Darn time changes....

[Z28Taxman]

Ditto hates them. Everytime the clocks change Ditto's internal clock gets all messed up. He doesn't know when it's nap time, or time to eat.

All week he's been taking his naps at odd times, he's changed his eating schedule and seems to be turning into an owl. He eats like a horse in the morning, sleeps all afternoon and doesn't eat much until 7pm then goes nuts and is one wound up little bird from 8 until 11 and doesn't want to go to bed. I've even heard him come out of the hut and climb around the cage after midnight.:omg: I'm waiting for him to start hooting and chasing mice like an owl. :rotfl

Makes monitoring his weight difficult. Tuesday through Thursday his weight was 47 grams, Down from the 48-50 it's been since july. Yesterday after snoozing all afternoon and not eating anything since noon it was down to 46 grams at 5pm. :omg:

After eating for half an our he was back to 47 and by 10pm the scale was bouncing between 48 and 49 grams and his food dish was 7 grams lighter. Weighed him this morning when I filled the dish for his breakfast and he was 48 again.

Of course it doesn't help that the weather is the typical freaky fall weather. 70 degrees early in the week and 30's now, that always throws him off.

On top of that his winter moult is kicking in so it's a triple whammy.

[Maxie]

Lol@ turning into an owl :rotfl

I know what you mean. Im trying to keep Maxs schedule as it was before the time change but he starts getting sleepy as soon as it starts getting dark. So, I leave the kitchen lights on until seven o'clock, his regular bedtime. It seems to be working ok. :)

[linda040899]

I have the same problem, feathered AND human!!! Strange getting out of bed and it's light outside......... :omg: Almost as soon as I get home, the sun goes down. All I do is continue sunrise/sunset routine and it takes about a week for everyone to get back on track!

[Z28Taxman]

I have the same problem, feathered AND human!!! Strange getting out of bed and it's light outside......... :omg: Almost as soon as I get home, the sun goes down. All I do is continue sunrise/sunset routine and it takes about a week for everyone to get back on track!

He hasn't caught up yet. Today he was hanging out on his toy just relaxing when I uncovered him at 8:30. When I filled his food dish he snuck out through the food dish door and flew to me and supervised. Then he went in to the cage to eat and he hopped on to the food dish when I weighed it (I like to monitor how much he eats). It only said 46 grams but I don't normally get to weigh him before breakfast so Maybe that's not a reason to worry too much.

I went to visit my brother for an hour while he was having breakfast and when I came home he was peeking at me from in the happy hut. I'm not crazy about him being in there so early in the day but 11am would be noon last week which is when he'd start his afternoon nap.

What I don't like is that when I cleaned the cage he sat in there peeking out at me until I started scrubbing perches when he came out and sat on a clean perch that I swapped in. While I had the food dish out for cage cleaning I put it on the scale and he'd eaten a little over a gram in the hour I was gone.

He moult has however kicked into high gear in the last day or two, there were tons of little feathers in the bottom of the cage that weren't there Friday. Poor little guy, those moults kick in at the worst times.

Well he hung out in his happy hut while I did my dishes. Once I finished I opened the cage and about 15 minutes later I sat on the couch to play video games and he came out to join me. Of course he also had to leave a rather large present on my shirt. :lol

[Z28Taxman]

Well he had me worried all day today. The last time I saw him eat anything was when I left at 10 to visit my brother. Food dish didn't look like he'd eaten much.

At 2 he came out of the hut but then napped on the toy for an hour before moving over to his manzanita branch. He slept there for another hour and hopped up to his swing for another nap. I can tell he's itchy though because he'll wake up from time to time, fluff up, and give a good feather shake.

Well the worry about the full food dish was for naught, he actually ate quite a bit before settling in for his afternoon of snoozing. He just did his usual eat and arrange it so it looks like he didn't. Half the bowl was actually empty.

Once I got his veggies out and put them on the counter, nap time was over and the chirping and dancing began. He came out to supervise and followed the food dish back into the cage and started eating. That was at 4:40pm, it's now 6:25 and he's still eating.

Guess he's still got his appetite. :happy::happy::happy:

[Z28Taxman]

Lol@ turning into an owl :rotfl




I believe the transition to owl is complete. After sleeping almost all day, waking up to shake off moulted feathers and preen, right on cue at 8pm he's bouncing around the cage, doing his happy dance, screeching up a storm and actually climbing laps around the cage!

Not counting the now 2 hours he spent eating since 5pm.

[Z28Taxman]

Well I hope it's just his because his moult is kicking in and his sleeping all day yesterday, or my scale is really flakey, because today his weight is down to 45 grams (well the scale bounced between 45 and 46 until he stood still). He ate 5 grams today and at least 6 last night. His poops look good and he's one wound up little bird since I got home from work.

