Very noisy birds!! help

[Becky9096]

Hello,
I need some advice on how to quieten down my two lovebirds. One is a male DNA sexed peachface and the other I am not sure of the sex as it is a new bird only about 4 months. I introduced them about a month ago very gradually and they seem to be getting on great. The new bird is hand reared and tame but my male is not.

My question is they seem to be SOOOOOO Noisy. I know lovebirds are noisy but this is a constant shrill shriek. Every waking minute. Whether i let them out to fly, put them away, cover the cage, feed them, give them new toys.. nothing makes them quiet. My other problem is that they have even started making noise at night!! my other lovebirds have never done this. the room is pitch black and the cage is covered but my new bird (sunny) will start shrieking in the middle of the night! sometimes she does a little soft chirp for a few minutes then goes back to sleep but this shrieking doesnt stop and she usually starts around 5am. I have to move her cage into another room so i can get back to sleep.
Please help!

[akki]

You must be frustrated - screaming lovebirds are for sure no fun :(

There can be a zillion reasons why they are screaming. One of them that they do not get a good night rest, which leaves them agitated during the day. So I would like to suggest this - get them a snuggle sack, a coconut or whatever of that kind where they can sleep during the night. Lovebirds like small dark enclosed places to sleep, which makes them feel safe. I noticed that with my own birds, that if I don't give them their snuggle sack to sleep (which I do sometimes to get the nesting hormones under control), they sleep more lightly and are more sensitive to whatever sounds (or absence of sounds ...) even if their cage is covered and the room is dark. Also, I sometimes double-cover the cage, leaving the back of it with only one layer, to make sure there are no cracks and the light will not get in, I use a soft throw for it, it also absorbs sounds from outside as well.

I have one of these sacks (http://www.amazon.ca/Snuggle-Sack-Cloth-Bird-Small/dp/B00BUFXG2S/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1432917292&sr=8-5&keywords=snuggle+sack), size small is good for two, but gets a little tight, although they don't mind that all, and size medium is good for two - three :).

[Becky9096]

Thanks for your reply.
I Already have them a little snuggle sac/tent thing - sunny the hand reared bird LOVES it and climbs in at bedtime. The other one has never wanted to use anything like that I guess because he doesn't really know what it is. He was from a pet shop, he prefers to sit out on his perch or swing but he has always been quiet all night so hes not the problem. Its sunny whos making the noise these days. I have tried double covering the cage and my room has black out shutters so it is literally pitch black. I do live in the city centre and its quite noisy during the night with traffic and stuff. But i don't know what to do as the screeching is unbearable. Even whilst i write this i have let them out for a fly around but they just never settle down - its constant shrieking to one another high pitched and as loud as they can be from the moment they wake till i put them in a black room and even then they still make noise during the night!

[akki]

Is there a place in the apartment where you live where it will be more quiet? You can try night cage - a smaller cage, that you can put in a closet.

If Sunny is in the tent, and another one is not, Sunny might be calling him to come to sleep together. I guess that is the high pitch sound that you are referring to - this is the calling sound, so they constantly are checking on each other. Try to introduce your other bird to the snuggle sack. Birds are in the beginning reserved about them, but once they have been in, they don't want to get out :)

How are they together? Do they interact? Eat together, sit together, preen each other?

[Becky9096]

Everywhere in the apartment is quite noisy unfortunately as it is facing a main road. Also there is lots of seagulls and they drive us crazy so i guess they wake the birds up too.

Yes sunny sleeps in the tent and the other one (sherbet) does not. So i guessed she might be calling for him to come in, but He is very apprehensive of using the little sac I don't know how I can get him to try.

Yes they sit together and preen each other and fly around together - if one flies the other flies too and they are always together. Sometimes they seem to argue a bit over food but they don't actually bite each other. My other lovebirds did that too when they were first introduced and eventually stopped so i figured it was okay.

