First day outside of the cage in a long time...

[zlatushka]

Finally able to have Friday outside of the cage again, we let him out for a while after a few days of settling in here at our new place. Both babies were/are fascinated by the bird and, of course, try and get as close as they can to wherever he is. Friday, of course, mainly just cares about getting closer to the xylophone and other baby toys he considers "his". Eden kept trying to get Friday to get up on her arm like he used to, and he kept scooting out of the way. I kept telling her, "Honey, Friday's not used to us. You need to leave him alone until he's ready to be friends again." So she'd back off for a while, then go right back to it. Finally after listening neither to me or to the bird, Friday gave her a little nip on the finger. YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEOW! It wasn't a hard bite, but it probably hurt quite enough anyway for a little one. After that she wouldn't even come near the cage, and if Friday started toward her she'd start screaming, hyperventilating and backing away in hysterics.:roll: Still, now after a couple days things are back to normal. Friday sits most of the day on top of his cage, and comes over to be sociable as he feels like it. Eden has decided that the bird is ok after all, and is happy to provide the occasional perch on her head or arm. Haden just gets so excited, squeeling and waving any available appendage, any time the bird comes near that Friday just keeps his distance. Smart bird, I say.

So the moral of the story is... a nip in time saves nine? Hopefully she's learned a little healthy respect for the bird, and maybe to listen a little better. :)

[Keltoth]

Glad to hear that you and yours are settled in again! Nothing like a nip from the boss to keep all the underlings in line and on their toes...

...you know, I've got this pretty little green-series Violet Australian Cinnamon hen that would just look FAB-U-LOUS! sitting off of Friday's wing. I'm just sayin'... ;)

[zlatushka]

hmmmmmmm definitely a color combo I had been thinking about :) I looked through all your picture pages to see if she'd been paparazzied yet, but think she might only be there as a new chick(?) Also, I'm in love with that birch tree you've got in your bird room... do you have one planted in there, or have you created one?

[Keltoth]

hmmmmmmm definitely a color combo I had been thinking about :) I looked through all your picture pages to see if she'd been paparazzied yet, but think she might only be there as a new chick(?) Also, I'm in love with that birch tree you've got in your bird room... do you have one planted in there, or have you created one?

Yup, you're right - she is there as a new chick; for some reason I thought I had one of her more recent pics posted. I'll get some new ones taken today and put them on the website. There is a picture of her sister on the newest pics (Suzi), and she looks almost exactly like that, but a little more ragged as her feathers grow back in where her mama plucked her as she was feathering out.

The white birch is just a limb that was trimmed from one of our trees that needed to be pruned back a bit. I had left it out in the dry late August/early September heat to dry up a bit before bringing it in the birdroom. It is a bit taller than the 8-foot ceiling, and I just proped it up next to a cage and let all the lovies out for some group activity. They really like it, but I don't think it will last very long... :lol

- Eric

[Keltoth]

Ok, I posted 3 pics of the other Aus. Cinn. hen here (http://www.xmission.com/~zemik/index_files/Page2123.htm). The pics are not linked from the main website, so if you want to look at them again in the future, you'll need to either click the link in this thread again or just bookmark the page once you are there.

As I said, she does not look as sleek as her sister, but even so, her plummage has gotten ALOT better since she was plucked by her parents - and this will only improve with the passage of time. I've already given her a wing-clip, as she was a very proficient flyer and there came a point when I just needed to clip her to keep her from getting out of control.

- Eric