There are a ton of feathers all over the place and he's got pins everywhere, poor little fella.

And if that wasn't enough his hormones seem to have kicked in too. He's been doing the click click, spin, scratch head and feed the toy stuff too.

[Z28Taxman]

Ok that scale has got to be getting flakey. He ate two grams of nutriberries and some peas and pellets and it still says he weighs the same. He did not poop that much so unless he's got a black hole in his tummy the scale has to be goofy.

[Maxie]

Lol...sounds like it's off.
My Max is holding steady at 53 grams...he's on the hefty side :blush:

[Z28Taxman]

Yeah the scale is definitely acting up. Tonight when I weighed the food dish it said it weighd 169 grams with the food in it. Ditto was going to jump on to eat so I quickly zeroed it out and he hopped on. (44 grams :omg:). When I took him and the bowl off it said -170 so the it was off by a gram and he weighed the same 45 grams he did this morning.

He certainly hasn't lost his appetite. Normally when I fill the food dish he either stands on my shoulder or hangs on the front of my shirt waiting for me to fill it. Not today (or yesterday), he hops on the bowl as soon as I put it on the counter and tries to eat the food as I put it in. It's not easy filling the dish with a hyper lovie playing goalie. :rotfl

He's continued the hyper wound up ball of fire he's been since he woke up sunday evening after his all day nap. He only napped for 2 hours today and that was interrupted by waking up, fluffing, shaking out some down feathers and preening.

[linda040899]

Heck, Ditto needs to eat just to keep up the energy level!!!! Bless his heart for all that energy and enthusiasm! He sure adores his human slave! :whistle:

[Z28Taxman]

Well hopefully he calms down enough to put a bit of weight back on soon.

[Z28Taxman]

Well I did some google searching today and found quite a few hits regarding weight loss during moulting.

On a cockatiel forum one reported that their tiel went from 92 grams to 82 grams in a week then put it back once the moult was over. Others in the same thread reported their tiels losing some during a moult.

A veterinary paper reports that bullfinches can lose up 10 to 20 percent during a moult and penguins can lose 50 percent! :omg:

So hopefully that's what's going on and it makes dittos 3-5 gram loss seem not so bad.

He was 44 grams when I got home yesterday, and 45 when he woke today (after doing 3 poops) so fingers crossed.... :whistle:

[michael]

Well I did some google searching today and found quite a few hits regarding weight loss during moulting.

On a cockatiel forum one reported that their tiel went from 92 grams to 82 grams in a week then put it back once the moult was over. Others in the same thread reported their tiels losing some during a moult.

A veterinary paper reports that bullfinches can lose up 10 to 20 percent during a moult and penguins can lose 50 percent! :omg:

So hopefully that's what's going on and it makes dittos 3-5 gram loss seem not so bad.

He was 44 grams when I got home yesterday, and 45 when he woke today (after doing 3 poops) so fingers crossed.... :whistle:

Could be that due to the higher amount of protein (feathers are made up of 91% protein) needed to help nourish new feather growth during a molt, that in itself may be a main contributor to the weight loss.

[Z28Taxman]

Could be that due to the higher amount of protein (feathers are made up of 91% protein) needed to help nourish new feather growth during a molt, that in itself may be a main contributor to the weight loss.

Most certainly. That and the up to 30 percent increase in metabolism. I'm hoping that's all it is. He's certainly spending enough time at the food dish.

Last night the food dish lost 15 grams between 8:30 and 10:30pm. Now a good bit of that got smuggled into the veggie bowl but I don't think that much was in there when I took them out.

[Z28Taxman]

Well he ate his normal 3 grams during the day (most of that likely this morning) but the scale says 43 grams.

He's his usual perky self though, just covered with pins. No abnormal poops. He's gonna drive me to drink if he doesn't eat more. Maybe I'll make him some birdy bread this weekend and get him some sunflower seeds.

[Z28Taxman]

After eating, eating and more eating all night he's back to 45 grams and still eating. He did get mad at me though. After I put him back in after tv time, he started eating his veggies and flinging peas out of the bowl. I tried to put them back and he growled at them and threw them back out again. I guess he didn't want those 2 pods! :rotfl

[Z28Taxman]

Well his moult has slowed down and his weight as of right now is back to 46 grams! :happy:

[Z28Taxman]

This morning when I came down at 9am and uncovered him he was in his usual spot, face down in the food dish. He hopped on the food dish while I was trying to fill it and when I weighed it he stepped on and was 45 grams again so he's definitely putting the weight back on.:happy:

[Z28Taxman]

Last night while I was refilling his food dish he hopped on the scale and weighed almost 46 grams.

