Quarantine almost done

[Bird Man Dan]

On the 27th day of quarantine here I know I still have some time. I need to know how to start introducing the birds to each other so I can be ready.

p.s. I'm not sure Goofy knows what a bird is. He was the only egg in his clutch and was hand raised. When he see's the budgie by the kitchen he used to be terrified of it.

[bellarains]

Hey Dan,

Slow introduction is the key to success. Start by placing their cages in the same room, and little by little move them closer together.

Continue spending your one on one time with them. Each of them seeing you with the other will help them get used to sharing you. After their cages have been side by side for awhile and you see them acting like they want to interact, take them out for short periods of time together. Always closely supervised. If they start to get too nippy with each other, their out time together is over for that time.

You will most likely see some toe nipping, and a little bullying from them both. They are testing each other to see who the more dominant bird is. There almost has to be a dominant bird, and what you are looking for is to make sure that one of them backs down, and that they can form a bond. If you have two very dominant birds, and neither is willing to back down, that can mean trouble.

Take it very slow. The slower introduction, the more likely they are to accept one another. They may hit it off right away, but you will still need to supervise them to make sure they can co-exist without causing each other injury, so I would not put them in the same cage together until you absolutely sure.

Let us know how it's going.

Lori

[Buy A Paper Doll]

Lori is right when she says that slow introduction is key.

How slow? Well, I have been doing introductions for about 6 weeks and there is no sign of my birds being ready to share a cage yet. They get along great for about 15 minutes, maybe 30 minutes, and then they're sick of each other.

Their cages are about 4 feet apart in the main living area of my house. I would put them side by side but I don't currently have a space to hold both cages. I let them play together several times a day, like I said, 15-30 minutes and then I separate them.

Good luck!

[shylevon]

Some birdies get along right away, while others do not and they need a great deal of introduction time. Even if your birdies hit it off the very first day, they must still be supervised closely.

I always keep a squirt bottle very close to me when birdies are getting to know one another, because a shot of water can get across a room to stop a fight a lot faster than you can. I set the bottle squirter to stun and zap them with a good shot if they start to get nippy with each other. A wet birdie is better than a bitten and bleeding toe, or worse.