It just seems no matter what they are doing they are always making that high pitched calling noise to each other, even if they are sat right next to each other! and they ALWAYS want out of the cage even though its quite big with lots of toys they shriek as soon as i put them back in.

How long should they sleep for? because sunny seems to want to wake up at 5am even if she doesnt go to bed until 9/10pm!

[akki]

Just put Sherbet inside the sack :) you will have to do it a couple of times, but that should be enough for him to get the idea. Especially if Sunny is in there already, he will quickly figure out how cool it is to be in the sack. Sometimes lovebirds are really fussy about trying out new things - and they are said to be curious!

Yes, that is normal behavior to sit next to each other and still yell - but that is not supposed to go on forever.

9 pm to 5 am is way too short, lovebirds are supposed to get about 12 hours of sleep. Seagulls could definitely be a problem, and other birds in general. Are the windows closed of the room where they are sleeping? Try to minimize the noise from outside as much as you can. And putting them in a wardrobe or a cabinet in a small cage for the night might work too.

During day time, sometimes they yell if they see you / hear you in the apartment and want to hang out with you. Sometimes it is better to keep the birds in the separate room where they don't see you all the time. They might be yelling at you (expecting you to communicate back). Lovebirds are usually good at keeping themselves entertained, but if the human slave is around, they might just want to yell at you and get your attention (positive or negative, both work for them) for their own entertainment. Ignoring their yelling is the best way to go, but that is hard to do, because any movement by you might be interpreted as a reaction to their yelling, so it's better to keep them in a different room altogether.

[Becky9096]

He isn't very tame so he doesnt like to be picked up by me (unlike sunny). He is scared of hands so its difficult for me to put him inside the sack.
I normally cover their cage from about 9pm -9am but even then Sunny will start screeching in the middle of the night at around 5am! I still leave them covered over and she usually goes back to sleep but its a pain.

Today I spent all day out of the room which they are in and they still screeched constantly!! I tried them in the cage, out the cage, me in there with them, me out the room, playing music, quiet, covering the cage and there honestly was not more than ten seconds of quiet. :( You can hear them all over the flat and throughout the building and I worry my neighbours will get annoyed. It seems like they are just communicating with each other and not so fussed about me. but there way of communicating is screeching!

Yes the seagulls drive me insane!!! they are so noisy. The windows are shut and we have big thick old fashioned shutters which block out noise and all the light also.
Are all lovebirds this noisy??

[akki]

Lovebirds are vocally present, can and will sometimes yell. But not like this what you are describing, this is out of proportion. My birds are on the noisier side, and will have their yelling moments two - three times a day for 15 mins or so.

Ok, try this. Clean and totally rearrange their cage - put food bowls in a different place, new toys and their favourite toys in a different place, a swing and a chewable toy is a must, and whatever you've got and they like. Put them enough food and water for the day and LEAVE THE ROOM. Do not enter the room for whatever reason, no matter how much they yell. If they yelled the whole day, just let them do it and come in in the evening to cover them. They will soon figure out that yelling is pointless and they don't get your attention (remember, negative attention is also attention!), so it should decrease. Give it a try, for about a week. It will not disappear fully, but you should see a change.

When they finally stop yelling, and are quiet for say, one hour, go to the room, and talk calmly and friendly to them. If they start yelling, just leave the room and don't come back for a good couple of hours.

[akki]

Also, how big is your cage? Do they have enough space to play?

[Becky9096]

Thanks for your suggestion. I tried re arranging the cage and put in some different things completely moved around all food bowls and swing and it seems to have worked (for now!!). I got a few hours of quiet out of them. As soon as i let them out to play they are shriek shriek shrieking again but in the cage they are being well behaved :).

However, sunny is still chirping throughout the night. Last night it started at 2am?! She can't possibly be wanting to wake up at that time surely? she only went to bed at 9pm? I don't know why she starts but she doesn't seem to stop so i have to get up and move the cage to a different room where i cant hear them!