When I came down at 5:30 this morning I heard crunching coming from the cage. :omg:

I uncovered him and there he was, sitting in the dark, munching away. He normally doesn't crawl out of bed untl a few minutes after I walk into the room. Guess he was hungry. I left the food dish door open while I filled the bowl and he flew out to the kitchen to supervise. When I put the food dish on the scale to weigh it, he hopped on to eat and was a solid 46 grams! :happy::happy::happy:

[linda040899]

He's fine! Just wants his human slave to worry a bit, which the human does all too willingly and too well!!! :lol

[Z28Taxman]

He's fine! Just wants his human slave to worry a bit, which the human does all too willingly and too well!!! :lol

Yep, he sure knows how to get the panic level up! Good thing you're here to keep what's left of my sanity! :rotfl

It was surprising to hear him in there crunching away so early.

[linda040899]

If the temperatures are colder, he will eat so he can produce enough energy to keep himself warm. I've actually seen finches kept outside, out of the cold wind but without heat and they did very well. Lights had to be left on 24/7 and they were given a substantial amount of extra food so they could stay warm. It's supposed to drop into the 30s here tomorrow night so my lanai aviary will have extra heat plus extra food. Temperatures go back up to normal for this area Wednesday thru Thursday.

[Z28Taxman]

If the temperatures are colder, he will eat so he can produce enough energy to keep himself warm. I've actually seen finches kept outside, out of the cold wind but without heat and they did very well. Lights had to be left on 24/7 and they were given a substantial amount of extra food so they could stay warm. It's supposed to drop into the 30s here tomorrow night so my lanai aviary will have extra heat plus extra food. Temperatures go back up to normal for this area Wednesday thru Thursday.

30's? It'll be in the 20's here in a few hours. It's only 38 now.:cold

Fortunately I never let the house get below the mid 60's and during the day it's at 70. When it's really cold out I crank it up to 74.

[linda040899]

I like the house to be between 69F - 71F when it gets cooler but my lanai aviary is just a wooden structure so that requires heat and probably a lot more than if I insulated it. 99% of the time, it's not an issue but it's that 1% where I have to make sure my lovies are comfortable.

My house is concrete block and is well insulated. I haven't had the heat on much lately, as it's only cool for a short time and then warms back up.

[Z28Taxman]

I like the house to be between 69F - 71F when it gets cooler but my lanai aviary is just a wooden structure so that requires heat and probably a lot more than if I insulated it. 99% of the time, it's not an issue but it's that 1% where I have to make sure my lovies are comfortable.

My house is concrete block and is well insulated. I haven't had the heat on much lately, as it's only cool for a short time and then warms back up.

My house is wood and plaster with probably very little insulation. Turn off the heat and it's cold in a hurry.

[Z28Taxman]

Ditto is really turning into an early bird. For the second day in a row I came down at 5:30 and he was already having breakfast.

He came out while I was refilling his food dish and he was a solid 46 grams for the second morning in a row. :happy::happy:

[linda040899]

The time change is still affecting ME so I can appreciate Ditto getting up earlier! His internal clock hasn't adjusted so he's just doing what he ordinarily does at the same time his body says he's supposed to be doing it! Good deal with the weight!

[Z28Taxman]

The time change is still affecting ME so I can appreciate Ditto getting up earlier! His internal clock hasn't adjusted so he's just doing what he ordinarily does at the same time his body says he's supposed to be doing it! Good deal with the weight!

Don't know if it's the time change or just hungry. Although he is adjusting. Since the time change he's been crawling into the happy hut around 10:20, grinding his beak for a few minutes then realizing the light is not going off he would come back out and play. The last 2 nights he didn't do that. But he did still start and end his afternoon nap early this weekend.

I have no idea what he was up to last night. I fell asleep on the couch after he went to bed and when I woke up around 1am he was climbing back into bed. He probably got up for a drink.

[Z28Taxman]

He definitely weighs more in the morning than in the evening when I get home. 46 grams the last two mornings and 44/45 when I get home. He gains it right back though after I give him his dinner! :happy::happy:

Not surprising since he normally doesn't eat much in the afternoon.

He was however standing on his food dish screeching at me when I walked in the door.:whistle:

[Z28Taxman]

He's a little piggy tonight. He ate for 2 hours straight. I just refreshed his food dish and he weighed 47 grams!

[Z28Taxman]

Well, being a little piggy paid off. His food dish was 10 grams lighter when I got home last night. This morning when he came out to supervise his breakfast preparation I got him to step on the scale and he's back to 48 grams! :happy::happy::happy:

[Z28Taxman]

He's back on the proper schedule now.

