My baby is growing up...

[MrsDutchy]

Well Miso is now almost 8 weeks old and the days of handfeeding and cuddling are gone :( She's growing up and would rather eat millet and seeds and veggie puree from her treat cup then take any food from me and the spoon anymore. She is still completely tame but no longer interested in hanging out with mommy at all, rather run from me or try to run to the other room to see Sushi. The quarantine is almost over, thankfully. But in the meantime my baby is growing up and I miss the sweet baby birdie!

I have been working on the "up" command with her but now she doesnt seem to want to sit still on my finger for more than 30 seconds without taking off and fluttering to the ground. She will step up but then she's gone! She doesnt bite at all when I cup her in my hands but I used to be able to reach in her cage and she would come right to me... now I reach in and she freaks out fluttering to the other side of the cage (but still lets me pick her up with no problems).

Good thing though is that it seemed to be an abrupt swich when she decided she didnt want me to handfeed her anymore. She tears up millet and seeds and veggie puree now. And her weight is continiously going up! She's at 43g now :)

Anyway, my question is at her current age and behavior, whats the best way for training to hopefully have her bonded and "hanging out" with her mommy again?

[Janie]

My experience was different but "kind of" the same. :D When I got my two boys, they had been pulled at 9 - 10 days old by the breeder and hand fed so like your baby there were completely tame. They were about 9 1/2 weeks old when I got them. They were a little standoffish in the first week, then kind of all over me and stepping up fairly well but then.....as they got more comfortable in their new home, they went through a very wild stage (times TWO! :D) for a while. Once I was able to move them out of their quarantine room and into a large cage, they did get back into that mode of wanting to be on me and especially Big Boi. Big Boi is more of a "humans" bird and Shy is really a "birds" bird. I have had them for almost 7 months now (wow, times really flies) and more often than not, they do like to be on me and will cuddle. They love their time with each other the most but still crave human interaction.

I think Miso is going through an independent stage right now and really feeling her oats! She was totally dependent on you for several weeks and needs to explore and be her own birdie for a little while. But, she'll always come back to her momma! :D Like humans, they all have their own personalities and again, like us, they love to change their ways and their minds....from one day to the next! :lol

I know you are very proud of the good job you've done with her! :)

[MrsDutchy]

urgh boy has Miso gone full force into her independant stage! I had her out today to work on the "stepping up" and no matter what I did, she wouldnt step up, nor stay on my finger/hand longer than 10 seconds without flying off and fluttering to the ground! So it went like this.... she was on my finger, then would fly off... I'd try to get her to step up from the floor and she would actually try to RUN away.. So I'd pick her up in my hands and stand her on my finger only to have the exact same repeat in 10 seconds when she flew off :(

Then... it happened... she bit me for the first time :( She doesnt love her mommy anymore! She's back in her cage now preening herself and staring at me.

How do I curb her behavior and get her training back on track? Heck, how do I get her to stay WITH me for more than a few seconds anymore. HELP HELP!

[linda040899]

It isn't that Miso doesn't love you anymore. He/she is just more interested in the big new world that is now accessible! There's lots of things to see/do and he's going to try to get it all done now! Attention, attention and more attention will get back the sweet baby you are looking for but mobility has a lot to do with what's happening. If he flies well, you may want to consider a mini wing clip.

[MrsDutchy]

she already has a small wing clip, she can't get lift but seems to get distance instead of going straight down to the ground. Maybe I should increase the clip a little bit (only 3 feather clip now on each wing).

Maybe if I decrease her flying ability she'll be more interested in staying around on my hand longer? urgh I miss my little baby! hehehe And I want to work on her "up" training too as now she wont step AT ALL!

[linda040899]

You can try one more feather on each wing but I don't think that will increase the amount of time that Miso will spend on your hand. Lovebirds are not typically "hand/finger" birds. They prefer to be on your person, exploring all possibilities. Wearing clothing with pockets and places to explore usually works well with lovies! :)

[MrsDutchy]

Oh no I dont expect her to be a hand/finger birdie, but just looking for ideas on training her since she doesnt seem to want to stay with me long enough for ANY training hehe. I try the step up and she just jumps away or runs. She's also a lot more flighty when I reach into the cage, this just started yesterday.

[mjm8321]

You can try taking her into a small, dark-ish room. She'll stay close to you and you can work on your one on one time with her. She'll be stepping up in no time.

[Z28Taxman]

Oh no I dont expect her to be a hand/finger birdie, but just looking for ideas on training her since she doesnt seem to want to stay with me long enough for ANY training hehe. I try the step up and she just jumps away or runs. She's also a lot more flighty when I reach into the cage, this just started yesterday.


You should send her over here. Ditto can teach her how to behave. His favorite perch is my thumb (he's sitting there right now). :cool:

[MrsDutchy]

hahaha thats so cute! You have a thumblovie!

Miso just seems to be more affraid of me now, though she is tame. When I reach into her cage now, she is jumps away from me when she used to come right over to me. She has no problem with me picking her up in my hands and bringing her out but she wants to get away from me when I let her out of my hands (or she wants to get away from me and get TO sushi in the other room). I know I just need to work with her more since she's growing up but I am not sure exactly where to start since she just wants to get away from me.

[Janie]

Gina, I'll say it again.....I think they all go through stages and you can expect a new stage, at Miso's age, often! :D Some weeks my younger lovies are very clingy towards me and then they hit another stage, like a toddler or a teenager, and exhibit a totally different behavior. I do not see that with Oliver but he is much older (around 9 or 10) and is settled into a more "mature" behavior. He is much easier to figure out than Big Boi and Shy! :lol