyone to see since it's of his bottom :rotfl)

Bernadette- I know I feel so bad for him. He is still acting normal so I don't think he is sick or anything but the swelling worries me :(

[thebubbleking]

one of my males nalu does that to the point her wore out the feathers around butt but was left with just 3 tail feathers, so i took away his happy hut and he always finds something else to hump (no hair in buns or pony tails when hes around.) so i basicly make sure he as a soft plush toy that doesnt wear on him and put aloe vera on his butt to keep the skin soft n promote healing.

[ashleyandreotti]

I had the same problem with my parakeet ponyo. He was soooo attached to that thing and humped it ALLLLL THE time. hahah. It was his other best friend beside himself in the mirror, but I never had any problems with him getting irritated or swollen from it. I think it would be sad to take it away though. even my female lovebird cuddles with hers every night. I think I would take it to the vet. My breeder told me Pichu was a boy and turns out she is a girl, my breeder is beyond friendly but you just never know unless you find out yourself.

[LMack1489]

Hey everyone! Thank you all of the advice and input. I ended up not taking Petrie to the vet. Yesterday on my way out the door to work I went to say bye to Petrie and there was AN EGG :omg:!!!! Linda you were right! Petrie is in fact a female. However, I was a little devastated when I found the egg. Don't get me wrong, I don't love Petrie any less but it now explains why Petrie isn't that affectionate towards me and can be very territorial of her cage. I'm also worried about her having an impacted egg or other problems with laying eggs. My breeder actually had one of her own lovebirds pass away while delivering an egg because it broke inside of her and she bled to death :very_sad:.

I'm just wondering how long I should leave the egg in her cage? Or if I should just take it out now. She is pretty territorial of her cage and will not let my hands anywhere near the cage. Also if you guys have any other advice on taking care of female lovebirds, like how often do they lay eggs? Is there anyway of possibly reducing the amount of eggs she produces (if that is even possible).

Thank you all so much for the advice and information, the forum has really helped me and Petrie out :)