Tonight he weighed 46 grams before dinner and actually made me stop getting his dinner ready to take a bath. When I was filling his water dish he hopped down onto my hand and fluffed up. So I had to put the dish down and make a bathtub with my hands for him.

No he's not spoiled at all. :whistle:

[Z28Taxman]

Well he weighed between 47 and 49 grams all weekend. So it must have been the moult that caused the weight loss. He was 47 grams this evening and there are lots of feathers so round 2 of the moult has begun. He usually moults in 3 stages. Down feathers and body feathers first, round 2 more down feathers, fewer body feathers but some tail and flight feathers. Round 3 the remainder of the tail and flight feathers that he's going to replace.

[Maxie]

He's back on the proper schedule now.

Tonight he weighed 46 grams before dinner and actually made me stop getting his dinner ready to take a bath. When I was filling his water dish he hopped down onto my hand and fluffed up. So I had to put the dish down and make a bathtub with my hands for him.

No he's not spoiled at all. :whistle:

Lol...too cute! I love it when I hear how spoiled lovies are. :)

Glad to hear Ditto finally adjusted to the time change and is back at champion weight! :)

[Z28Taxman]

Well his weight is holding at a more normal 47-48 grams at 5pm which is what it's been since July. If He's eaten before the weigh in it's closer to 50. :happy:

However phase 2 of the moult has kicked into high gear. When I cleaned the tray under the cage a few minutes ago there were almost enough feathers for another Dittobird and enough keratin that it looked like it snowed in there. Poor little guy looks like a porcupine.

[michael]

Hopefully the poor little fellow only has to go through one double phase molt a year. However long that is. .. I will say this, since cold weathers arrived, the Beeb's, although his molts are hardly ever noticable, has noticably been a bit more itchy scratchy lately.

[Z28Taxman]

Hopefully the poor little fellow only has to go through one double phase molt a year. However long that is. .. I will say this, since cold weathers arrived, the Beeb's, although his molts are hardly ever noticable, has noticably been a bit more itchy scratchy lately.

His june moult isn't as bad. It's the winter moult that's the worst. Usually starts in late November or early December and lasts until late December or early January. I couldn't believe the amount of keratin flakes that were on the bottom of the cage. Almost looked like someone spilled a salt shaker in there. Not to mention that it looked like a lovie exploded with all the feathers everywhere. At least now he's acting like he's moulting and spending the day snoozing and preening, rather than bouncing off the walls like he drank a pot of coffee like he was a couple weeks ago.

[Z28Taxman]

He's back to his normal spunky self. He doesn't look like a porcupine any more and he's up to 49 grams when I got home tonight. :happy::happy:

[Z28Taxman]

For the last couple of nights when he stepped on the scale before dinner the scale bounced between 49 and 50 so he's bulked up nicely! :happy::happy:

[Maxie]

Awwww :)

Lol at "bulked up nicely" :rotfl

[Z28Taxman]

Awwww :)

Lol at "bulked up nicely" :rotfl

He's been hitting the gym! :rofl:

[linda040899]

Finally!!! Got luv that Dittobird!

[Z28Taxman]

Finally!!! Got luv that Dittobird!

By the way, you Ditto is on the same page as your flock with the vita seed stuff. He nibbled at it but otherwise ignores it. >:

[Maxie]

He's been hitting the gym! :rofl:

:rotfl:rotfl

[Z28Taxman]

By the way, you Ditto is on the same page as your flock with the vita seed stuff. He nibbled at it but otherwise ignores it. >:

I swear he reads this board when I'm not looking. For the last two day's he's been eating the seeds. :evil:

[Maxie]

What vita seed stuff?

[Z28Taxman]

What vita seed stuff?

It's a seed mix from Higgins. It took him a few weeks but he's discovered that he likes it.

[Maxie]

Is it supposed to be good stuff?

[Z28Taxman]

Higgins is good seed. It's got millet, safflower, sunflower, dried fruits and veggies as well as vitamins.

[Maxie]

This is the seed mix I give Max....

http://www.petsmart.ca/bird/food/vitakraft-vitasmart-cockatiel-lovebird-food-zid36-3917/cat-36-catid-400005?var_id=36-3917&_t=pfm%3Dcategory

[Z28Taxman]

This is the seed mix I give Max....

http://www.petsmart.ca/bird/food/vitakraft-vitasmart-cockatiel-lovebird-food-zid36-3917/cat-36-catid-400005?var_id=36-3917&_t=pfm%3Dcategory

That's very similar to the vitaseed stuff. Ditto ate even more of it today!